Lucinda Bear has spent a couple of days and nights in the Acclimation Pen at ABR. She seems to be settling in and so far is not showing signs of stress from being cooped up. She is getting a limited diet, due to the potential for refeeding syndrome (when a starved animal can die from too much food, too soon).
She has been struggling to survive, and her fur is not as shiny as it should be.
The next photos were taken a day later. We can see her very tasty dinner. Even though she would probably like to have more food, the curators are being very cautious. The vets told them to feed a percentage of her weight, which is what they are doing. She does get a nice variety, though, with cherries, Mazouri bear diet pellets, pears and applesauce. Her worm meds are in the applesauce.
In addition to the nutrition she needs, she has a safe place to rest. Having been on the move, looking for food for quite a while, rest is vital to her recovery.
We hope that this little bear makes rapid progress and becomes a Chubby Cubby.
In The Cub House and attached Acclimation Pen, our four-month-old cub, Finnegan Bear, has access to both rooms in The Cub House as well as the outdoor pen. He makes use of all of his space, even using one room for his bathroom and leaving the rest of his “suite” clean! Smart little bear!
We are happy that all of the yearlings are doing well. Yes, even Milo, who is still reluctant to be caught for his release into the wild.