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.
ABR Daily Update: October 17, 2024-Resilient Cubs 🐻🐻
Weather: 60F (16C) Humidity 38%, Sunny 🌞
Rags and Scruffy, our two recent arrivals, are doing well. They have two rooms in Hartley House and are still getting used to their new world. Both cubs resumed taking their deworming medicine, but Rags, the smaller of the two, is expelling parasites in quantities we've never seen coming from a bear cub, including a rat-tailed maggot. 🤢It's become graphically obvious why he and his brother are so small and confirms our opinion that neither would have survived to see the new year. The car accident that took the life of their mother may have saved theirs.
Our new Facebook friends may not be familiar with how the curators medicate multiple cubs housed in the same building: the little bears are separated, one in each room, so the curators can be sure each cub gets the right dose of medicine and eats all of it. Today, Scruffy decided he wasn't interested in taking his medicine, which is frustrating since this was to be his last dose for two weeks. While the curators can separate the brothers for a little while, the bears become very upset, and it's better to reunite them and attempt the procedure again later in the day.
The curators are watching the cubs carefully; the parasites the little bears have been carrying, along with the prolonged malnutrition they caused, may have affected them neurologically. We're watching to see how the cubs move, how they climb, and how they interact with each other and their food. At present, the curators are pleased with the siblings' progress. Black bears are resilient beings.🐻🐻
Our other twenty-six cubs are doing very well. We'll focus on them in tomorrow's post.
🗓️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/
Today was my last day of vacation in Townsend . I stopped in to ABR to do a little shopping . Picked up a T shirt , two calendars and adopted Rags and Scruffy . Thank you for all you do ! I’ll be back in May 2025 .
I know it’s too early but are you going to let us know when Scruffy and Rags will be ready for Adoption?
I guess it is true that sometimes sad situations can bring about unexpected good consequences. Without a doubt Rags and Scruffy would never have made it on their own, and possibly even with their mother. They were getting no nutrition whatsoever from whatever food they were eating because of all the parasites they had. I know that their sweet little Momma gave them all she had to give, but it seems she was in a precarious situation as well, being so small herself. Be good boys and take your medications. We want to see just how big you can grow to be.
🙏🏻🐻♥️x28, especially Rags, Scruffy and Curators
October 17th, 2024 - Defender Service Awards FINAL DAY OF VOTING
Today is the LAST DAY to help our neighbors in North Carolina win the Defender Service Awards Contest in their respective categories. Thank you to everyone who has been following along and voting daily! Winners will be announced no later than December 1st, 2024. We know how game-changing it was for Appalachian Bear Rescue to win the Service Awards in 2022. Now, it's Appalachian Wildlife Refuge and Linville-Central Rescue Squad's turn! 🎉
I am proud to say I voted every single day in each of the six categories with my heart & praying especially for our two local agencies: Linville-Central Rescue Squad & Appalachian Wildlife Refuge to win!
Voted and again thanks for the reminders. Please remind us again Nov 23 when the winners are announced.
This was a wonderfully generous offer by Land Rover - and a good way of raising awareness of all the committed, hard working organisations so dedicated to conservation and community upliftment. Bravo Land Rover! 👏👏👏👏👏
October 16th, 2024 - Defender Service Awards Voting Day #15
There's only two more days left in the 2024 Defender Service Awards Competition!! Please make sure to cast your votes today and tomorrow to help six nonprofit organizations win customized Land Rover Defender 130 vehicles and $25,000 cash to aid them in their missions and recognize all of the great work that they do!
October 15, 2024: Yucky Worms (Note Photo May Be Disturbing!)
Worms are not a favorite topic for many of us, but getting rid of worms and other parasites is a very important part of our care protocol for cubs. Deworming wildlife can be a bit controversial. Bears will pick up parasites again as soon as they are back in their natural world. All bears have parasites. A big healthy bear usually isn't harmed by the parasite load. So why use deworming meds?
Little cubs in our care are another story. The parasites consume all the nutrients in the foods that we provide, so it's difficult to get a cub on a path to become a chubby cubby ready for release.
