We received the very sad news that one of the two neonate cubs, Nibbles, passed away this morning. As we have said, the cubs were extremely fragile, being so small (13 and 15 ounces). The use of the incubator, thanks to Zoo Knoxville, has kept the babies warm made us hopeful.
Curators worked around the clock, feeding the cubs every three hours. Both cubs seemed fine after the last feeding, and after sleeping, Nibbles woke up and was active. But he died ten minutes later. His body will be taken to UTCVM for a necropsy.
RIP, little bear. We are incredibly sorry that you didn’t make it. Hopefully, we will be able to do better by your brother, Bits.
It has been said that bear rescue is a roller coaster of emotions – from joyous highs to heartbreaking lows. This is certainly one of the lows.