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-September 8, 2024-Twenty-Six Cubs and Spruce 🐻
We hope you enjoy this video, best viewed in full-screen, featuring our twenty-six black bear cubs and Spruce, our yearling. All our residents are thriving. The same can’t be said for our saplings. Thank you for your continuing support of our bears and our mission. ❤️🐻
🧸Visit our online store to virtually adopt a cub or to buy any of the merchandise unique to ABR. We’re sorry, but purchases are restricted to the USA. appalachian-bear-rescue.myshopify.com
Thanks for the video today. It ran the gamut from terrifying cubs to a sweet and appreciative yearling. Meadow seems to have come a long way in her confidence. I felt so sorry for that poor sapling that the cubs were all over next to the forbidden tree. Then we end with sweet Spruce joyfully cleaning his plate (or log as the case may be) like the good boy he is.
🙏🏻🐻♥️x26 plus Spruce
Wonderful update! They are all doing great. They are so beautiful ❤🐻❤×26+Spruce Bear
A nice normal day at ABR...cubs playing, Spruce chonkifying...all is well. 😊
Our 26 cub residents and Spruce Bear, our yearling, are eating and eating and eating—unless they’re wrecking and wrecking and wrecking.
One of the cubs in WE#1 (Lyles, Slick, Velma, Daphne, Scooby, and Meadow Bear) fancies himself a carpet installer, or rather, a carpet remover. The Crawley-Cowe Sisters warned us not to name suspects, so we won’t. However, hypothetically speaking, if Scooby were to appear at your house and offer to remove your wall-to-wall carpeting for peanuts, DON’T let him in! 🐻🐮🐮🐮
Scooby (or someone who looks like him) smelled bugs under the grass. You remember the rolls of sod the curators put down a few weeks ago? Scooby (or someone like him) figured that rolling them up would expose lots of snacks. Insects are a large part of a black bear’s diet, and the cubs love them. Black bears are also opportunists, and after Scooby’s look-alike exposed the buffet, the other cubs took advantage of the opportunity and helped themselves to the fruits of his labor.🐻🐛
Not to be outdone, a cub in WE#2 (Duke, Daisy Mae, Jellybean, Jackie P., Bubbles, Mojo, and Fuzzy Bear) foiled our brilliant sapling protection device and tried to murdalize a young oak. The curators installed a fake electric fence around the sapling a few years ago, and it has worked (more or less) to protect the tree. The cubs associate the wires with the live electric perimeter fencing and usually avoid them. Not anymore. A cub (and this time we really can’t identify which one) climbed it and took it for a bendy, springy ride before falling off. Luckily, another cub tackled him upon landing, and a wrestling match ensued, distracting the vandal from his task. The sapling lives for another day.🌳
Spruce Bear, our yearling, is focused on putting on weight, and the curators believe he’s succeeding. One of his meals included 2 cups of full-fat yogurt, 1 cup of ground puppy chow, ¾ cup of ground Mazouri bear diet pellets, mixed berries, chopped walnuts, and an apple. As you heard in Curator Tori’s live broadcast yesterday, Spruce’s follow-up exam at UTCVM-University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine was canceled; the vets and curators think Spruce’s mouth is healing well, and they don’t want to risk sedating him unless there is a good reason. Our yearling is managing captivity; he paces a little, but his attention is focused on eating, and as long as he gets fed, he’s willing to put up with it. Soon, he’ll be used to having a full tummy, and that’s when we’ll see if he can live in the Recovery Center. Regardless, it won’t be for long; the curators hope to return Spruce to the wild in a few weeks.🐻
Our other cubs are doing well, and we’ll focus on them in tomorrow’s post.
🧸Visit our online store to virtually adopt a cub or to buy any of the merchandise unique to ABR. We’re sorry, but purchases are restricted to the USA. �� appalachian-bear-rescue.myshopify.com/
Bears 398 Casper and 399 Shadow…I have my very own Casper and Shadow, except mine are cats! Lol. I just loved seeing their names together. My Shadow is a solid charcoal gray and Casper is solid white. Love my boys and now their bear namesakes will hold a special place in my heart ❤️!
