On December 28, a hunter in Augusta County was driving near Stokesville, Virginia, and saw a small bear cub on the side of the road. The man called a VDGIF Conservation Police Officer to ask what to do; together they decided that since the bear could be easily captured, the cub should be contained and transported to the Wildlife Center.
Dr. Ernesto examined the bear cub that same afternoon; he found that the small female cub was very thin, severely dehydrated, and anemic; she also had abrasions on all of her paws. It's likely that the bear was separated from her mother several months ago, and has not had the resources (body condition) to den for the winter. The bear's admission weight was 4.4 kg.
The bear received subcutaneous fluids and an iron injection and will remain in the Center's holding room for the next two days. If she does well, she'll move to the Bear Pens for additional observation. As long as the cub is eating well and is stable, the cub will move to the transition area in the Bear Complex. The bear will not be introduced to the other cubs immediately; since she's undersized, Dr. Ernesto wants to give her plenty of time to put on weight before competing with other bears for food. The bear has a yellow identification tag in each ear.