The third and last cub to be worked up for release on December 4th was #261 Rollo Bear. Rollo arrived at ABR in early May, weighing 5.5 pounds. He was almost four months old. On December 4th Rollo weighed more than either of the other bears – 114 pounds! Like Apollo and Otto, he was a little over ten months old at release. Here is his story.
Curator Janet and Ranger Greg begin the workup of Rollo Bear.
Rollo Bear gets his ear tags. He was too small on arrival to be tagged then.
When sedated, bears can’t regulate body temperature. It must be monitored carefully.
At the release site, Rollo sees his new home.
He makes a flying leap to freedom!
As expected, he heads straight for the trees.
Up the tree he goes – he is back where he belongs.
Thus ends the story of the ABR cubs of 2017. Although it is always a bittersweet moment when the cubs are returned to the wild, this is the whole purpose of Appalachian Bear Rescue and it is gratifying to see them rush to their new, wild lives. We hope that each of these bears will thrive now that they are back where they belong. Good luck, cubs! May you live long lives in the forest, away from humans!