Appalachian Bear Rescue (ABR) is a black bear rescue facility located just outside of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Townsend, Tennessee. ABR is a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization that has been returning black bears back to the wild since 1996. Each year black bears from our national parks and surrounding areas are orphaned, injured, or in need of medical care. Thanks to Appalachian Bear Rescue, these bears are given a second chance at life in the wild.
Your 2024 Chubby Cubby Chonk Down Chonkion is...PUFF BEAR!! 🐻🌰🏆
Puff Bear came to ABR on May 29th from Great Smoky Mountains National Park. At the time, she was found unresponsive and park wildlife ranger, Ryan Williamson, was able to pick her up without a fight. When she arrived at the University of Tennessee's College of Veterinary Medicine (UTCVM) for her intake exam, it was found that she had multiple skull and jaw fractures, likely caused by an automobile collision, and a gas bubble on her brain. She weighed 6.2 pounds and her prognosis was extremely guarded. Puff Bear spent some time in the ICU before arriving at ABR's facility on May 31st. For weeks, curators continued to monitor Puff in the Recovery Center and noted signs of a neurological deficit; walking in circles, lack of coordination, etc.
But slowly, Puff Bear began to show signs of improvement. She was able to walk in a straight line again, her coordination seemed better and she even gained a "roommate", eventually joining SuBearu Bear in the Hartley House. After 63 days of confinement for her trying recovery, Puff Bear was released into Wild Enclosure 4. At that time Puff was 35.1 pounds. While we aren't sure how much she weighs now, curators are certain it's impressive. Puff Bear will be released back into the National Park sometime later this year. Congratulations Puff Bear, you are certainly a winner!! ... See MoreSee Less
This success story just proves what a wonderful asset ABR is to the bears. Little Puff Bear would not have had a chance without you folks. She is certainly a winner in more ways than one. Congratulations, Puff!
Congratulations to the lovely Puff Bear! As the saying goes “You’ve come a long way baby”! From where you started to where you are now is amazing. All the wonderful care you received at UTCVM and continue to receive at ABR proves that miracles do happen. You had a lot of great competitors but it seems very fitting that you came out on top. 🙏🏻🐻🥰
Congratulations Puff Bear!!! All the rescued bears are winners!! Love all the bears. 🐻
October 28th, 2024: A Peek At Your Chubby Cubby Finalists
Today is the final day of our Chubby Cubby Chonk Down! Take a peek at your two, round finalists in this short video and don't forget to vote on our Facebook and Instagram stories before midnight (ET) tonight. All the other bears at ABR are doing well. Tori and Katrina will talk more about everyone on Wednesday during Facebook Live.
I feel Jellybean was the victim of misleading photography. I am filing a challenge with the ABR legal team and we will get the true results sometime next month. Jellybean 2024!!!😉🪼🫘🐻
What an AMAZING thing to vote on ❤️🐻❤️
I LOVE ABR with all my heart and…. I am already making my wishlist from ARB’s shop 😉❤️🐻💪 THANK YOU ALWAYS
Our final match-up for the 2024 Chubby Cubby Chonk Down is...PUFF VS. DAISY MAE! 🐻🐉🐻🌼 Please vote for who you think is the chonkiest cubby of the 2024 season. The winner will be announced tomorrow morning. ... See MoreSee Less
Be sure to check out the ABR online store as you start your holiday shopping. A gift from the ABR store is a gift that keeps on giving! All proceeds from sales in our store support the injured and orphaned bear cubs in our care. Right now, there are twenty-eight cubs that need you!
Adorable holiday cards are here! The watercolor artwork was created for ABR by artist Jillie Eves. When you visit the online store, check out the new Comfort Colors "Light Their Way" tees. The artwork is printed on the back of the shirt. The ABR logo is on a pocket on the front. Finally, don't miss the 2024 Tim Weberding ABR logo ornament, "For The Bears".
Rags and Scruffy are eating well and sleeping a lot. Although they haven’t evicted any more critters in their scat, they need to start a second round of deworming medicine to ensure that the parasites and their eggs are gone.