Oh my! It appears there has been quite a lot of cubby mischief going on. That once beautiful green sod has met its match. To be fair, I’m sure there were all sorts of yummy goodies hiding under there. So glad at least the sapling was spared (for now). I am thrilled to see that Spruce is doing so well that another trip to the vet will not be needed. I hope he continues to do as well as he has been with fattening up, so he can return to the wild soon. I think all the cubs will enjoy the cooler temps tonight. 🙏🏻🐻♥️x26+Spruce
Every day, we work hard to account for every cub. In fact, we do it multiple times every day. Though we have great cameras, they can't see into every corner of the enclosures. It often takes Curators with binoculars and lots of patience to find the little rascals. When we look on the cameras, we sometimes just find glimpses of cubs doing their cubby things. We hope you enjoy seeing a few of those cubby things.
Thank you for your kind words wishing Plum P Bear a successful life back in the wild where she belongs. We are happy we could care for her for just a few days and even happier that she's back in the wild.
Thank you for all you do for our little bears. We couldn't do our work without YOU! Don't forget to sign up for the ABR Bearly 5K. The event happens on Saturday, October 26th. You can walk/run in Townsend with us, or you can walk/run for the cubs in your neck of the woods. Here's the link to sign up. It's all for fun and FOR THE BEARS! appalachian-bear-rescue.myshopify.com/products/2024-bearly-5k-run-walk-participant-signup... See MoreSee Less
Wonderful video. So glad to see that Spruce continues to do well and tolerate confinement. He is starting to fill out some. I could not believe Jackie P! He is starting to look like a smaller version of Jellybean! All of the cubs have beautiful shiny coats. That’s what a good healthy diet does for you! I pray that Plum P is much happier now that she is back in the wild 💞
🙏🏻🐻♥️x27 plus curators
Those cameras are wonderful in giving us an opportunity to watch them at play. This is the most carefree time they will ever have when food is plentiful and literally rains from the sky, pools are filled and just waiting to be used, and they have the company of other little bears to play with. In watching Scooby, you could just tell he was thoroughly enjoying being in the water. I couldn't help but wish that he had a ball to play with. Loved the video! <3
I love watching the cubby chaos, but why WE3…just why???? Well… carry on with the cubby madness! So glad all our precious babies are well! Thanks for update and all y’all do for these precious bears 🐻💕
It's so sad that humans have taken over so much space in the mountainous areas. The bears need space. But, so many people go to the mountains in search of bears, that they will do whatever it takes to lure them. Bears should be viewed from a distance. These same people would not treat, say skunks, in the same way. People need to respect nature, not destroy it. Bears are going to follow their noses to wherever the food is, whether it's in a vehicle or a cabin or even a dumpster. I believe anyone caught approaching or willfully feeding a bear should be fined and punished. I wish the best to Plum P, and I hope she will flourish in her new territory.
This is kind of sad that she gone so quickly, but on the other hand, I'm so happy that she was able to be taken care of by ABR, given the deworming meds, received a full check up to make sure she was healthy, and is now back where she belongs, in the wild. Another success story in my book. And seeing as how she spent a great deal of her time sitting on that log looking out into the enclosure, I'm sure it was just a matter of time before she began a steady pacing back and forth, and getting a lot of anxiety, which is not a good thing. I pray she's happy and can establish her own territory, and that there is ample food supply for her to do what bears do at this time of year, eat, eat, eat, to put on the fat supplies with the upcoming hibernation season. Again, many thanks to ABR for all you do.
Plum P Bear was miserable from the very beginning. With her larger than average size, plus not being used to being around other cubs, there were really no options for putting her out with the current cubs. She is at the size now that some of the cubs might be when they are released later this year. Plum made it well known that while she appreciated the hospitality at ABR, it was just not for her. Run free sweet Plum. I pray you have a long and prosperous wild bear life, far away from any human contact. 🙏🏻🐻♥️
September 4th 2024 - BearWise Business SHOUTOUT 🐻📢🍹
Appalachian Bear Rescue would like to acknowledge Margaritaville Resort Gatlinburg for working hard to become a BearWise business. While they are technically located outside of the city's ordinance zone, they still recognized the importance of becoming BearWise, both for their visitors and for black bears.
