Black Bear cub #20-0384 [No Tag]

On Tuesday, April 7, another Black Bear cub was admitted to the Wildlife Center. The tiny female cub was found alone in Buchanan County on April 6 and was taken to a local veterinary clinic before she spent the night at the Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center of Roanoke.

Dr. Karra, the Center’s veterinary intern, examined the young cub at admission. The small bear was bright and alert and also "very squirmy", according to Dr. Karra. No injuries were noted, though the cub was dehydrated and thin; at 1.2 kg, she’s about half the size of the smallest cub in the Center’s Large Mammal Isolation enclosure. Since the cub was too small to be ear-tagged, Dr. Karra elected to postpone a full set of radiographs until the cub is older, when the cub can be anesthetized for radiographs, additional blood work, and ear tagging.

The cub was placed in a Zinger crate and was moved to the Large Mammal enclosure that same evening, so the young bear could be around other cubs. The newest cub is too small to have free access to the space, so she will stay in the Zinger crate until she grows and puts on more weight.

Your donation will help provide specialized care to this orphaned bear cub for the next year — until she’s old enough to return to the wild in 2021. Thank you!