Things are getting busier at ABR.  We had predicted that Summitt Bear would soon be out in a Wild Enclosure, and sure enough, that’s where he is now.  That is the first piece of exciting news.  The second is that we received another bear – this one is a spring cub or “cub of the year,” meaning he was born just about 3 months ago.

First things first – here are some photos of Summitt going from the Acclimation Pen into the Wild Enclosure.  The unusual thing about this was that it took several hours for him to decide to exit after the door was opened.  It is much more common for a bear to hurry outside as soon as there is the opportunity to do so.  Each bear is an individual and we must never lose sight of that fact.

The door is open and Summitt finally decided to go outside. He is a cautious bear.

Outside at last, Summitt explores the terrain.

Summitt Bear sniffs the air. There are so many new scents!

He walked by a tree, but didn’t climb as many bears do first thing.

Meanwhile, TWRA Officer David Sexton brought the little cub #259, nicknamed Otto, to ABR.

David Sexton fills out transfer papers for #259.

And here he is – ABR Bear #259 – Otto Bear!

Otto Bear is a three-month-old cub.

In our next post we’ll let you know about Otto’s visit to the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine for his initial checkup.  Now that we have two little bears to follow, we’ll post more frequent updates.