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More Ted and Words from Sharon - UPDATE March 29, 2020

More Ted ~~ 3/28/2020 is a link to a 6 ½ minute video captured by "Pooch" yesterday. Ted  Ted I couldn’t tell what he was doing, but I think he was selectively eating fallen leaves. Sharon wrote that Ted and Tasha are being active and will start getting better fare tomorrow. She wrote:

Dear Bear Friends,

This is an anxious time for each of us, our family, friends and the world. We must be patient and turn to those around us and make the best of this time at home. It’s time to care for ourselves, our family, friends, and neighbors.

As you know travel bans have been imposed in many states; mine is one of them so my arrival in Ely has been delayed. I have a deep trust in our Bear Center employees and know that Ted, Lucky, Tasha & Holly will be taken care of until I can get to Ely. The responsibility and care of our bears falls on my shoulders, but we work as a team, so starting Monday, March 30th we will begin to feed Ted and Tasha and any other bears that are awake at 10 am CT. TashaTashaTasha has been up walking around the Pond area since Friday evening. We will feed on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, this will give the bear’s metabolism a chance to wake up. They will be in Walking Hibernation for the next couple of weeks. Read more about walking hibernation here: https://bear.org/5-stages-of-activity-and-hibernation/

Given the current situation and food availability, the diet that I've suggested will consist of sunflower seed for the first several feedings; this will sustain and satisfy them with the higher caloric value (about 2,580 calories per pound). It will also cause them to take their time in consuming. I’ll revert to feeding seed in the fall along with their usual diet.

In the meantime, we can all watch our LIVE cams as our bears wake from hibernation and become active. Please rest assured that our bears will be well-cared for during this imposed time at home.

Thank you and I hope you all remain healthy.
Sharon Herrell, Sr. Bearkeeper

Thank you for all you do.
Lynn Rogers, Biologist, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center


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