Black Bear cub #21-0545 update

Throughout the weekend, wildlife rehabilitation intern Ben carefully monitored Black Bear cub #21-0545 and worked through a method of delivering all of the bear's new medication in small servings of tasty formula "mush". On Saturday, Ben noted that the bear seemed calmer and was pacing less, though her paw wounds appeared to be bothering her. On Sunday, the bear also seemed to decrease her pacing behavior and was spotted cuddled with two other cubs on top of one of the climbing stumps in the Large Mammal enclosure. 

On Monday, June 7, the veterinary team brought the bear into the clinic to recheck the cub's paws; Dr. Karra reported that most of the wounds were improving, with the exception of one on the middle toe of each front foot. Since the cub was already anesthetized for the examination, Dr. Karra and team placed bandages on the bear's feet to keep the abrasions clean. The cub recovered and was taken back to the Large Mammal enclosure. 

The rehabilitation staff will continue to medicate the bear, since this seems to have an impact on the bear's behavior.