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Support Animal Care - Adopt or Sponsor a Black Bear.
Your donation will help with the cost of food, shelter, enrichment and veterinary care. Each of the black bears eat ~15 pounds of food per day. The bears need a large amount of produce in their diet which can be quite expensive during certain times of the year. You can be an Wildlife Hero through your contribution. |
AMERICAN BLACK BEARS
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Estimated to have been born in March of 2003, Oscar was found orphaned in November of the same year. He was spotted small, underweight, desperately trying to find a good meal in the resident's trash cans near a tree nursery in Deer Park, WA. We worked in conjunction with the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife to rescue Oscar from his garbage can home and bring him to our zoological center. After a thorough physical exam he was placed on medication and a specialized diet by our veterinarians. While Oscar's early life trauma has kept him from reaching average weight, he has defied odds and grown into a healthy, playful adult black bear.
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Oso-Much-Trouble is estimated to have been born in February of 2004 - which is exactly why we were shocked to have a bear cub weighing no more than twenty pounds brought to us in February of 2005. The Wildlife Department informed us they'd found him after a call about 'a bear in a bath tub,' and were referring to him as Oso, the Spanish word for bear. He was very sick upon arrival, with plenty of questions left unanswered about the first year of his life. But under the guide of our veterinarians Oso recovered fully, reaching a healthy weight that he maintains to this day. Being healthy has allowed for his personality to fully emerge, as well - which is precisely why he's evolved from just Oso to Oso-Much-Trouble, after all his cunning and mischievous games.
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AMERICAN BLACK BEARS
Despite their name, Black Bears can appear in a variety of colors - from brown to white, or even the blue glacier bear. Black bears are widely distributed across North America. They can be found in the northern areas of Mexico, thirty two American states, and every province and territory of Canada other than Prince Edward Island. Black bears are omnivorous and feed on a wide variety, mostly depending on what's available. In most areas with black bear population their diet consists of insects (mostly ants), nuts, berries, acorns, grasses, roots, and other vegetation. Black bears can also be effective predators of deer fawns and moose calves.
Despite their intimidating size, black bears can be easily frightened and intimidated as a rule. Similar to gorillas, they will mock charge a threat before retreating. Indeed, one of the first things a bear cub learns when with its mother is to retreat to, and climb a tree in dangerous situations - usually while the mother distracts any threat. In terms of size, adults range 130 to 190 centimeters (50 to 75 inches) in length and weigh 40 to 300 kilograms (90 to 660 pounds). Males may be anywhere from 20 to 60 percent larger than females.
If you would like to adopt one of our black bears, the cost is currently $75.00 US dollars monthly. This money takes care of veterinary check ups, habitat enrichment and feeding - all the things a happy bear needs.
Despite their intimidating size, black bears can be easily frightened and intimidated as a rule. Similar to gorillas, they will mock charge a threat before retreating. Indeed, one of the first things a bear cub learns when with its mother is to retreat to, and climb a tree in dangerous situations - usually while the mother distracts any threat. In terms of size, adults range 130 to 190 centimeters (50 to 75 inches) in length and weigh 40 to 300 kilograms (90 to 660 pounds). Males may be anywhere from 20 to 60 percent larger than females.
If you would like to adopt one of our black bears, the cost is currently $75.00 US dollars monthly. This money takes care of veterinary check ups, habitat enrichment and feeding - all the things a happy bear needs.