An abandoned little bear cub was rescued from the woods, and now he’s getting all the love and care from humans who are pretending to be bears at the San Diego Humane Society’s Ramona Wildlife Center. The 2-month-old cub was found all alone in the woods, and to make sure he doesn’t get too attached to people, the staff members are suiting up in bear costumes to take care of him.
“He was super fragile when he first got here,” said Autumn Welch, the wildlife operations manager at the center. “After going without food for a few days, things were touch-and-go. But now, he’s doing much better – he’s active, eating well, and gaining weight like a champ.” The little cub needs four feeding and enrichment sessions every day, with extra feedings during the night in the beginning.
The cub was discovered on April 12 in the Los Padres National Forest, all skinny, weak, and by himself. Biologists tried to reunite him with his mama bear, but unfortunately, she didn’t show up. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife stepped in and brought the cub to the wildlife center a couple of days after he was found. The plan is to keep him at the center for about a year before hopefully sending him back to the wild. If there’s another cub around, they might even pair them up to keep them from getting too attached to humans. Not really sure why this matters, but the bear is actually the fourth one to be rehabilitated in California in the last five years.
“This is a pretty unusual situation,” Welch added. “We don’t usually see bears this young without their mom around. It’s an honor to take care of him, but it’s also a big commitment.” So, for more info on the wildlife center, you can check out sdhumane.org/programs/project-wildlife/ramona. Maybe it’s just me, but it sounds like they’re doing some pretty great work over there.
