Yay! Here’s some happy news: “Cinder” the bear cub is on her way to a healthy recovery.
“Cinder” is an 18-month-old bear cub who somehow survived the Carlton Complex Fire in Wenatchee, Washington. The cub had burns on all four of her paws and her stomach. The Methow Valley News has a pretty detailed rundown of Cinder’s story:
Cinder was saved through the concern and compassion of many people, beginning with Steve Love, who cared for the bear when she limped onto his French Creek property on July 31, two weeks after wildfires swept through the valley. Love heard his dog barking around 6 p.m. that day and when he investigated, Love saw a small bear coming up the driveway toward his house, which nearly burned in the wildfires
“It was moving fairly slow, and looked odd. Later I noticed it couldn’t put weight on its paws,” Love told the Methow Valley News. “I could see how burned it paws were. They were pretty raw.”
While uneasy, she accepted some food and water from him. “I tried to speak to her in a soothing way and she seemed to respond to that,” he said. “I told her that she was going to be okay, that she was going to be fine. I called her Little Bear.”
Cinder is receiving care at Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care, a nonprofit volunteer organization that works with orphaned and injured animals to help rehabilitate them and reintroduced them to the wild. Via USA Today:
She was initially taken in by PAWS, but then flown to Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care in South Lake Tahoe, Calif., where they have experience with these types of injuries. The little cub, who was underweight, is still on pain medication, since burn victims have severe pain, said Tom Millham with LTWC.
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Denise Upton, a caretaker at Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care, says she’s got a good appetite and has been enjoying fresh fruit and trout brought in by local fishermen.
She gets her medication delivered via a mini-muffin with maple syrup (YUM). She has a custom ramp made for her to help her climb into her sleeping area. She has tons of fans now thanks to regular updates about her care on the Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care’s Facebook page.
She is still on pain medication, since burned victims have severe pain. To do all four paws takes between 30 and 60 minutes, depending on what else needs to be done to allow her to heal as quickly as possible so she can be returned back to Washington as quickly as possible. Dr Willitts has seen nothing that is hindering his management of her burns. Everything seems to be healing as expected, but, only time will tell ‘when’ she can go back home.
“The healing process is there. It’s slow,” Upton told the Methow Valley News. “She’s been through the ringer, but she’s going the right direction.”
Image via Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care Facebook.