Margaritaville Resort Gatlinburg is just finishing up a few more requirements before they will be officially recognized as a BearWise Business by TWRA. Using their own funds, they have replaced 17 of their outdoor trash receptacles with 12 new bear-resistant ones.👏
Way to Margaritaville Resort Gatlinburg! Kudos to you & thank you from a local that loves our bears 🐻 ❤️
Good for them, but this should be required of all Gatlinburg businesses and cabins as well as the City itself, enforced by hefty fines which could then help fund the care of these orphans they directly cause.
Thank you Margaritaville Resort Gatlinburg for setting an example for other businesses to hopefully follow BearWise protocols. There has to be a starting point somewhere and it looks like you have taken that step! MUCH appreciated!
🙏🏻🐻♥️
Sometimes, we glance at the cameras and see things that make hearts (our, not theirs) race. If we could only look away! But we can't. We watch and record so that you can watch without fear. You may cringe just a little, but rest assured, all cubs are unharmed. Curators just have a few more white hairs!
All the other bears at ABR are doing well. Meadow is spending time with the others over in Enclosure 1. Spruce is making an A+ on his only assignment...EAT. Plum P Bear is reluctantly tolerating her confinement and has finished her worm meds. All is calm on the Cubby Front.
Thank you for all you do for our little bears. You give them a second chance at life in the wild where they belong. Sign up today to show your support and walk or run in the 2024 ABR Bearly 5K. The date is Saturday, October 26th. Join us at our Trillium Cove Visitor Center in Townsend at 10:00 a.m., or walk/run for the bears in your neck of the woods. Send us a photo of you in your event tee. We will include all the photos in an event video. appalachian-bear-rescue.myshopify.com/products/2024-bearly-5k-run-walk-participant-signup... See MoreSee Less
If I were still a youngster, I would have loved their shenanigans in the tall trees. But, as a great-grandmother, I frankly found it terrifying! Next time they pull a stunt like that, please tell them I said "Get Down - Now!"
Oh my, they are having so much fun. I am sure the Curators have alot more gray hair. Thank you for all that you do.❤🐻❤×27+Spruce Bear
Are they pruning that hemlock tree? These guys are real daredevils.
Our 27 seven-month-old black bear cubs have one main job: to chubbify. However, that doesn’t prevent them from having side gigs in plumbing, demolition, and detective work.
A cub in WE#1 put its natural “nosey Parker” gene to use, detecting what the flaps in Hartley House did and who was on the other side. The flaps hide vents leading into the Hartley House rooms, and many cubs have discovered that by raising them, they can sniff the resident inside. At present, Hartley House is vacant, so all this cub detective got was the residual scent of its last occupant and a snootful of non-toxic floor cleaner.🐻
Jellybean checks out the pipe he broke at least twice a day. We wonder if he expects it to repair itself. Regardless, black bears make dreadful plumbers, and you must never hire one. However, they are demolition experts, though directing that expertise is impossible. Best not hire bears for that either.🐻💥
Spruce Bear, our yearling, is happily obeying the prime directive: EAT! EAT! EAT! He doesn’t need any part-time work; he’s occupied full-time.🐻🥜🍎
Our recent arrival, Plum Bear, is eating well, but her confinement is wearing on her. She’s pacing, and it has increased in frequency and duration. The curators and the TWRA are conferring on what to do for Plum.🐻
The cubs in WE#3 added “chaos” to the list of possible side gigs for bears. Without warning, they burst out of the undergrowth and launched an unprovoked attack on The Forbidden Tree! Twice! The tree remains unconquered, and the cubs have retreated, maybe to plot another attempt, but more likely to forage for yummies. Bears don’t plot well. Do not hire them for your plotting needs.🐻
Thank you for helping our cubs and Spruce return to the wild. We hope you have a safe and happy Labor Day. ❤️
🧸Visit our online store to virtually adopt a cub or to buy any of the merchandise unique to ABR. We’re sorry, but purchases are restricted to the USA. appalachian-bear-rescue.myshopify.com/
Poor sweet Plum Bear. She just does not understand her confinement. I pray something can be worked out soon to get her outside. So happy to see that Spruce is now on regular food and apparently doing his only job well - fattening up! All the other little hooligans seem to be doing quite well, especially in the shenanigans department 😂
🙏🏻🐻♥️x28 plus curators
I love your witty post today. The cubs are so lucky to have all of you! <3
I’m actually shocked that the cubs haven’t mastered the forbidden tree. 🤷🏻♀️
ABR Daily Update-September 1, 2024- Mischief, Meals, and Maintenance 🐻
Weather: 84F (29C) Humidity 64%, Partly Cloudy 🌤️
Our twenty-seven black bear cubs are heavily invested in filling their tummies. It’s that time of year when eating occupies most of their waking hours. However, our cubs always make time for mischief and mayhem. When presented with a choice, they usually choose violence, opting for wrestling and cub-swatting, which remain popular activities even among our ravenous little bears.