The curators are scattering the cubs’ food on the floor and in the leafy branches of Hartley House instead of serving it in bowls, encouraging the cubs to forage for their meals. This method seems to be effective, as it prevents Scruffy from hogging food and gives his brother more time to eat. It also provides them with something to do while in confinement, which can weigh heavily on a wild bear cub. The cubs’ menu features peanuts in the shell, walnuts, pecans, one apple (which they’re still not eating), peanut pieces, acorns, and delicious mealworms. 🥜🌰🍎🪱
There’s a downside to having attorney offices on the premises: we are constantly threatened with some form of litigation. There’s a lot of noise coming from the Crawley-Cowe Sisters (Bovines at Law) regarding alleged irregularities in the Cubby Chonk Down Contest. Peeps Bear’s win over Duke Bear is being questioned as sentimental rather than factual. Spud Bear, Costumer and Paralegal, has been assigned to the case of Rags and Scruffy Bear since they are small and don’t require as much lawyer stuff. Apparently, Spud doesn’t like that Rags and Scruffy were competing against acorns; however, the cubs themselves haven’t complained—they found their opponents delicious! We’ll see where this goes.🐮🐮 🐮🐻
Our other twenty-six cubs are big and chonky, focused on getting even bigger and chonkier. Please keep voting in our Chubby Cubby Chonk Down to determine who wins!
🗓️ABR's 2025 calendars are available for purchase at our online store along with other items unique to ABR. We’ sorry, but orders are restricted to the USA only. Please click on the link below. appalachian-bear-rescue.myshopify.com/
I would like to share with my ABR community that my heart is breaking at the death of grizzly bear 399, but I take solice in knowing that our ABR cubs are safe and well cared for!
Icky question, but do the parasites come out dead or alive?
I had a dream the other night that a cub successfully climbed a forbidden tree. The.cub got over the protective part of the tree and then I woke up. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Puff, Jellybean, Daisy Mae, and Peeps Bear have made it to the semi-finals! 👏🏼 Please vote for who you think should make it to the FINAL round of Appalachian Bear Rescue’s 2024 Chubby Cubby Chonk Down in our Facebook and Instagram stories. Good luck to all the chonky cubbies! ... See MoreSee Less
Well Puff showed she is definitely a contender 👍after horrible circumstances she was found in, she was so lucky to have recovered with no neurological damages and made such fast progress !!!! But they are all winners 🏆 to me. So my vote won't count ❤️ as always special thoughts of sweet Tots, sure wish her name would have been on the voting list. Good luck cubby 🐻
Baby Peeps sure has come a long way from that tiny cub she was! Beautiful! 💕🐻🐾🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼
ABR Daily Update-October 26, 2024-Bearly 5K Run Success and Cub Updates 🏃🏻♀️🏃🏼♂️🐻
Weather: 75F (24C) Humidity 57%, Partly Cloudy 🌤️
Our Bearly 5K Run was a tremendous success (more details tomorrow)! We hope that everyone who couldn’t attend in person will send photos of their run to: dana.dodd@appalachianbearrescue.org
Rags and Scruffy are tolerating confinement in Hartley House and using their time to gain weight and sleep. Rags still doesn’t have the same level of energy as his brother, but he’s getting stronger and is able to wrestle for longer periods. Several of our friends have asked how Rags and Scruffy managed to have so many parasites and whether they are common in the wild.
Black bears in the wild do have parasites; they are a natural part of life. However, healthy bears can keep their parasite load in check. Very young, sick, or old bears with weaker or exhausted immune systems cannot. As a result, the number of parasites increases, absorbing more nutrients. Often, as we believe was the case for Rags and Scruffy, whatever food the bears consume serves to nourish the parasites, preventing them from recovering. We’re fortunate that we got the cubs in time; it’s unlikely they could have survived through winter.
Our curators had to enter Wild Enclosures #3 and #4, which they do only when absolutely necessary. Someone (🐻) in WE#3 damaged the spigot on the drinking tub. Although the cubs can and do drink from The Cubby Pool, the curators want both sources of water operational. Bears in hyperphagia need to drink plenty of water to process the enormous amount of calories they consume, and we can’t risk having them go thirsty. While in WE#3, a curator (Greg) retrieved a food scoop that had been accidentally launched over the fence. 🚨(Curators: Please remember to hold on to the scoop when flinging food over the fence. 🚨Cubs: Finders are NOT keepers!)
In WE#4, someone (🐻) rolled a log into the electric fence, so the curators had to remove it to prevent clever cubs from testing our security system. The curators completed their work quickly while being watched by many little bears, who were up in trees. They didn’t come down until after the two-legged, furless bears left.🐻🐻
🗓️Our 2025 calendars are available for purchase at our online store along with other items unique to ABR. We’ sorry, but orders are restricted to the USA only. Please click on the link below. appalachian-bear-rescue.myshopify.com/
So much going on at ABR! So glad the 5K run was such a huge success. Glad to see that Rags and Scruffy continue to gain strength and weight. Do we know which munchkin in WE3 damaged the spigot? I don’t suppose anyone is stepping forward to confess. Glad Curator Greg got that rogue scoop back. Again, do we know who rolled the log into the electric fence in WE4? No confessions there either I suppose. Good little bears going up the trees while the strange beings were in their enclosure!