Our newest cubs 423 Scruffy and 424 Rags have been through a lot. They were orphaned when their mother bear was hit by a vehicle. Then they were temporarily separated when Scruffy was trapped, but Rags wouldn't enter a trap. They have been back together since Friday night, but it may feel like they were abducted by "aliens" and taken to a very unfamiliar place. They've both been to UTCVM-University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine for medical checkups. That trip requires harsh immobilization drugs. Rags received iron and antibiotic injections, both capable of upsetting a tummy. Then they both received deworming meds capable of further distressing a cubby tummy.
It a lot for a little bear, but this is the only way we can get them on a path to chubbiness. With your help, these little bears will soon be chubby and ready for a second chance at life in the wild. We can't thank you enough for all you do for us and all you do for them.
Today, we share excepts from the Curator Notes. We use these notes to communicate the plan of treatment with all of our staff members. We thought you might be interested:
At intake exams at UTVCM #423 and #424 were declared small and underweight but not emaciated. They were prescribed a round of deworming including Praziquantel and Fenbendazole. Both cubs received the appropriate dose of Praziquantel and their first dose of Fenbendazole. Upon curators noticing cubs were sluggish (particularly #424), it was decided that cubs should not receive the next 2 doses of Fenbendazole until they were more acclimated to Hartley House and ABR. The sluggishness was likely due to stress as well as the initial dose of dewormer and the introduction of formula. That is a lot for a little bear's tummy!
Since the first dose of dewormer, a plethora of worms of all kinds have been found in their scat on multiple occasions, particularly from #424. This would certainly be one reason that explains the small sizes of these 9-month old cubs.
Vets were contacted and it was decided that cubs can have their next two doses of Fenbendazole. #423 gets 2.9ml and #424 gets 2.1ml . In addition to these 2 doses, they will get another round of 3 days of Fenbendazole in 2 weeks. *Note that the cubs do not seem to have any interest in fruit and/or cubby sauce so their meds should be mixed in straight honey. *
THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU DO FOR SCRUFFY AND RAGS AND FOR ALL 28 CUBS CURRENTLY IN OUR CARE. ALL OUR CUBS ARE DOING WELL. THANKS ALSO FOR TOLERATING A YUCKY DISCUSSION ABOUT WORMS AND PARASITES. WE COULDN'T DO OUR WORK WITHOUT YOU! appalachianbearrescue.org/room-in-your-heart-campaign/... See MoreSee Less
Oh my! Such a lot of new stuff for tiny cubs to sort out. I’m glad the deworming medication is working and hopefully 🤞 they will begin to put on weight. Would the wee babes enjoy some bear diet drizzled in honey? 🍯 Or maybe some Honey Nut Cheerios drizzled in honey?
That’s an awful lot of worms! Makes me wonder if they would have survived if they had been able to stay with their mom.
Why did Rags need antibiotics? Sorry if I missed it
October 15th 2024 - Defender Service Awards Voting Day #14
It would be 🐕🦺PAWSOME🐾 if you could take a few moments and go vote for our North Carolina neighbors! Both Linville-Central Rescue Squad and Appalachian Wildlife Refuge are finalists in the 2024 Land Rover Defender Services Awards Contest. Please vote for them until October 17th to help them each win a Land Rover Defender 130 and $25,000 cash (each!).
Voted today! I voted for two more NC nonprofits as well! Lending Paws a Hand, Inc. in the animal welfare category and Plastic Ocean Project in the community service category. #NCStrong
Everyone at Appalachian Wildlife Refuge says thank you so much for doing this daily! Our community was devastated by Helene, and many in our supporter base still don't have power, water, or internet. You all are amazing! 💕
ABR Daily Update-October 14, 2024-Cubby Fight Club
Weather: 60F (16C) Humidity 40%, Sunny 🌞
We hope you enjoy this video (best viewed in full screen) featuring the cubs in Wild Enclosure #3. While much of the cubs’ attention is focused on eating, "Cubby Fight Club" is still a thing. The rules are simple: there are no rules. The cubs are full of energy and the joy of living. They are also fully committed to annihilating their opponents and destroying our facility. We couldn’t be happier.🐻👏
We were initially worried about Rags, one of our two recent arrivals. He hid between the Cubby Pool and the wall of the room he's sharing with his brother, Scruffy. He was lethargic and unresponsive to his brother’s presence. Rags probably felt safe there, but he was invisible to our cameras and given his still fragile condition, the curators need to monitor him 24/7 in case he requires medical intervention. Curator Tom entered Hartley House to move the Cubby Pool away from the wall and left some peanut butter to tempt the little bear. It seemed to work! Rags is much better today—alert, energetic, and playing with his brother. Thank you so much for your outstanding generosity in welcoming Rags and Scruffy to our facility. We couldn’t do what we do without your help. ❤️🐻🐻
We wish all our Canadian friends a very happy and peaceful Thanksgiving. 🇨🇦🦃
Please help the Linville-Central Rescue Squad win a brand new Land Rover Defender! Vote for them every day through October 17th. You can vote once daily in each awards category. You can vote for them �HERE:
🗓️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/
I am sure all of the outside cubs will enjoy the cooler weather we are having. I am so glad to see that Rags has perked up. I have found that peanut butter can help with most any situation 🥰. 🙏🏻🐻♥️x28 plus curators
We long timers could tell you were somewhat worried about little Rags. Let's hear it for peanut butter (which I had for breakfast)! Sending gentle hugs over there.