Plum Bear’s confinement to The Cub House will end early next week. Today’s photos are almost identical to those we posted yesterday; when she’s not eating or pacing, she sits on the log and stares out into the enclosure. We’ve never seen a resident do this; Plum reminds us that every bear is an individual.
Spruce Bear, our yearling, is eating everything offered and would like more, please. The curators are gradually increasing the quantity of food, and soon he’ll be on a full regular diet. This is important for Spruce, as he won’t be going into a Wild Enclosure, so he needs to gain weight while in The Recovery Center. We predict he’ll put on the pounds very quickly.
Facility maintenance is a daily chore that must be completed while accommodating the needs of our current residents. Hartley House is free at the moment, so the curators are cleaning it inside and out. We never know when another bear will require shelter within its rooms, so the curators have to make the most of every day it’s vacant.
Thank you for helping our cubs and Spruce return to the wild.❤️
🧸Visit our online store to virtually adopt a cub or to buy any of the merchandise unique to ABR. We’re sorry, but purchases are restricted to the USA. appalachian-bear-rescue.myshopify.com
Enjoy your updates very much. With this many bears in residence I am surprised you have the time. I believe this is the greatest numbers of bears you have had since I have been following your page. Thanks for helping each and everyone of them!
I didn’t know you all had merch and that you could adopt the cubs?! I was so excited learning this that I forgot to add some things to my order and also completely ordered the wrong notepad before placing my order! 🤦♀️🤦♀️ Whoops! Of course I just HAD to place a second order to fix this! 😂😂 I asked this in the notes of my order, but please let me know if you can combine my two orders so I can only pay one shipping fee (if possible). I also live an hour away and will be in the area next month and could even pick up my order. I’m so excited to adopt Puff Bear and The Gatlinbughers!!
Thanks for all you do for the cubs! The cubs have stolen my heart. I’m so invested in them and their progress! And now I also can’t help but buy things and adopt cubs from the website because of it! 🤷♀️😂
Oh my goodness such cubby mayhem! Glad to hear Spruce is doing well, I’m quite sure Plum is ready to be in WE. Thank you for the update and all that y’all do for our precious bears 🐻
ABR Daily Update-September 8, 2024-Twenty-Six Cubs and Spruce 🐻
We hope you enjoy this video, best viewed in full-screen, featuring our twenty-six black bear cubs and Spruce, our yearling. All our residents are thriving. The same can’t be said for our saplings. Thank you for your continuing support of our bears and our mission. ❤️🐻
❤️Please consider donating to Appalachian Bear Rescue’s Room in Your Heart Campaign.
appalachianbearrescue.org/room-in-your-heart-campaign/
🧸Visit our online store to virtually adopt a cub or to buy any of the merchandise unique to ABR. We’re sorry, but purchases are restricted to the USA.
