Was it a miracle or miracle drugs? It took all day, but we finally tracked down June and her cubs out in the boonies to give her the sixth of 10 doses of Amoxicillin. You saw the photos before. We couldn’t believe what we saw today. The hole in her eye has healed. The eyeball has mostly refilled with fluid. The slightly misshapen pupil is reacting to light. The muscles controlling the eyeball are working in all four directions. The iris has a whitish opaque area about the size of the pupil at 1 to 2 o’clock from it. The whites of the eye are still bloodshot, and some drainage continues, but what a change for the better!
The Associate Dean of Faculty of the University of Minnesota School of Medicine examined the eye with us. She complimented our advising veterinarian who is a consulting specialist in eye injuries. She said the antibiotics he provided prevented further deterioration and allowed the eye to heal. The two of them conversed by cell phone from the field as she described to him in detail what she observed.
We have been warned that she may not fully regain her eyesight. However, we can’t wait to see June tomorrow and check for further improvement.
When we checked on Lily and family today, we found them in an old clear-cut that has turned into a blueberry and raspberry patch. The main activity we observed, though, was tearing open logs and stumps for ant pupae. A dropping we found had mainly wild sarsaparilla berry seeds and red-osier dogwood seeds.
All the GPSed bears are safe.
6,814 survey responses! Thank you! We can’t wait to see what they say. A professional is beginning to tabulate responses and organize your comments.
To vote for Soudan Underground Mine State Park, go to http://www.livepositively.com/#/americasparks/leaderboard and vote over and over. We need to keep up the momentum.
Thank you for all you do.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center