I love their spurts of teamwork trying to bring down the sapling! 😎Hopefully it will last for another year! 🤞
October 14th 2024 - Defender Service Awards Voting Day #13
It would really 🦨STINK🦨 if you forgot to vote for our North Carolina neighbors! Both Appalachian Wildlife Refuge and Linville-Central Rescue Squad are finalists in the 2024 Land Rover Defender Services Awards Contest. Please vote for them until October 17th to help them each win a Land Rover Defender 130 and $25,000 cash (each!).
ABR Daily Update-October 13, 2024-Capturing Rags 🐻
🚨WARNING!🚨Some photos show the body of Rags and Scruffy’s mother.
Weather: 79F (26C) Humidity 44%, Sunny 🌞
We’re very happy that Rags is with his brother, safe in Hartley House. Rescuing him was a complicated affair that involved many people.
The photos in this album, captured by our portable trail cam, show the body of the mother bear. It’s crucial that, following the death of a female known to have cubs, her body be left in place. Cubs will linger near her for days, but if her body is removed, they may disperse into the forest and could be lost forever.
The site where the accident occurred is as dangerous for humans as it is for bears; there’s nowhere to pull over without risking being hit. We are grateful to the Townsend Police for shutting down traffic long enough to allow TWRA officers and ABR curators to set up traps and a trail cam.
Initially, a small baited trap was set beside the mother bear. It’s worth noting that the trail cam is motion-activated. Since the mother bear’s body was close to the road, the cam captured hundreds of photos of passing cars, each of which had to be examined quickly to see if it contained an image of Rags. About 45 minutes later, the trail cam captured a photo of Rags hiding just inside the tree line. He emerged and approached his mother but wouldn’t enter the trap. Capturing him required a different approach.
Once again, Townsend Police shut down traffic so that the curators could move in a large trap and place the mother bear’s body inside. The trap had a magnetic release gate, which needed to be activated by manual remote control. However, there was nowhere to park. Curator Greg drove to a location where he could pull off the road and waited, watching his phone ping with every trail cam activation. Finally, the cam showed Rags entering the trap.
Curator Greg did a drive-by to ensure Rags was still inside before triggering the trap door and capturing the little bear. Curators Katrina and Greg, along with Townsend Police and TWRA officers, transferred Rags to a carrier for transport to ABR and removed the mother bear's body from the trap.
There was no reason to take her to UTCVM-University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine for a necropsy, so she was carried deeper into the woods and laid down near a tree—her final resting place. Wildlife agencies don’t have the resources to bury all wild animals that die on our roads or near our towns; nature will reclaim her quickly, just as it does all animals that die in the forest. We will do our best for her children and wish her peace. ❤️🐻
Rags and Scruffy had a good night. Rags is smaller than his brother, not nearly as active, and seems more fragile. We hope that both boys will thrive under our care. Thanks to you, they have somewhere safe to stay until they’re big enough to return to the wild.❤️ 🐻🐻
🗓️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/
The community's dedication and perseverance in capturing these orphaned siblings is, well, I'm speechless. Thank you all!!