appalachian-bear-rescue.myshopify.com
🎉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
34 CommentsComment on Facebook
Thanks for the video today. It ran the gamut from terrifying cubs to a sweet and appreciative yearling. Meadow seems to have come a long way in her confidence. I felt so sorry for that poor sapling that the cubs were all over next to the forbidden tree. Then we end with sweet Spruce joyfully cleaning his plate (or log as the case may be) like the good boy he is. 🙏🏻🐻♥️x26 plus Spruce
Wonderful update! They are all doing great. They are so beautiful ❤🐻❤×26+Spruce Bear
A nice normal day at ABR...cubs playing, Spruce chonkifying...all is well. 😊
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ABR Daily Update-September 7, 2024
Cubs, Chaos, and Culinary Delights at ABR 🐻🐛🐜
Weather: 75F (24C) Humidity 53%, Partly Cloudy 🌤️
Our 26 cub residents and Spruce Bear, our yearling, are eating and eating and eating—unless they’re wrecking and wrecking and wrecking.
One of the cubs in WE#1 (Lyles, Slick, Velma, Daphne, Scooby, and Meadow Bear) fancies himself a carpet installer, or rather, a carpet remover. The Crawley-Cowe Sisters warned us not to name suspects, so we won’t. However, hypothetically speaking, if Scooby were to appear at your house and offer to remove your wall-to-wall carpeting for peanuts, DON’T let him in! 🐻🐮🐮🐮
Scooby (or someone who looks like him) smelled bugs under the grass. You remember the rolls of sod the curators put down a few weeks ago? Scooby (or someone like him) figured that rolling them up would expose lots of snacks. Insects are a large part of a black bear’s diet, and the cubs love them. Black bears are also opportunists, and after Scooby’s look-alike exposed the buffet, the other cubs took advantage of the opportunity and helped themselves to the fruits of his labor.🐻🐛
Not to be outdone, a cub in WE#2 (Duke, Daisy Mae, Jellybean, Jackie P., Bubbles, Mojo, and Fuzzy Bear) foiled our brilliant sapling protection device and tried to murdalize a young oak. The curators installed a fake electric fence around the sapling a few years ago, and it has worked (more or less) to protect the tree. The cubs associate the wires with the live electric perimeter fencing and usually avoid them. Not anymore. A cub (and this time we really can’t identify which one) climbed it and took it for a bendy, springy ride before falling off. Luckily, another cub tackled him upon landing, and a wrestling match ensued, distracting the vandal from his task. The sapling lives for another day.🌳
Spruce Bear, our yearling, is focused on putting on weight, and the curators believe he’s succeeding. One of his meals included 2 cups of full-fat yogurt, 1 cup of ground puppy chow, ¾ cup of ground Mazouri bear diet pellets, mixed berries, chopped walnuts, and an apple. As you heard in Curator Tori’s live broadcast yesterday, Spruce’s follow-up exam at UTCVM-University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine was canceled; the vets and curators think Spruce’s mouth is healing well, and they don’t want to risk sedating him unless there is a good reason. Our yearling is managing captivity; he paces a little, but his attention is focused on eating, and as long as he gets fed, he’s willing to put up with it. Soon, he’ll be used to having a full tummy, and that’s when we’ll see if he can live in the Recovery Center. Regardless, it won’t be for long; the curators hope to return Spruce to the wild in a few weeks.🐻
Our other cubs are doing well, and we’ll focus on them in tomorrow’s post.
❤️Please consider donating to Appalachian Bear Rescue’s Room in Your Heart Campaign.
appalachianbearrescue.org/room-in-your-heart-campaign/
🧸Visit our online store to virtually adopt a cub or to buy any of the merchandise unique to ABR. We’re sorry, but purchases are restricted to the USA. ��
appalachian-bear-rescue.myshopify.com/
🎉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
27 CommentsComment on Facebook
THank you. Donated twice
Bears 398 Casper and 399 Shadow…I have my very own Casper and Shadow, except mine are cats! Lol. I just loved seeing their names together. My Shadow is a solid charcoal gray and Casper is solid white. Love my boys and now their bear namesakes will hold a special place in my heart ❤️!