🙏🏻💙♥️x28 plus curators
Yes, those wonderful bears keep you busy! Thanks for all the lovely pics and texts❤️🐾🐾🐾....
So glad it was a good turn out for the bearly 5k. I had the pleasure of meeting Dana early this morning when we were leaving to head home (I noticed the ABR defender) and made mom back up so I could say hi. 🐻❤️
We have reached the quarter finals! Please participate in today's Chubby Cubby Chonk Down match-ups by voting on our Facebook and Instagram stories. Our final cubby contenders are SuBearu Bear, Puff, Jellybean, Rags, Fuzzy, Daisy Mae, Peeps, and Special Sauce. 🐻 Have fun and good luck!! ... See MoreSee Less
DONATE TODAY!!
Your 2024 Chubby Cubby Chonk Down Chonkion is...PUFF BEAR!! 🐻🌰🏆
Puff Bear came to ABR on May 29th from Great Smoky Mountains National Park. At the time, she was found unresponsive and park wildlife ranger, Ryan Williamson, was able to pick her up without a fight. When she arrived at the University of Tennessee's College of Veterinary Medicine (UTCVM) for her intake exam, it was found that she had multiple skull and jaw fractures, likely caused by an automobile collision, and a gas bubble on her brain. She weighed 6.2 pounds and her prognosis was extremely guarded. Puff Bear spent some time in the ICU before arriving at ABR's facility on May 31st. For weeks, curators continued to monitor Puff in the Recovery Center and noted signs of a neurological deficit; walking in circles, lack of coordination, etc.
But slowly, Puff Bear began to show signs of improvement. She was able to walk in a straight line again, her coordination seemed better and she even gained a "roommate", eventually joining SuBearu Bear in the Hartley House. After 63 days of confinement for her trying recovery, Puff Bear was released into Wild Enclosure 4. At that time Puff was 35.1 pounds. While we aren't sure how much she weighs now, curators are certain it's impressive. Puff Bear will be released back into the National Park sometime later this year. Congratulations Puff Bear, you are certainly a winner!! ... See MoreSee Less
81 CommentsComment on Facebook
This success story just proves what a wonderful asset ABR is to the bears. Little Puff Bear would not have had a chance without you folks. She is certainly a winner in more ways than one. Congratulations, Puff!
Congratulations to the lovely Puff Bear! As the saying goes “You’ve come a long way baby”! From where you started to where you are now is amazing. All the wonderful care you received at UTCVM and continue to receive at ABR proves that miracles do happen. You had a lot of great competitors but it seems very fitting that you came out on top. 🙏🏻🐻🥰
Congratulations Puff Bear!!! All the rescued bears are winners!! Love all the bears. 🐻
View more comments
... See MoreSee Less
2 CommentsComment on Facebook
Love the New Cover Photo! 😃❤️
Very nice! 🧸 🥰
October 28th, 2024: A Peek At Your Chubby Cubby Finalists
Today is the final day of our Chubby Cubby Chonk Down! Take a peek at your two, round finalists in this short video and don't forget to vote on our Facebook and Instagram stories before midnight (ET) tonight. All the other bears at ABR are doing well. Tori and Katrina will talk more about everyone on Wednesday during Facebook Live.
Thank you for keeping our bears in your heart. You provide the Bear Necessities and give them a second chance.
appalachianbearrescue.org/2024-bear-necessities-campaign/?fbclid=IwY2xjawGM3P5leHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHb... ... See MoreSee Less
23 CommentsComment on Facebook
I feel Jellybean was the victim of misleading photography. I am filing a challenge with the ABR legal team and we will get the true results sometime next month. Jellybean 2024!!!😉🪼🫘🐻
What an AMAZING thing to vote on ❤️🐻❤️ I LOVE ABR with all my heart and…. I am already making my wishlist from ARB’s shop 😉❤️🐻💪 THANK YOU ALWAYS
Wait! What happened to Jellybean!!!
View more comments
Our final match-up for the 2024 Chubby Cubby Chonk Down is...PUFF VS. DAISY MAE! 🐻🐉🐻🌼 Please vote for who you think is the chonkiest cubby of the 2024 season. The winner will be announced tomorrow morning. ... See MoreSee Less
49 CommentsComment on Facebook
Wow! And to think we all Thought Jellybean had the season wrapped up. What a surprise!