Someone may already have asked this, but do you think many bears were displaced by the floods? If so, will they try to return to their territories (amidst all the reconstruction and chaos) or find new homes?
Glad you got both little cubs,but am saddened by the death of mommy bear.Was she hit by a vehicle?
ABR Daily Update: October 17, 2024-Resilient Cubs 🐻🐻
Weather: 60F (16C) Humidity 38%, Sunny 🌞
Rags and Scruffy, our two recent arrivals, are doing well. They have two rooms in Hartley House and are still getting used to their new world. Both cubs resumed taking their deworming medicine, but Rags, the smaller of the two, is expelling parasites in quantities we've never seen coming from a bear cub, including a rat-tailed maggot. 🤢It's become graphically obvious why he and his brother are so small and confirms our opinion that neither would have survived to see the new year. The car accident that took the life of their mother may have saved theirs.
Our new Facebook friends may not be familiar with how the curators medicate multiple cubs housed in the same building: the little bears are separated, one in each room, so the curators can be sure each cub gets the right dose of medicine and eats all of it. Today, Scruffy decided he wasn't interested in taking his medicine, which is frustrating since this was to be his last dose for two weeks. While the curators can separate the brothers for a little while, the bears become very upset, and it's better to reunite them and attempt the procedure again later in the day.
The curators are watching the cubs carefully; the parasites the little bears have been carrying, along with the prolonged malnutrition they caused, may have affected them neurologically. We're watching to see how the cubs move, how they climb, and how they interact with each other and their food. At present, the curators are pleased with the siblings' progress. Black bears are resilient beings.🐻🐻
Our other twenty-six cubs are doing very well. We'll focus on them in tomorrow's post.
🚨It’s THE LAST DAY for voting!!!🚨
Please help the Linville-Central Rescue Squad win a brand new Land Rover Defender! You can vote once daily in each awards category. You can vote for them �HERE:
www.landroverusa.com/experiences/events-and-sponsorships/defender-service-awards/vote/search-and-...
You can vote for Appalachian Wildlife Refuge HERE:
www.landroverusa.com/experiences/events-and-sponsorships/defender-service-awards/vote/honorees.ht...
🗓️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
37 CommentsComment on Facebook
Today was my last day of vacation in Townsend . I stopped in to ABR to do a little shopping . Picked up a T shirt , two calendars and adopted Rags and Scruffy . Thank you for all you do ! I’ll be back in May 2025 .
I know it’s too early but are you going to let us know when Scruffy and Rags will be ready for Adoption?
I guess it is true that sometimes sad situations can bring about unexpected good consequences. Without a doubt Rags and Scruffy would never have made it on their own, and possibly even with their mother. They were getting no nutrition whatsoever from whatever food they were eating because of all the parasites they had. I know that their sweet little Momma gave them all she had to give, but it seems she was in a precarious situation as well, being so small herself. Be good boys and take your medications. We want to see just how big you can grow to be. 🙏🏻🐻♥️x28, especially Rags, Scruffy and Curators
View more comments
October 17th, 2024 - Defender Service Awards FINAL DAY OF VOTING
Today is the LAST DAY to help our neighbors in North Carolina win the Defender Service Awards Contest in their respective categories. Thank you to everyone who has been following along and voting daily! Winners will be announced no later than December 1st, 2024. We know how game-changing it was for Appalachian Bear Rescue to win the Service Awards in 2022. Now, it's Appalachian Wildlife Refuge and Linville-Central Rescue Squad's turn! 🎉
You can vote for Linville-Central Rescue Squad HERE: www.landroverusa.com/experiences/events-and-sponsorships/defender-service-awards/vote/search-and-...
You can vote for Appalachian Wildlife Refuge HERE: www.landroverusa.com/experiences/events-and-sponsorships/defender-service-awards/vote/honorees.html ... See MoreSee Less
46 CommentsComment on Facebook
I am proud to say I voted every single day in each of the six categories with my heart & praying especially for our two local agencies: Linville-Central Rescue Squad & Appalachian Wildlife Refuge to win!
Voted and again thanks for the reminders. Please remind us again Nov 23 when the winners are announced.