Oh my! It appears there has been quite a lot of cubby mischief going on. That once beautiful green sod has met its match. To be fair, I’m sure there were all sorts of yummy goodies hiding under there. So glad at least the sapling was spared (for now). I am thrilled to see that Spruce is doing so well that another trip to the vet will not be needed. I hope he continues to do as well as he has been with fattening up, so he can return to the wild soon. I think all the cubs will enjoy the cooler temps tonight. 🙏🏻🐻♥️x26+Spruce
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🐻 ... See MoreSee Less
48 CommentsComment on Facebook
Will the cubs that came in together as brother & sisters stay together in the wild or will they go their separate ways
I can relate with Slick 🥵
Slick is a heavy breather
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September 5, 2024: Glimpses Into Cubby Life
Every day, we work hard to account for every cub. In fact, we do it multiple times every day. Though we have great cameras, they can't see into every corner of the enclosures. It often takes Curators with binoculars and lots of patience to find the little rascals. When we look on the cameras, we sometimes just find glimpses of cubs doing their cubby things. We hope you enjoy seeing a few of those cubby things.
Thank you for your kind words wishing Plum P Bear a successful life back in the wild where she belongs. We are happy we could care for her for just a few days and even happier that she's back in the wild.
Thank you for all you do for our little bears. We couldn't do our work without YOU! Don't forget to sign up for the ABR Bearly 5K. The event happens on Saturday, October 26th. You can walk/run in Townsend with us, or you can walk/run for the cubs in your neck of the woods. Here's the link to sign up. It's all for fun and FOR THE BEARS! appalachian-bear-rescue.myshopify.com/products/2024-bearly-5k-run-walk-participant-signup ... See MoreSee Less
35 CommentsComment on Facebook
Wonderful video. So glad to see that Spruce continues to do well and tolerate confinement. He is starting to fill out some. I could not believe Jackie P! He is starting to look like a smaller version of Jellybean! All of the cubs have beautiful shiny coats. That’s what a good healthy diet does for you! I pray that Plum P is much happier now that she is back in the wild 💞 🙏🏻🐻♥️x27 plus curators
Those cameras are wonderful in giving us an opportunity to watch them at play. This is the most carefree time they will ever have when food is plentiful and literally rains from the sky, pools are filled and just waiting to be used, and they have the company of other little bears to play with. In watching Scooby, you could just tell he was thoroughly enjoying being in the water. I couldn't help but wish that he had a ball to play with. Loved the video! <3
I love watching the cubby chaos, but why WE3…just why???? Well… carry on with the cubby madness! So glad all our precious babies are well! Thanks for update and all y’all do for these precious bears 🐻💕
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ABR Bear #422 Released Back To The Wild!! 🐻🥳
(Yep, you read that right! Please watch the full video below for more information). ... See MoreSee Less
180 CommentsComment on Facebook
It's so sad that humans have taken over so much space in the mountainous areas. The bears need space. But, so many people go to the mountains in search of bears, that they will do whatever it takes to lure them. Bears should be viewed from a distance. These same people would not treat, say skunks, in the same way. People need to respect nature, not destroy it. Bears are going to follow their noses to wherever the food is, whether it's in a vehicle or a cabin or even a dumpster. I believe anyone caught approaching or willfully feeding a bear should be fined and punished. I wish the best to Plum P, and I hope she will flourish in her new territory.
This is kind of sad that she gone so quickly, but on the other hand, I'm so happy that she was able to be taken care of by ABR, given the deworming meds, received a full check up to make sure she was healthy, and is now back where she belongs, in the wild. Another success story in my book. And seeing as how she spent a great deal of her time sitting on that log looking out into the enclosure, I'm sure it was just a matter of time before she began a steady pacing back and forth, and getting a lot of anxiety, which is not a good thing. I pray she's happy and can establish her own territory, and that there is ample food supply for her to do what bears do at this time of year, eat, eat, eat, to put on the fat supplies with the upcoming hibernation season. Again, many thanks to ABR for all you do.
Plum P Bear was miserable from the very beginning. With her larger than average size, plus not being used to being around other cubs, there were really no options for putting her out with the current cubs. She is at the size now that some of the cubs might be when they are released later this year. Plum made it well known that while she appreciated the hospitality at ABR, it was just not for her. Run free sweet Plum. I pray you have a long and prosperous wild bear life, far away from any human contact. 🙏🏻🐻♥️
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September 4th 2024 - BearWise Business SHOUTOUT 🐻📢🍹
Appalachian Bear Rescue would like to acknowledge Margaritaville Resort Gatlinburg for working hard to become a BearWise business. While they are technically located outside of the city's ordinance zone, they still recognized the importance of becoming BearWise, both for their visitors and for black bears.
