'Crying, confused' 10 lb abandoned bear cub rescued [View all]

[Liberal_in_LA]

'Crying, confused' abandoned bear cub rescued

The California Department of Fish and Game worked with wildlife organizations over the weekend to help save a 3-month-old bear cub officials believe may have been abandoned or orphaned near Ojai.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/lanow/la-me-abandoned-bear-cub-rescued-pg,0,5873360.photogallery






An abandoned bear cub is recovering at Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care after rescuers found her wandering alone in Ventura County over the weekend, according to the Department of Fish and Game.

A ranch employee brought in the 3-month-old cub to the Ojai Raptor Center after he observed the cub without her mother for three days.

Personnel searched the area for evidence of a mother bear. While they said they found large bear tracks, they did not find any scat, rooting damage or bedding behavior to indicate she was still there and decided that the female cub was either abandoned or orphaned.

Because of the cub’s small size — she weighed only about 10 pounds — fish and game personnel did not think the cub could survive in the wild on its own. They brought her to the California Wildlife Center in Calabasas, where veterinarians determined she was alert, healthy and a good candidate for rehabilitation and release.

The cub was transported to Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care on Monday, where she will stay through the winter.

She will return to her natural habitat in the spring.

http://blog.sfgate.com/stew/2012/10/17/motherless-10-pound-bear-cub-rescued/#7937-2