Just days before Christmas, a young bear cub discovered alone in the snow was given a second chance at life thanks to the quick response from volunteers at Northern Lights Wildlife Society (NLWS).
On Saturday, Dec. 20, a young female bear cub was found curled up on the road near Dawson Creek by NLWS volunteer Shawn Jackson. According to Angelika Langen, co-founder and executive director at Northern Lights Wildlife Society, the concerned citizen was worried that the cub would be hit by a vehicle.
“(They) shoo it off the road and then realized when it was moving that (the bear) was not ok and needed help, so they called us,” she said.
Langen and her team at the wildlife society filed for permission from the B.C. government to capture the cub, which was granted on the next day, Dec. 21.
According to Langen, Renata Debolt, a Dawson Creek volunteer with the wildlife society, went out with the equipment to rescue the cub alongside Jackson. They both managed to place the cub in a crate on Sunday to transport it to Smithers.
“They, together, managed to capture the cub and put it into a transport box, put it in Renata’s truck. She took it home, kept it overnight, and slowly warmed it up because it was pretty frozen,” Langen added.
The bear cub arrived at the Northern Lights Wildlife Society site on Monday, Dec. 22, at 9 p.m. On the following day, the bear was assessed to determine the cause of its injuries.
Langen said at first sight, the team thought the cub was just frozen.
“We realized that what we had initially thought might be frostbite was actually burns,” she said.
“We have determined that in the area (that she was found), there were some slash burns made, and so, she was probably hibernating in one of those piles when it got put on fire, and clawing her way out of it, she got the injuries that we’re now treating.”
She added that after the examination by the veterinarian, the team knew the cub had a real chance of survival.
“Despite the fact that those injuries are gruesome and extremely painful for the animal, the veterinarian saw that there’s a very good chance of making a full recovery with proper treatment,” Langen said. “It’s a long-term process, so it’s probably going to take several months for her to really be back to normal again, but it’s doable. We’re, of course, committed to making it happen. We will do everything in our power to help her along.”
Langen said that the wildlife society always receives calls on orphaned or injured bear cubs during this time of the year.
“We always get them. We had a total of five cubs come in this December,” she said.
“Two from Haida Gwaii, one from Fort Fraser, one from Kitimat, and then her from Dawson Creek, so it’s common. Mostly, it’s malnutrition and hypothermia that we deal with.”
According to Langen, the bear cub, which was later named Valkyrie, has been having a good recovery so far.
“Overall behaviour is going very well, she’s a very good patient,” she added. “She’s eating very well, she has gained weight… so no complaints on that part.”
As Valkyrie continues on her healing journey, Langen is hopeful that she will be fully recovered by March.
“Then we will introduce her to the other cubs so that she can play and build muscle mass and so on before being released in June.”
As seen across social media, many described this rescue as a true Christmas miracle, a definition that Langen agrees with.
“This was a story that, and so are the others that came in, that are the real Christmas story. Everybody cares and does their portion in order to help, and together we can make those miracles happen,” she added. “She was found by somebody who paid attention, called in for help, and the government then gave permission really swifty. All of this, all of us working together. That, to me, is the miracle of Christmas, you know? That people are compassionate and working together to make this happen.”