Well I must go with my adopted boo-boo Daisy Mae! You go girl!!!
How can I vote?
View more comments
October 28, 2024: Check Out the ABR Online Store!
Be sure to check out the ABR online store as you start your holiday shopping. A gift from the ABR store is a gift that keeps on giving! All proceeds from sales in our store support the injured and orphaned bear cubs in our care. Right now, there are twenty-eight cubs that need you!
Adorable holiday cards are here! The watercolor artwork was created for ABR by artist Jillie Eves. When you visit the online store, check out the new Comfort Colors "Light Their Way" tees. The artwork is printed on the back of the shirt. The ABR logo is on a pocket on the front. Finally, don't miss the 2024 Tim Weberding ABR logo ornament, "For The Bears".
There's something for nearly everyone on your list!
appalachian-bear-rescue.myshopify.com/ ... See MoreSee Less
32 CommentsComment on Facebook
Do you have the cards in the store? I'm in town this week and can stop in. If not, I will order them. 🩷🐻
I sent y'all a message in regards to acorns. I have tons of you need them. 🧡
Are any of these items available at your shop in Townsend?
View more comments
ABR Daily Update-October 27, 2024-The Great Cubby Chonk Down: Food, Fun, and Legal Drama 🎭🐻🐻🐮🐮🐮
Weather: 67F (19C) Humidity 69%, Mostly cloudy. 🌥️
Rags and Scruffy are eating well and sleeping a lot. Although they haven’t evicted any more critters in their scat, they need to start a second round of deworming medicine to ensure that the parasites and their eggs are gone.
The curators are scattering the cubs’ food on the floor and in the leafy branches of Hartley House instead of serving it in bowls, encouraging the cubs to forage for their meals. This method seems to be effective, as it prevents Scruffy from hogging food and gives his brother more time to eat. It also provides them with something to do while in confinement, which can weigh heavily on a wild bear cub. The cubs’ menu features peanuts in the shell, walnuts, pecans, one apple (which they’re still not eating), peanut pieces, acorns, and delicious mealworms. 🥜🌰🍎🪱
There’s a downside to having attorney offices on the premises: we are constantly threatened with some form of litigation. There’s a lot of noise coming from the Crawley-Cowe Sisters (Bovines at Law) regarding alleged irregularities in the Cubby Chonk Down Contest. Peeps Bear’s win over Duke Bear is being questioned as sentimental rather than factual. Spud Bear, Costumer and Paralegal, has been assigned to the case of Rags and Scruffy Bear since they are small and don’t require as much lawyer stuff. Apparently, Spud doesn’t like that Rags and Scruffy were competing against acorns; however, the cubs themselves haven’t complained—they found their opponents delicious! We’ll see where this goes.🐮🐮 🐮🐻
Our other twenty-six cubs are big and chonky, focused on getting even bigger and chonkier. Please keep voting in our Chubby Cubby Chonk Down to determine who wins!
🗓️ABR's 2025 calendars are available for purchase at our online store along with other items unique to ABR. We’ sorry, but orders are restricted to the USA only. Please click on the link below.
appalachian-bear-rescue.myshopify.com/
❤️Please consider donating to Appalachian Bear Rescue’s Room in Your Heart Campaign.
appalachianbearrescue.org/room-in-your-heart-campaign/
🎉Our Visitor & Education Center at Trillium Cove is open! Please click on the link for more information:
appalachianbearrescue.org/contact-us/
🛑bearwise.org offers excellent information on what black bears are up to at this time of year and what to do if you hike or live in “Bear Country”.
*We post one update daily, seven days a week. ... See MoreSee Less
29 CommentsComment on Facebook
I would like to share with my ABR community that my heart is breaking at the death of grizzly bear 399, but I take solice in knowing that our ABR cubs are safe and well cared for!
Icky question, but do the parasites come out dead or alive?
