At Long Last!

Nearly a month ago on July 10th, ABR received the Gatlinburghers, three of four cubs who were orphaned when their mother was euthanized after she injured a person at the Super 8 Motel in Gatlinburg. Our partners at Tennessee Wildlife Resources were able to trap three out of four of the siblings, but the fourth cub would not be trapped. The first three cubs arrived at ABR on July 10th, and our team members sat in Gatlinburg trying to trap the fourth sibling for more than 24 hours. Catching the cub wasn’t in the cards, and after the little bear came down a tree and scurried into the underbrush, our team had to regroup and make another plan.

In the days that followed, ABR, TWRA, the Gatlinburg Police Department and many other concerned citizens looked. We drove around and around the area, sometimes during the day and sometimes late at night. We talked to people in the area, asking if anyone had seen the cub. We answered every call and followed every lead, but finding a bear cub in Gatlinburg is like finding a needle in a haystack. There are lots of cubs in Gatlinburg, and we all knew to use great care to avoid “rescuing” a cub that wasn’t actually orphaned.

It helped that while TWRA biologists and Curator Greg watched the cub and the trap on that first day, they had noticed that the fourth cub had a very prominent chest blaze. If we could just get a close look, the little cub would stand out in a crowd. We just needed that close look.

We sincerely appreciate all the calls that we received. We did our best to follow up with every one. Actually, the first callers about Slick Bear wondered if he might be the fourth cub. Though it took us a long time to catch Slick, we knew early on that he wasn’t the fourth sibling. He was located a little too far away, and he didn’t have a chest blaze. There was a small bear near Winery Square, but it was a yearling. There was a small bear with a blaze over near where the Gatlinburghers were orphaned. The team watched a trap for a couple days and then realized the little bear was a yearling with a blaze.

Last Saturday, we caught a break. Neighbors in the Mynatt Park neighborhood in Gatlinburg called to report a potentially orphaned cub in their back yards. Neighbors worked to get photos and videos that might include a view of a chest blaze. It took a little while, but the blaze was there! There was also a new distinguishing marking. This little bear with a chest blaze had gotten into white paint. Her face and body were covered in patches of the paint. Just when we thought “MAYBE”, it got complicated again. Last Thursday and Friday, folks in the National Park Service took photos of a mother bear and her two cubs, all covered in white paint, in the exact same area. Seems several bears got into paint, likely in a construction dumpster that was also used for household trash. Was the cub the orphaned fourth sibling? Or was it one of the painted cubs in the photos? We would never want to accidentally orphan a cub.

Last Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday, neighbors in Mynatt Park and at the Park Vista Hotel noticed the single painted cub, but it was never in one place long enough to get there to try to set a trap. Then on Monday, we received five cubs in one day. You might guess that on a day like that, resources are strained for us and all of our partners. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday morning were quiet. Then yesterday afternoon at 2:30 the phone rang.

The maintenance manager at one of the hotels in the area was on the phone. He said that he believed he was looking at the fourth sibling. Dana asked about the location…about 100 yards from where the cub was orphaned. Dana asked about the chest blaze…yep, it was there. Dana asked about the white paint…yep, the cub had gotten into something. The cub was in a tree. Then Dana asked the million dollar question…could the caller please stand under this tree until ABR and TWRA could get there?

The caller stayed under the tree until TWRA Biologist Janelle Musser and ABR’s Greg Grieco arrived. Fortunately, when the call came in, Janelle and Greg were both in the Gatlinburg area. Janelle and Greg set a cub trap at the base of the tree. They baited the trap with doughnut pieces and cake crumbs and within a few minutes, the cub was in the trap.

We are very confident that this cub is the fourth Gatlinburgher sibling. The area is right, the blaze is right, the size is right, and this cub was indeed orphaned. Greg took the cub to The University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine for exam. Dr. Swanepoel and her team found some ticks and treated mild dehydration with fluids. They tried to wash the paint away, but there were globs that would not budge with soap and water. They were able to use scissors to trim the paint from the edges of her fur. The globs on her face and leg were too close to the skin to use scissors. The doctors shaved those areas to get rid of the yucky paint. The rest will grow out over time. The doctors took blood and hair samples that we will try to take for DNA analysis. That process may take some time.

ABR 419 is female and weighs 9.5kgs or 20.9 pounds. She is currently in Acclimation Pen 3 where she will spend a few days and take her worm meds. Then she will join her siblings and the others in Wild Enclosure 3. You can’t have a Gatlinburgher without some extra Special Sauce to complete the package. Please welcome the fourth Gatlinburgher, Special Sauce Bear. We couldn’t be happier that hard work paid off and the siblings will be reunited.