Langley Advance           June Tue 5,07
Animal welfare: Bears to go back to wild

Bears are surprisingly easy to deal with, said Critter Care’s founder.

by Matthew Claxton

It’s been a busy year for bear rescues for the Critter Care wildlife shelter in south Langley.

They’ve cared for seven bears so far this year.

The shelter, which takes in injured or abandoned wild animals from around the Lower Mainland and B.C., has already reintroduced four bears into the wild earlier this year, and will send two more back after the spring hunting season is over.

All the animals were found abandoned or injured around the province, from Maple Ridge and Port Coquitlam to Cranbrook and Lytton.

“The one from Lytton only weighed 12 pounds,” said Gail Martin, the executive director of Critter Care.

During their time at the shelter, all of the bears gained weight and recovered well, she said.

While the shelter cares for everything from flying squirrels to wild cats to racoons, bears are actually not that hard to manage, said Martin.

“I would say they’re one of the easiest animals to care for,” she said.

The bears are carefully kept from associating humans with food during their time at the shelter. Keepers provide food and clean their cages, but don’t associate with the bears.

“We don’t even make eye contact,” said Martin.

When the cages are cleaned, the bears are kept in an enclosed area where they can’t see the humans.

B.C. Conservation Service officers will help Critter Care release the bears, Martin said.

The society doesn’t indicate where the released bears will go, to prevent hunters or poachers from finding easy targets.

With a total of seven bears dropped off this year, the wildlife shelter had more bears at one time than ever before.

Normally the society sees three to five bears in a year, said Martin.

“Each year is different,” she said.

With two more bears about to move on, the society is getting ready for its annual open house.

June 14 and 15 are the only two days of the year that Critter Care is open to the public.

Martin also hopes to find some new volunteers with some construction experience this summer. During the winter storms, several enclosures were damaged and need some work.

For information, call 604-530-2054.

published on 06/05/2007