Editor:
Three orphaned black bear cubs got an early Christmas gift this past week: a better chance for survival.
Thanks to the hard work of our local conservation officer service (COS), the cubs were successfully captured then transported to Critter Care Wildlife Society.
The bears will be released back to the Sunshine Coast next spring.
This was truly a collaborative community effort.
A combination of groups, agencies, residents, and bear advocates all worked together towards one goal – to rescue and rehabilitate these cubs of the year.
Next year, as yearlings, they would no longer have been eligible for placement at Critter Care. Critter Care, located in the Lower Mainland, is one of only three facilities in B.C. permitted to take bear cubs.
The first cub, from Langdale, was underweight and had pneumonia. He wouldn’t have survived without intervention.
The next two cubs were siblings from Elphinstone. Healthy, and overweight. One weighed in at 85 lb., well above the normal body weight of a wild bear cub. This indicates that their diet was most likely being “supplemented” with non-natural foods; it also indicates that we still have a significant “bear attractant” issue to address.
For now though, it simply feels good to celebrate that these cubs are safely in care and that we did it, together.
Someone once said “It takes a village” … it certainly does.
Many thanks to Sgt. Dean Miller (COS), Irene Davy (GWRC), Ellie Lamb (BCBA/Bear Smart/NSBBS), Critter Care (CCWS), Diane Henley (SCBA), WildSafeBC-Sunshine Coast, Anna Miller, and ALL members of the community who contribute towards education and advocacy for bears.
Nicely done!
Kim Drescher
Bear Awareness & Safety, Sunshine Coast