This was a wonderfully generous offer by Land Rover - and a good way of raising awareness of all the committed, hard working organisations so dedicated to conservation and community upliftment. Bravo Land Rover! 👏👏👏👏👏
View more comments
Join Greg and Tori (from Spain!) for a Facebook Live update. 🐻 ... See MoreSee Less
47 CommentsComment on Facebook
I a,ways think back to Hartley Bear and how he looked more like a possum when he arrived versus what a handsome bear he was when he left ABR 🙏🏻🐻♥️
Congratulations Tori! Great job, Greg!
Hello from upstate New York 💜🐻
View more comments
October 16th, 2024 - Defender Service Awards Voting Day #15
There's only two more days left in the 2024 Defender Service Awards Competition!! Please make sure to cast your votes today and tomorrow to help six nonprofit organizations win customized Land Rover Defender 130 vehicles and $25,000 cash to aid them in their missions and recognize all of the great work that they do!
Appalachian Wildlife Refuge is competing in the Defender Service Honorees Category. You can vote for them HERE: www.landroverusa.com/experiences/events-and-sponsorships/defender-service-awards/vote/honorees.html
Linville-Central Rescue Squad is in the Search, Rescue & Emergency Support Services Category. It only takes a minute to vote! You can vote for them HERE: www.landroverusa.com/experiences/events-and-sponsorships/defender-service-awards/vote/search-and-... ... See MoreSee Less
24 CommentsComment on Facebook
Voted! Hope they both win! Thanks for the daily vote reminder. 🐻❤️🐻
Voted for both
Voted for both❤️😘❤️ Thanks again for these daily reminders!!
View more comments
October 15, 2024: Yucky Worms (Note Photo May Be Disturbing!)
Worms are not a favorite topic for many of us, but getting rid of worms and other parasites is a very important part of our care protocol for cubs. Deworming wildlife can be a bit controversial. Bears will pick up parasites again as soon as they are back in their natural world. All bears have parasites. A big healthy bear usually isn't harmed by the parasite load. So why use deworming meds?
Little cubs in our care are another story. The parasites consume all the nutrients in the foods that we provide, so it's difficult to get a cub on a path to become a chubby cubby ready for release.
Our newest cubs 423 Scruffy and 424 Rags have been through a lot. They were orphaned when their mother bear was hit by a vehicle. Then they were temporarily separated when Scruffy was trapped, but Rags wouldn't enter a trap. They have been back together since Friday night, but it may feel like they were abducted by "aliens" and taken to a very unfamiliar place. They've both been to UTCVM-University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine for medical checkups. That trip requires harsh immobilization drugs. Rags received iron and antibiotic injections, both capable of upsetting a tummy. Then they both received deworming meds capable of further distressing a cubby tummy.
It a lot for a little bear, but this is the only way we can get them on a path to chubbiness. With your help, these little bears will soon be chubby and ready for a second chance at life in the wild. We can't thank you enough for all you do for us and all you do for them.
Today, we share excepts from the Curator Notes. We use these notes to communicate the plan of treatment with all of our staff members. We thought you might be interested:
At intake exams at UTVCM #423 and #424 were declared small and underweight but not emaciated. They were prescribed a round of deworming including Praziquantel and Fenbendazole. Both cubs received the appropriate dose of Praziquantel and their first dose of Fenbendazole. Upon curators noticing cubs were sluggish (particularly #424), it was decided that cubs should not receive the next 2 doses of Fenbendazole until they were more acclimated to Hartley House and ABR. The sluggishness was likely due to stress as well as the initial dose of dewormer and the introduction of formula. That is a lot for a little bear's tummy!
Since the first dose of dewormer, a plethora of worms of all kinds have been found in their scat on multiple occasions, particularly from #424. This would certainly be one reason that explains the small sizes of these 9-month old cubs.
Vets were contacted and it was decided that cubs can have their next two doses of Fenbendazole. #423 gets 2.9ml and #424 gets 2.1ml . In addition to these 2 doses, they will get another round of 3 days of Fenbendazole in 2 weeks. *Note that the cubs do not seem to have any interest in fruit and/or cubby sauce so their meds should be mixed in straight honey. *
THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU DO FOR SCRUFFY AND RAGS AND FOR ALL 28 CUBS CURRENTLY IN OUR CARE. ALL OUR CUBS ARE DOING WELL. THANKS ALSO FOR TOLERATING A YUCKY DISCUSSION ABOUT WORMS AND PARASITES. WE COULDN'T DO OUR WORK WITHOUT YOU!
appalachianbearrescue.org/room-in-your-heart-campaign/ ... See MoreSee Less
77 CommentsComment on Facebook
Oh my! Such a lot of new stuff for tiny cubs to sort out. I’m glad the deworming medication is working and hopefully 🤞 they will begin to put on weight. Would the wee babes enjoy some bear diet drizzled in honey? 🍯 Or maybe some Honey Nut Cheerios drizzled in honey?
