American Black Bear Fails Hibernation

North American black bear cub anesthetized for exam — Courtesy of Alberta Institute For Wildlife Conservation

North American black bear cub eating fruit from bowl in enclosure — Courtesy of Alberta Institute For Wildlife Conservation

The following story about an American black bear was shared with us by Alberta Institute For Wildlife Conservation in Alberta, Canada.

On December 9, 2024, an American black bear cub of the year was brought into care after failing to hibernate. On an initial visual exam, he was found to be emaciated and was too underweight to be able to hibernate in the wild on his own, and thus we would have to overwinter him.

We immediately started him on an emaciation protocol including offering a high-protein diet, including small amounts of eggs, fish, meat, and EmerAid IC Carnivore Care. We slowly started increasing the amount of food he was getting per day until he was up to his full MEC of protein items, and we could discontinue his emaciation protocol. We then did a sedated exam and found his weight had increased and he had no other injuries, so we were able to move him to a large pre-release outdoor enclosure.

North American black bear club atop climbing structure in outdoor habitat — Courtesy of Alberta Institute For Wildlife Conservation

He continued to do well overwinter eating his full diet and remained in his pre-release enclosure until his release date in June 2025.