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Bear cubs given fighting chance in Smithers

Wildlife Society is one of the few places in B.C. to take in black bear cubs In the past decade, 69 little bear cubs have temporary called the Northern Lights Wildlife Society in Smithers home.

Wildlife Society is one of the few places in B.C. to take in black bear cubs

In the past decade, 69 little bear cubs have temporary called the Northern Lights Wildlife Society in Smithers home.

They have come from around the province seeking momentary refuge there until they are able to fend for themselves in the wild once again.

Some have lost their mothers in the spring hunt. A passing train or car has orphaned others.

And then there are a few whose dens were destroyed by work crews or whose mothers where scared away by humans.

The reasons why they come to Smithers are wide and varied. But the Northern Lights Wildlife Society is one of the few places in B.C. for black bear cubs to go, if they are lucky enough to get that far.

Three cubs have made it their home this year, joining a wildlife menagerie which includes, a baby moose, a baby deer, foxes, eagles, hawks, owls, the odd squirrel or two and whatever else manages to make his or her way there.

"We take all kinds of animals," said Angelika Langen, a veritable animal lover and trained animal keeper, who works with her husband, Peter.

This year Dirty Harry is safe in Smithers after he was found hurt and hungry, abandoned in a cherry orchard in Penticton.

Billy came from Houston after a car hit his mum and George arrived from Fort St. James after a hunter killed his mum.

For a brief moment last month, the Smithers centre was an injured Pemberton bear cub’s destination and his only hope for survival.

A BC Rail train ran over the cub’s front paw on June 12, effectively maiming him for life.

When vets removed his bandages, they uncovered a jarring sight of exposed nerves and muscles. It looked like he would lose his leg.

Government policy does not allow three-legged bears to be rehabilitated so instead of going to Smithers, the cub, who was dubbed J.J. Bear for his brief time with humans, was put down.

Langen said the cub deserved a fighting chance at the very least.

"You’d be amazed in wild animals, what kind of wounds heal. You cannot compare that with a domesticated animal. And most veterinarians just have experience with domesticated animals.

"Wildlife is extremely resilient. They have a lot more strength in them than the domesticated animals and nature can do amazing things to subsidize for shortcomings."

She said the decision to end J.J. Bear’s life should have been made after his wound was fairly assessed over a period of time.

He could have come to the centre, tried to get better before all hope was extinguished in a matter of moments.

The public had even pooled together $10,000 in a matter of hours to pay for the rehabilitation of J.J. Bear.

"I don’t think that they really made a decision there that was based on knowledge," Langen said.

She believes J.J. Bear could have been a success story in the wild even with three legs, despite government policies that state otherwise.

"I don’t think you can rehab every animal," Langen admits.

But she said three-legged bears have been rehabilitated successfully in other places, like Ontario, and they should be given that same chance in B.C.

Success in the wild depends on the individual animal.

"It’s the same as humans... You have that same mentality in animals too," she said.

"Some of them give up. They become very grouchy, very aggressive and that would not be a bear I would say we should rehab because it’s a potential problem."

On the other hand, she remembers a bear that came through the centre with a broken hip and was released back into the wild with a limp. He was a little slower than the others were but he made it on his own for two years until he was shot in a hunt.

"We have 69 bears out there and none of them have become a problem bear so I assume that our theories are right," she said.

Those theories fly in the face of recent government policies.

According to Langen, some of those policies include a no talking rule among the caretakers when they are near the bears. They call on the caretakers to feed the bears through shoots so they cannot see their handlers and require that caretakers wear suits with overpowering smells so the bears do not get conditioned to human smells.

"I find that absolutely ridiculous," she said adamantly.

Instead Langen continues with the work she and her husband have been doing for the past 12 years.

"We both worked in zoos in Europe and after emigrating over here (from Germany) we really missed the work with the wildlife," she said.

Their facility is on 320 acres bordering a provincial park in Smithers that also houses their trail riding business.

The rehab centre is all run by volunteers.

"The government doesn’t assist in any way," she said.

"There is no financial contribution from them to running the shelter. All they do is hand out some permits with regulations."

The cost of rehabbing a bear is more expensive than the other wildlife animals there because they typically keep them there a little longer – about one a half years.

The cost of rehabilitating one bear is over $700. That money goes towards food, milk and vet bills.

Most of the cubs come after they have been hibernating for the winter.

Lange said putting them out just after a summer of rehab is a little dangerous, as they don’t have a plentiful food supply at that time.

Instead, she waits until the spring.

"I find the idea of putting them out just for hibernation a little bit worrisome," she said.

"I don’t know how quickly they adapt and so I prefer to have them hibernate here and then let them go in the spring."

Langen said they mimic the cubs relationship with their mothers.

If they are orphaned at a very young age, there is a lot of human contact. As they get older that contact is restricted to twice a day feedings.

Then, they start chasing them away at the feeding times and get them feeling very uncomfortable, just as any mother would do in the wild.

None that have been released from the Northern Lights Wildlife Centre have become problem bears, who head near humans and seek out human food sources.

Langen said that is because of the way they have been rehabbed.

Even cubs that have been eating human food have a chance a rehab she said.

"I don’t think a little bear is already food conditioned," she said.

Working with bear cubs for all these years she has noticed that they always go for the natural food source. If they have the choice between a handful of doughnuts and a bunch of green dandelions, they always go for the greens.

Langen wishes the government would work more with the shelters to understand bear cub rehabilitation.

"Rehabilitation is basically free to them, as there is no government funding to shelters. There are only good records in regards to bear rehabbing. No garbage bears, no bears in populated areas, no attacks, and to boot it is something that the public supports."