That’s an awful lot of worms! Makes me wonder if they would have survived if they had been able to stay with their mom.
Why did Rags need antibiotics? Sorry if I missed it
View more comments
October 15th 2024 - Defender Service Awards Voting Day #14
It would be 🐕🦺PAWSOME🐾 if you could take a few moments and go vote for our North Carolina neighbors! Both Linville-Central Rescue Squad and Appalachian Wildlife Refuge are finalists in the 2024 Land Rover Defender Services Awards Contest. Please vote for them until October 17th to help them each win a Land Rover Defender 130 and $25,000 cash (each!).
You can vote for Linville-Central Rescue Squad HERE:
www.landroverusa.com/experiences/events-and-sponsorships/defender-service-awards/vote/search-and-...
You can vote for Appalachian Wildlife Refuge HERE:
www.landroverusa.com/experiences/events-and-sponsorships/defender-service-awards/vote/honorees.html ... See MoreSee Less
26 CommentsComment on Facebook
Voted today! I voted for two more NC nonprofits as well! Lending Paws a Hand, Inc. in the animal welfare category and Plastic Ocean Project in the community service category. #NCStrong
Everyone at Appalachian Wildlife Refuge says thank you so much for doing this daily! Our community was devastated by Helene, and many in our supporter base still don't have power, water, or internet. You all are amazing! 💕
Voted for both
View more comments
ABR Daily Update-October 14, 2024-Cubby Fight Club
Weather: 60F (16C) Humidity 40%, Sunny 🌞
We hope you enjoy this video (best viewed in full screen) featuring the cubs in Wild Enclosure #3. While much of the cubs’ attention is focused on eating, "Cubby Fight Club" is still a thing. The rules are simple: there are no rules. The cubs are full of energy and the joy of living. They are also fully committed to annihilating their opponents and destroying our facility. We couldn’t be happier.🐻👏
We were initially worried about Rags, one of our two recent arrivals. He hid between the Cubby Pool and the wall of the room he's sharing with his brother, Scruffy. He was lethargic and unresponsive to his brother’s presence. Rags probably felt safe there, but he was invisible to our cameras and given his still fragile condition, the curators need to monitor him 24/7 in case he requires medical intervention. Curator Tom entered Hartley House to move the Cubby Pool away from the wall and left some peanut butter to tempt the little bear. It seemed to work! Rags is much better today—alert, energetic, and playing with his brother. Thank you so much for your outstanding generosity in welcoming Rags and Scruffy to our facility. We couldn’t do what we do without your help. ❤️🐻🐻
We wish all our Canadian friends a very happy and peaceful Thanksgiving. 🇨🇦🦃
Please help the Linville-Central Rescue Squad win a brand new Land Rover Defender! Vote for them every day through October 17th. You can vote once daily in each awards category. You can vote for them �HERE:
www.landroverusa.com/experiences/events-and-sponsorships/defender-service-awards/vote/search-and-...
You can vote for Appalachian Wildlife Refuge HERE:
www.landroverusa.com/experiences/events-and-sponsorships/defender-service-awards/vote/honorees.ht...
🗓️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
77 CommentsComment on Facebook
I am sure all of the outside cubs will enjoy the cooler weather we are having. I am so glad to see that Rags has perked up. I have found that peanut butter can help with most any situation 🥰. 🙏🏻🐻♥️x28 plus curators
We long timers could tell you were somewhat worried about little Rags. Let's hear it for peanut butter (which I had for breakfast)! Sending gentle hugs over there.
