Easter Arrival
Peter Pan arrived March 30th, 2023
Meet Peter Pan (Please take a moment to read this post in total to understand)
This emaciated shy boy arrived at our doors yesterday. He's had a tough life so far for sure and we hope to give him enough help to get a leg up to a better start in life. Peter Pan represents those cubs that lost their mom, but somehow made it through the summer/fall to hibernation. These cubs hold our special admiration to survive against all odds. Unfortunately, they most of the time, don't get enough weight to make it through hibernation. Without a sibling or mother they also need more energy (weight) to keep warm. The result is that they wake up to early without enough food present. Now they are really in trouble, as they (without other food sources) will turn to human food sources such as birdfeeders and garbage. By not intervening we allow them to become problem bears out of need and then be killed. These bears need our help just as much as the younger once we get in, they are the same age and with a few weeks of good feed will get a fair chance at survival. They have already proven to be smart and resilient so should have great survival chances with a better body condition. We will fundraise for a radio collar for Peter Pan to prove that theory. For now we will give him rest and nutrition to improve and grow. Stay tuned for updates.
Meet Luna
"Luna" came to us from the Chetwynd area and lost both her brother and mother to a vehicle accident. Luna weight 4.9lb at intake and is a healthy girl. Luna is our first 2022 cub and has officially started our bear season 10 days earlier that the arrival of Loki & Braan last year.
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This year name theme is Space!
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Grizzly Cubs Karr & Oso
Our two Kootenay boys are doing well and are growing into beautiful subadult bears.
Cub rescue # 4
A big THANK YOU to the Conservation Office of Quesnel who spend a day of searching and finally capturing this little soul. Weighing in at only 23.3lb (she should be between 40 -50lb) she sure needed the help. We named her Birgit (means “bright” and “glorious")
Bear Cub Rescue # 3 for 2022
Another cub was rescued on January 23 by NLWS Volunteer Hazel Massier near 100 Mile House. We have yet to determine gender and weight, but for now this little soul is safe and warm and provided with ample food.
January Bear Rescue # 2
A new 2021 cub arrived on January 18, 2022 from Merritt
The little one weight in at only 21.4lb which is around 25lb less than a healthy cub would weigh this time of year. We hope with some TLC he/she will bounce back to good health soon.
And they keep coming!
It is new to NLWS that so many cubs arrive this late in the season. We attribute the lack of colder temperatures to be the cause of this phenomenon.
Cubs such as this little one from Christina Lake, should be hibernating by now, but are still running around searching for feed that is no longer available. They start loosing weight quickly and then are no longer able to successfully hibernate.
We are currently caring for 31 of these cubs and will need to feed them throughout the winter. In comparison we in 2020 we fed 11 cubs through the winter and in 2019 10 cubs, so we tripped our winter care number for 2021/22
Latest Arrivals
Our latest arrival:
This little one got lucky being unlucky. Instead of being run over by a vehicle he got caught underneath and tumbled the length of a car and trailer on pavement. Stunned, disoriented and badly bruised he was unable to follow his mom and sibling. Kind people waited with him for the Conservation Officer, who in turn waited for mom to return, but to no avail. Now he will be our guest until next spring. We are grateful he suffered no serious injuries, though he was hurting badly. Luckily we could assist with pain medicine to ease his suffering.
This little one got lucky being unlucky. Instead of being run over by a vehicle he got caught underneath and tumbled the length of a car and trailer on pavement. Stunned, disoriented and badly bruised he was unable to follow his mom and sibling. Kind people waited with him for the Conservation Officer, who in turn waited for mom to return, but to no avail. Now he will be our guest until next spring. We are grateful he suffered no serious injuries, though he was hurting badly. Luckily we could assist with pain medicine to ease his suffering.
BC Fire Updates!
As terrible fires race across BC we are getting more and more inquiries how that affects the shelter. Thankfully we have no fires close by at this time. We are mindful thought that this can change at a moments notice. As evacuating our animals would be close to impossible we need to focus on fire safety. That means clearing areas around enclosures to prevent fire from getting to close, investing in sprinkler systems (thankfully we have plenty of water due to Betty Gealan and an Aviva contest in 2012 that resulted in a deep well).
We need to hire experienced people to delimb trees and clear brush away from enclosures. On the animal intake side we typically see a delayed rise in animal arrivals as no one is allowed in the active fire areas for rescue.
So we get calls once people are allowed back in, finding orphaned wildlife often dehydrated and starving.
So preparations are already being made to answer these calls.
How can you help?
* if you have access to previous fire areas be alert for wildlife in need.
* Call for help, either the RAP line at 18779527277 or the shelter at 250 877
1181 if you find wildlife in distress.
* sign up as a transport driver at https://www.wildlifeshelter.com/p/nlws-transport-volunteer-agreement.html quick transport saves lives.
* Become a GEMS Donor, monthly support (no amount is to small, remember, $1 buys a syringe that gives critical medication) gives us the ability to answer the calls as they come in because we know you have our back financially. https://www.wildlifeshelter.com/p/gems-donor-system.html
* Not ready to commit monthly? Consider a one time donation so our Rescue kits can be replenished and we are ready for the next animal that needs help. https://www.canadahelps.org/en/dn/m/10649/donation
Odin Needs Your Help
Odin lost his mother to a vehicle collision and got hit in the head himself. His sinuses are fractured and he has multiple cuts all over his face. He lost some of his baby teeth from the impact as well and one eye is compromised (to what extent is to early to tell). Thankfully overall he seems to be healthy and no other fractures or cuts were found on his body. Veterinarian Jaini Clougher cleaned him up and he now is comfortable in our intensive care unit. The hope is that his sinuses will heal on their own, but will recheck and if needed will operate. Odin has a good appetite and seems to respond well to the care he is receiving.