Margaritaville Resort Gatlinburg is just finishing up a few more requirements before they will be officially recognized as a BearWise Business by TWRA. Using their own funds, they have replaced 17 of their outdoor trash receptacles with 12 new bear-resistant ones.👏
Thank you Margaritaville Resort Gatlinburg for leading by example and helping to protect eastern Tennessee's black bears! ... See MoreSee Less
162 CommentsComment on Facebook
Way to Margaritaville Resort Gatlinburg! Kudos to you & thank you from a local that loves our bears 🐻 ❤️
Good for them, but this should be required of all Gatlinburg businesses and cabins as well as the City itself, enforced by hefty fines which could then help fund the care of these orphans they directly cause.
Thank you Margaritaville Resort Gatlinburg for setting an example for other businesses to hopefully follow BearWise protocols. There has to be a starting point somewhere and it looks like you have taken that step! MUCH appreciated! 🙏🏻🐻♥️
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September 3, 2024: Enclosure 3 - Because They Can
Sometimes, we glance at the cameras and see things that make hearts (our, not theirs) race. If we could only look away! But we can't. We watch and record so that you can watch without fear. You may cringe just a little, but rest assured, all cubs are unharmed. Curators just have a few more white hairs!
All the other bears at ABR are doing well. Meadow is spending time with the others over in Enclosure 1. Spruce is making an A+ on his only assignment...EAT. Plum P Bear is reluctantly tolerating her confinement and has finished her worm meds. All is calm on the Cubby Front.
Thank you for all you do for our little bears. You give them a second chance at life in the wild where they belong. Sign up today to show your support and walk or run in the 2024 ABR Bearly 5K. The date is Saturday, October 26th. Join us at our Trillium Cove Visitor Center in Townsend at 10:00 a.m., or walk/run for the bears in your neck of the woods. Send us a photo of you in your event tee. We will include all the photos in an event video. appalachian-bear-rescue.myshopify.com/products/2024-bearly-5k-run-walk-participant-signup ... See MoreSee Less
51 CommentsComment on Facebook
If I were still a youngster, I would have loved their shenanigans in the tall trees. But, as a great-grandmother, I frankly found it terrifying! Next time they pull a stunt like that, please tell them I said "Get Down - Now!"
Oh my, they are having so much fun. I am sure the Curators have alot more gray hair. Thank you for all that you do.❤🐻❤×27+Spruce Bear
Are they pruning that hemlock tree? These guys are real daredevils.
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ABR Daily Update-September 2, 2024-Cubby Labor 🐻💪
Weather: 81F (27C) Humidity 67%, Partly cloudy 🌤️
Our 27 seven-month-old black bear cubs have one main job: to chubbify. However, that doesn’t prevent them from having side gigs in plumbing, demolition, and detective work.
A cub in WE#1 put its natural “nosey Parker” gene to use, detecting what the flaps in Hartley House did and who was on the other side. The flaps hide vents leading into the Hartley House rooms, and many cubs have discovered that by raising them, they can sniff the resident inside. At present, Hartley House is vacant, so all this cub detective got was the residual scent of its last occupant and a snootful of non-toxic floor cleaner.🐻
Jellybean checks out the pipe he broke at least twice a day. We wonder if he expects it to repair itself. Regardless, black bears make dreadful plumbers, and you must never hire one. However, they are demolition experts, though directing that expertise is impossible. Best not hire bears for that either.🐻💥
Spruce Bear, our yearling, is happily obeying the prime directive: EAT! EAT! EAT! He doesn’t need any part-time work; he’s occupied full-time.🐻🥜🍎
Our recent arrival, Plum Bear, is eating well, but her confinement is wearing on her. She’s pacing, and it has increased in frequency and duration. The curators and the TWRA are conferring on what to do for Plum.🐻
The cubs in WE#3 added “chaos” to the list of possible side gigs for bears. Without warning, they burst out of the undergrowth and launched an unprovoked attack on The Forbidden Tree! Twice! The tree remains unconquered, and the cubs have retreated, maybe to plot another attempt, but more likely to forage for yummies. Bears don’t plot well. Do not hire them for your plotting needs.🐻
Thank you for helping our cubs and Spruce return to the wild. We hope you have a safe and happy Labor Day. ❤️
❤️Please consider donating to Appalachian Bear Rescue’s Room in Your Heart Campaign:
appalachianbearrescue.org/room-in-your-heart-campaign/
🧸Visit our online store to virtually adopt a cub or to buy any of the merchandise unique to ABR. We’re sorry, but purchases are restricted to the USA.