I love their spurts of teamwork trying to bring down the sapling! 😎Hopefully it will last for another year! 🤞
View more comments
October 14th 2024 - Defender Service Awards Voting Day #13
It would really 🦨STINK🦨 if you forgot to vote for our North Carolina neighbors! Both Appalachian Wildlife Refuge and Linville-Central Rescue Squad are finalists in the 2024 Land Rover Defender Services Awards Contest. Please vote for them until October 17th to help them each win a Land Rover Defender 130 and $25,000 cash (each!).
You can vote for Appalachian Wildlife Refuge HERE: www.landroverusa.com/experiences/events-and-sponsorships/defender-service-awards/vote/honorees.ht...
You can vote for Linville-Central Rescue Squad HERE: www.landroverusa.com/experiences/events-and-sponsorships/defender-service-awards/vote/search-and-... ... See MoreSee Less
34 CommentsComment on Facebook
I appreciate the direct links to vote along with the daily reminders. I've been voting for them every day.
Voting daily💗💖💗 Your reminders Are WonderPaws!!
Voted! Thanks for the daily reminders.
View more comments
ABR Daily Update-October 13, 2024-Capturing Rags 🐻
🚨WARNING!🚨Some photos show the body of Rags and Scruffy’s mother.
Weather: 79F (26C) Humidity 44%, Sunny 🌞
We’re very happy that Rags is with his brother, safe in Hartley House. Rescuing him was a complicated affair that involved many people.
The photos in this album, captured by our portable trail cam, show the body of the mother bear. It’s crucial that, following the death of a female known to have cubs, her body be left in place. Cubs will linger near her for days, but if her body is removed, they may disperse into the forest and could be lost forever.
The site where the accident occurred is as dangerous for humans as it is for bears; there’s nowhere to pull over without risking being hit. We are grateful to the Townsend Police for shutting down traffic long enough to allow TWRA officers and ABR curators to set up traps and a trail cam.
Initially, a small baited trap was set beside the mother bear. It’s worth noting that the trail cam is motion-activated. Since the mother bear’s body was close to the road, the cam captured hundreds of photos of passing cars, each of which had to be examined quickly to see if it contained an image of Rags. About 45 minutes later, the trail cam captured a photo of Rags hiding just inside the tree line. He emerged and approached his mother but wouldn’t enter the trap. Capturing him required a different approach.
Once again, Townsend Police shut down traffic so that the curators could move in a large trap and place the mother bear’s body inside. The trap had a magnetic release gate, which needed to be activated by manual remote control. However, there was nowhere to park. Curator Greg drove to a location where he could pull off the road and waited, watching his phone ping with every trail cam activation. Finally, the cam showed Rags entering the trap.
Curator Greg did a drive-by to ensure Rags was still inside before triggering the trap door and capturing the little bear. Curators Katrina and Greg, along with Townsend Police and TWRA officers, transferred Rags to a carrier for transport to ABR and removed the mother bear's body from the trap.
There was no reason to take her to UTCVM-University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine for a necropsy, so she was carried deeper into the woods and laid down near a tree—her final resting place. Wildlife agencies don’t have the resources to bury all wild animals that die on our roads or near our towns; nature will reclaim her quickly, just as it does all animals that die in the forest. We will do our best for her children and wish her peace. ❤️🐻
Rags and Scruffy had a good night. Rags is smaller than his brother, not nearly as active, and seems more fragile. We hope that both boys will thrive under our care. Thanks to you, they have somewhere safe to stay until they’re big enough to return to the wild.❤️ 🐻🐻
Please help the Linville-Central Rescue Squad win a brand new Land Rover Defender! Vote for them every day through October 17th. You can vote once daily in each awards category. You can vote for them �HERE:
www.landroverusa.com/experiences/events-and-sponsorships/defender-service-awards/vote/search-and-...
You can vote for Appalachian Wildlife Refuge HERE:
www.landroverusa.com/experiences/events-and-sponsorships/defender-service-awards/vote/honorees.ht...
🗓️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”.
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125 CommentsComment on Facebook
The community's dedication and perseverance in capturing these orphaned siblings is, well, I'm speechless. Thank you all!!
Someone may already have asked this, but do you think many bears were displaced by the floods? If so, will they try to return to their territories (amidst all the reconstruction and chaos) or find new homes?
Glad you got both little cubs,but am saddened by the death of mommy bear.Was she hit by a vehicle?
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