Another Birthday! - Appalachian Bear Rescue

As you may recall, ABR has designated the 22nd of January as the official birthdate of all of the bears that we care for. Each month is a special birthday, worthy of celebrating. Today we have photos of the bears, many of which were taken by our official photographer, Ken LaValley.

A few of the cubs in Wild Enclosure #2 – now they are 6 months old!

Flicker Bear – 6 months old – by Ken LaValley.

Sunflower, our one-eared bear, is 6 months old – by Ken LaValley.

Downy Bear is 6 months old – by Ken LaValley.

Firefly – 6 months old, by Ken LaValley.

The next photos were not taken by Ken (you can no doubt tell) but we did want to post photos of all the cubs on their 6-month birthday.

Dumplin’, Ferdinand, and Tweetsie are 6 months old! The two boys want Tweetsie to wake up, but she is reluctant.

Harlan and Sassafras celebrate their 6-month birthday by attacking a sapling.

Chicory and Clover are together but stay apart, so far. They are 6 months old, too.

The other two bears at ABR are the yearlings.

Happy 18-month birthday, Sparks Bear! Photo by Ken LaValley.

Handsome, healthy Sparks Bear at 18 months – by Ken LaValley. He will return to the wild very soon.

We wish a happy birthday to all our current and former residents.

For young bears, each birthday is a cause to celebrate. The fact is that only about half of the cubs in any given year survive to see their first birthday, so reaching the halfway point is definitely worth celebrating. And for our yearlings who have made it to their first birthday year and an additional half year, they have been very fortunate so far. We hope their good fortune continues. Happy birthday, Bears!