I had a dream the other night that a cub successfully climbed a forbidden tree. The.cub got over the protective part of the tree and then I woke up. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
View more comments
Puff, Jellybean, Daisy Mae, and Peeps Bear have made it to the semi-finals! 👏🏼 Please vote for who you think should make it to the FINAL round of Appalachian Bear Rescue’s 2024 Chubby Cubby Chonk Down in our Facebook and Instagram stories. Good luck to all the chonky cubbies! ... See MoreSee Less
12 CommentsComment on Facebook
Well Puff showed she is definitely a contender 👍after horrible circumstances she was found in, she was so lucky to have recovered with no neurological damages and made such fast progress !!!! But they are all winners 🏆 to me. So my vote won't count ❤️ as always special thoughts of sweet Tots, sure wish her name would have been on the voting list. Good luck cubby 🐻
Baby Peeps sure has come a long way from that tiny cub she was! Beautiful! 💕🐻🐾🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼
View more comments
ABR Daily Update-October 26, 2024-Bearly 5K Run Success and Cub Updates 🏃🏻♀️🏃🏼♂️🐻
Weather: 75F (24C) Humidity 57%, Partly Cloudy 🌤️
Our Bearly 5K Run was a tremendous success (more details tomorrow)! We hope that everyone who couldn’t attend in person will send photos of their run to: dana.dodd@appalachianbearrescue.org
Rags and Scruffy are tolerating confinement in Hartley House and using their time to gain weight and sleep. Rags still doesn’t have the same level of energy as his brother, but he’s getting stronger and is able to wrestle for longer periods. Several of our friends have asked how Rags and Scruffy managed to have so many parasites and whether they are common in the wild.
Black bears in the wild do have parasites; they are a natural part of life. However, healthy bears can keep their parasite load in check. Very young, sick, or old bears with weaker or exhausted immune systems cannot. As a result, the number of parasites increases, absorbing more nutrients. Often, as we believe was the case for Rags and Scruffy, whatever food the bears consume serves to nourish the parasites, preventing them from recovering. We’re fortunate that we got the cubs in time; it’s unlikely they could have survived through winter.
Our curators had to enter Wild Enclosures #3 and #4, which they do only when absolutely necessary. Someone (🐻) in WE#3 damaged the spigot on the drinking tub. Although the cubs can and do drink from The Cubby Pool, the curators want both sources of water operational. Bears in hyperphagia need to drink plenty of water to process the enormous amount of calories they consume, and we can’t risk having them go thirsty. While in WE#3, a curator (Greg) retrieved a food scoop that had been accidentally launched over the fence. 🚨(Curators: Please remember to hold on to the scoop when flinging food over the fence. 🚨Cubs: Finders are NOT keepers!)
In WE#4, someone (🐻) rolled a log into the electric fence, so the curators had to remove it to prevent clever cubs from testing our security system. The curators completed their work quickly while being watched by many little bears, who were up in trees. They didn’t come down until after the two-legged, furless bears left.🐻🐻
🗓️Our 2025 calendars are available for purchase at our online store along with other items unique to ABR. We’ sorry, but orders are restricted to the USA only. Please click on the link below.
appalachian-bear-rescue.myshopify.com/
❤️Please consider donating to Appalachian Bear Rescue’s Room in Your Heart Campaign.
appalachianbearrescue.org/room-in-your-heart-campaign/
🎉Our Visitor & Education Center at Trillium Cove is open! Please click on the link for more information:
appalachianbearrescue.org/contact-us/
🛑bearwise.org offers excellent information on what black bears are up to at this time of year and what to do if you hike or live in “Bear Country”.
*We post one update daily, seven days a week. ... See MoreSee Less
18 CommentsComment on Facebook
So much going on at ABR! So glad the 5K run was such a huge success. Glad to see that Rags and Scruffy continue to gain strength and weight. Do we know which munchkin in WE3 damaged the spigot? I don’t suppose anyone is stepping forward to confess. Glad Curator Greg got that rogue scoop back. Again, do we know who rolled the log into the electric fence in WE4? No confessions there either I suppose. Good little bears going up the trees while the strange beings were in their enclosure! 🙏🏻💙♥️x28 plus curators
Yes, those wonderful bears keep you busy! Thanks for all the lovely pics and texts❤️🐾🐾🐾....
So glad it was a good turn out for the bearly 5k. I had the pleasure of meeting Dana early this morning when we were leaving to head home (I noticed the ABR defender) and made mom back up so I could say hi. 🐻❤️
View more comments
We have reached the quarter finals! Please participate in today's Chubby Cubby Chonk Down match-ups by voting on our Facebook and Instagram stories. Our final cubby contenders are SuBearu Bear, Puff, Jellybean, Rags, Fuzzy, Daisy Mae, Peeps, and Special Sauce. 🐻 Have fun and good luck!! ... See MoreSee Less
13 CommentsComment on Facebook
Go Jelly Bean
Showcase showdown: Jellybean vs Rags 😂 🐻 😂 🐻
All the Cubbies at ABR are Winners!! 😃🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🐻🎈🎉🎈🎉🎈🎉🎈🎉🎈🎉🎈🎉💯💯💯
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