Our last post was about Sycamore at UT. We have another of our bears who is a patient at the College of Veterinary Medicine. Curator Tom noticed that Clover was limping, just as they were getting ready to release her into a Wild Enclosure. Curator Matthew took her to UT, where all four of her limbs were x-rayed. The vets found that she had old injuries – her left front leg had been injured before and she is missing two toes from her right front foot. We didn’t know anything about her history, but obviously, she had a rough start to life, having been injured before she reached the age of eight months! There were no new injuries, and the inflammation noted during her last exam has healed. The cause of the limp is unknown at this time. She was returned to ABR with a few days of meloxicam. She will be observed closely for the next few days.

Meanwhile, Sycamore is still in the ICU, and the vets lowered the oxygen level in his roomette, to see if he could breathe. When he had trouble, the level was raised and he spent another night in the ICU. In spite of these problems, Sycamore is eating heartily. He didn’t like the “hospital food,” so Curator Matthew took him a care package of ABR treats such as acorns, chestnuts, and bear diet pellets. Even though he is very sick, our little yearling has a healthy appetite. His condition is guarded, but we have our fingers crossed. Stay tuned.