A few days ago, Little Bit’s vet (Dr. Marcy Souza, from UTCVM) returned to ABR to check the little bear and prepare her for the move into her new, larger pen.  She was judged to be ready for the move, and no longer in need of the isolation and relatively sterile environment in the Cubby Nursery.  She was moved from a 3×5 foot cage to a roomy, 6×10 foot pen outdoors.  The first step was to administer a sedative, to calm her down (you’ve seen how fiesty she can be!) for the move.

While sleeping, Little Bit is weighed.

The “ambulance” that carried her to her new quarters, was a wheelbarrow!  Dr. Souza, on the right, and Bill Stiver, Chief Wildlife Biologist for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, guided the “ambulance” to the new pen outdoors. 

She was still sleepy and groggy when she first arrived in her new home.  She also looks very small in the new, spacious pen.  We will post the next part of the story tomorrow – come back to see how she is adapting.