Our sick cubs are making progress, and will be checked this week to see if they can be returned to their Wild Enclosure. Fingers crossed!
Meanwhile, one of the curators noticed in reviewing the camera footage that Turnip Bear was favoring his right front paw. Once again we consulted the vets at UTCVM, who agreed that he should be checked.
Turnip was favoring his right front paw.
Ornery cub that he is (aren’t they all?) when the attempt was made to get the cubs into the Acclimation Pen so Turnip could be darted easily, all of the cubs in his enclosure skedaddled up the tallest tree around.
He couldn’t be darted when he was UP THERE!
The next day, he was on the platform in a good place to receive the dart.
Bullseye! Turnip was immobilized easily.
The vets x-rayed his paw, and found that he had three metacarpal fractures in the paw.
Fortunately, the bones are well-aligned, and the vets feel that they will heal without any further intervention.
His friends carried on as usual in the enclosure. It may be a few days before he can rejoin them.
In Enclosure #2, Juggles (yellow arrow) is definitely a member of the gang now! Doodlebug (green arrow) welcomed him into the Cubby Pool.
All four of them squish together on the platform. Good bears!
Martha and Betsy are doing all they can to get well. They eat their food(with meds) and get plenty of rest.
Although they are pacing less, it’s obvious they want to be out!
Tamale is doing well and not coughing. We can’t help wonder if he is a little (or a lot) confused about recent developments, and where his roommates went to.
So far, so good. We are glad that Turnip’s paw will heal on its own. The three who are recovering from the bacterial infection will have a checkup on Nov. 1 or thereabouts, and we hope that they will have the approval to return to their enclosure. Fingers crossed!