We need to grow our support team to facilitate the ever growing demand.
Helping critical cases such as Odin has become more of a challenge as our resources are stretched with the loss of Fundraisers such as our Open House for 2 years in a row. If you are part of our amazing support team, thank you for giving Odin a chance. With fires burning everywhere we expect more such cases in the coming months. So please share this e-mail with others and tell them why you are involved.
If you have not donated yet please consider doing so now. Wildlife needs you more than ever in these difficult times. If you love our cute pictures and videos, give Odin and wildlife like him a chance to be that happy animal and overcome the adversity that has slowed them down.
Donate Today
We won the BC Achievement Award!
The Community Award is the cornerstone of BC Achievement’s mission to honour excellence and inspire achievement in the province of BC. The program recognizes the contributions of extraordinary British Columbians who build better, stronger, more resilient communities and shine as examples of dedication and service.
Loki & Brann 2021 Cubs
Loki and Brann are 3 month old black bears born in January 2021. Their den was damaged by road work and the mother bear took off with a third cub. Well meaning workers removed the 2 cubs, assuming that the mother would not return. The cubs will remain at NLWS until next year (2022) and then be released back to the wild.
Introducing The GEMS system!
Joining the GEMS program (Give Every Month Support), our treasured community of monthly donors, is the safest, simplest, and most effective way to support wildlife in dire need, as we adapt to ever-changing circumstances due to COVID-19.
We encourage everyone to consider the merits of such a commitment:
We encourage everyone to consider the merits of such a commitment:
- One time set up with yearly tax receipt Provides NLWS with a secure and steady income for operational costs and
- therefore ensures quick rescue response.
- Automatic NLWS Friend Membership and digital membership certificate NLWS Friend yearly rescue update will be mailed out to you in November of
- each year.
- NLWS Friend Member Only semiannual newsletter with more insights in
- NLWS planning and operation. Digital GEMS membership Cards
- 10% off merch code for GEMS sign up or upgrades. Minimum once a year NLWS Friend Members only online event (meet the team and current animals in care, watch feedings and more).
Quartz
$10 Per Month
Buys feed for the animals.
Emerald
$50 Per Month
Buys feed, bedding and enrichment for the animals.
Ruby
$150 Per Month
Buys feed, bedding, enrichment for the animals and supports facility maintenance efforts.
Diamond
$300 Per Month
All previous GEMS plus helps ensure medical supplies and services can be safely purchased, transported and stocked.
Meet Tabor!
She started eating immediately (we start very light and bland after an animal is starved) and all seemed well. In the evening we walked in and she was having severe seizures.
That was followed by a night holding her through multiple seizures, hoping that supporting medication would help her make it through. The seizures finally stopped and now we can only hope that IV fluids and rest will do the rest.
Elusive bear cub caught attempting Canada-U.S. border crossing in northern B.C.
Officers at the Canada-U.S. border between Stewart, B.C., and Hyder, Alaska had cause to paws recently, when an unusual visitor was caught attempting to cross.
According to a social media post from the Canada Border Services Agency, a small female black bear cub "sought entry for essential reasons, but had no travel documents."
Those "reasons" are believed to be natural food and berries, according to Angelika Langen with the Northern Lights Wildlife Shelter, which has been tracking the bear for more than a month.
For the full article, click here
On Our Way Back...
On our way back from a release we received a call about a young bear cub in in Ft St James. After all permissions were in place, we met with the couple that had the cub along the way. It was obvious that the cub had experienced some trauma. One side of her head was swollen and movement and vision was obviously impaired. We assume that she was struck by a vehicle. Nerve damage is tricky to heal and mostly takes time, often up to 6 month.
As a care giver this is really difficult as you form a bond with the knowledge that the outcome might not be positive. In "Roz's" case she was walking in circles for several weeks before slowly improving over time.
After keeping Koda company for a while, a few weeks ago Roz was well enough to join our big group. She still has some signs of vision problems, but we now feel comfortable with the improvements and hibernation will likely do the rest (as we have seen with previous bears).
Introducing Koda!
On July 7th we received a small bear cub in dire need of help. Found near Panorama BC this little cub was fighting for his life. Stabilized by Veterinarian Dr. Mark Zehnder and transported by caring volunteers we were shocked at his terrible condition.
"Koda" was unable to stand up, he moved with his head resting on his bend front paws and pushed himself along with his hind feet. He was painfully skinny and his fur was matted and dirty. But what struck us most was his attitude! He wanted to do things and go places. There was no giving up in his mind and with that the whole team stood behind him. Feed had to be introduced with great care as is system needed to adjust to a healthy diet. His motor skills were uncoordinated and safe surroundings were of great importance as he thought he could do it, even when he clearly couldn't.
Over the past months we watched in awe as he regained his body strength driven by a strong spirit. He never faltered.
In our mind he is ABSOLUTELY AMAZING! He is starting to gain weight and fill out and we look forward to seeing him get ready for hibernation.
To help with Koda's care and those of his friends go to
https://www.canadahelps.org/en/dn/m/10649/donation
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