Three more orphaned cubs – triplets – came to ABR early yesterday morning. These little cubs are from Gatlinburg, TN and became orphaned when their mother was euthanized by TWRA because she had hurt someone at a motel in the city. Sadly, this bear was a mother who had four cubs, and the TWRA officers had worked for several days, to trap the bear, euthanize her, and trap her cubs. After TWRA called us, our curators worked with the wildlife officers, taking the three cubs who had entered the trap with their mother to UTCVM for checkups, and watching the trap for the fourth cub, taking shifts, to monitor it around the clock. Unfortunately, that cub has avoided the trap and although the TWRA officers drove around the area, alerting everyone to the fact that there was an orphaned cub on the loose, it has not been found.
The cubs are healthy, according to their medical exams. Cub #408 is female and weighs 13.2 pounds; #409 is female and weighs 23 pounds; #410 is male and weighs 7.5 pounds. Because of where they were found and the fact that their mother was one of the Gatlinburg “garbage bears,” they are called The Gatlinburghers. Their individual nicknames are Patty (408) Pickles(409) and Mac(410).
If you live or vacation in an area that has bears, please follow the Bear Wise practices (check bearwise.org for their excellent information). Our human population is expanding – we must behave in ways that respect the other inhabitants of our planet (including bears) and keep them safe!
How sad that these three cubs have lost their mother! We hope their sibling can be found.