appalachian-bear-rescue.myshopify.com/
🎉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
45 CommentsComment on Facebook
Poor sweet Plum Bear. She just does not understand her confinement. I pray something can be worked out soon to get her outside. So happy to see that Spruce is now on regular food and apparently doing his only job well - fattening up! All the other little hooligans seem to be doing quite well, especially in the shenanigans department 😂 🙏🏻🐻♥️x28 plus curators
I love your witty post today. The cubs are so lucky to have all of you! <3
I’m actually shocked that the cubs haven’t mastered the forbidden tree. 🤷🏻♀️
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ABR Daily Update-September 1, 2024- Mischief, Meals, and Maintenance 🐻
Weather: 84F (29C) Humidity 64%, Partly Cloudy 🌤️
Our twenty-seven black bear cubs are heavily invested in filling their tummies. It’s that time of year when eating occupies most of their waking hours. However, our cubs always make time for mischief and mayhem. When presented with a choice, they usually choose violence, opting for wrestling and cub-swatting, which remain popular activities even among our ravenous little bears.
Plum Bear’s confinement to The Cub House will end early next week. Today’s photos are almost identical to those we posted yesterday; when she’s not eating or pacing, she sits on the log and stares out into the enclosure. We’ve never seen a resident do this; Plum reminds us that every bear is an individual.
Spruce Bear, our yearling, is eating everything offered and would like more, please. The curators are gradually increasing the quantity of food, and soon he’ll be on a full regular diet. This is important for Spruce, as he won’t be going into a Wild Enclosure, so he needs to gain weight while in The Recovery Center. We predict he’ll put on the pounds very quickly.
Facility maintenance is a daily chore that must be completed while accommodating the needs of our current residents. Hartley House is free at the moment, so the curators are cleaning it inside and out. We never know when another bear will require shelter within its rooms, so the curators have to make the most of every day it’s vacant.
Thank you for helping our cubs and Spruce return to the wild.❤️
❤️Please consider donating to Appalachian Bear Rescue’s Room in Your Heart Campaign:
appalachianbearrescue.org/room-in-your-heart-campaign/
🧸Visit our online store to virtually adopt a cub or to buy any of the merchandise unique to ABR. We’re sorry, but purchases are restricted to the USA.
appalachian-bear-rescue.myshopify.com
🎉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
33 CommentsComment on Facebook
Enjoy your updates very much. With this many bears in residence I am surprised you have the time. I believe this is the greatest numbers of bears you have had since I have been following your page. Thanks for helping each and everyone of them!
I didn’t know you all had merch and that you could adopt the cubs?! I was so excited learning this that I forgot to add some things to my order and also completely ordered the wrong notepad before placing my order! 🤦♀️🤦♀️ Whoops! Of course I just HAD to place a second order to fix this! 😂😂 I asked this in the notes of my order, but please let me know if you can combine my two orders so I can only pay one shipping fee (if possible). I also live an hour away and will be in the area next month and could even pick up my order. I’m so excited to adopt Puff Bear and The Gatlinbughers!! Thanks for all you do for the cubs! The cubs have stolen my heart. I’m so invested in them and their progress! And now I also can’t help but buy things and adopt cubs from the website because of it! 🤷♀️😂
Oh my goodness such cubby mayhem! Glad to hear Spruce is doing well, I’m quite sure Plum is ready to be in WE. Thank you for the update and all that y’all do for our precious bears 🐻
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