A Little Orphan at the Dump
A Bear Story: Part I
[...Hi Jim,
Got your newsletter and loved the bear stories and now I have to tell you a bear story with such a happy ending-so far anyway-that my husband and I have been teary-eyed with happiness all evening.
This past Thursday evening is when it all started. I got an e-mail from my friend in Kotzebue. She told me how things were going with her and at the end of her e-mail she said they had a big attraction in town--a baby bear without a mama had showed up in the dump, a little grizzly.
My husband and I are huge animal lovers and I told my husband about it and even teased him that he ought to run up and kidnap it, bring it home and we'd raise it and have a Bart The Bear kind of guard dog.
We laughed about it, but we were both feeling so sad because both of us knew one way or another, it didn't stand a chance. We didn't say that to each other but we were both thinking it.
Friday after work we talked about it some more. It had been on both our minds all day and my husband said he'd talked to the guys at work and they'd all agreed this bear was going to die. He needed mama’s milk and if he didn't starve to death first, a bigger bear, a pack of wolves or even a few dogs would put an end to him. IF, by a sheer miracle, none of that happened and he survived, he'd grow into a dangerous grizzly who was too used to people and too used to garbage. He'd have to be killed in that case. After our talk I checked my e-mail and my friend had sent me pictures, and that's when it really got to us. Such a little cutie. He must be so lonely and so hungry and so scared.
I couldn't stand it, and Saturday morning I knew I HAD to do something. At first, I didn't know what I should do. I don't have a lot of faith in Fish and Game or National Wildlife, I was afraid they'd put him in a zoo and I hated to see that happen even if it did mean he'd survive. I kept thinking about it and then I started thinking about Bart the Bear, all the movies we've seen him in, the Growing Up Grizzly shows on Animal Planet , how impressed we were with not only Bart but his trainer Doug Seus. So I googled Bart The Bear and I found out Doug Seus is the founder of Wasatch Rocky Mountain Grizzlies in Utah. There was a phone number and I called it-and Doug Seus himself answered the phone. He didn't have the time to do the rescue himself and has his hands full with the bears he has but he referred me to a man named Casey who owns a place called Montana Grizzly Encounters .
So I called Casey and we talked 2-3 times yesterday and he wanted that bear. He has acreage just for bears with streams and ponds and waterfalls for them to play in and he only allows himself so many bears because he wants happy bears and bears who have enough attention. He said this was perfect timing because he has an elderly bear who is getting ready to die so there will be a vacancy. The problem was he couldn't get ahold of Fish and Game being it was a weekend, though he did talk to a Kotzebue cop.
Casey also told me that Alaska Fish and Game have already had to euthanize 22 baby browns this year because they didn't know what else to do with them.
So I called Rhonda and she called around and her son-in-law is a Kotzebue policeman and he has a friend who works for Fish and Game who said they were aware it was there and had been trying and failing to find anyone who would take it. I had given her Caseys number, they called him, they were very impressed with Casey and the home he'd be giving this bear and Casey said if they could rescue it he could talk them through caring for it and feeding it until he gets up there to bring it back to Montana.
Casey called tonight. He was all excited. He said the Kotzebue State Troopers tried and failed twice this afternoon to catch the baby but the third time was the charm. They have him in a dog kennel, he doesn't seem the least bit stressed, he seems happy in fact, and he's eating good. So tomorrow Casey starts the red tape with Fish and Game and then he's off to pick up the baby!
Casey has commended me as have several others but I think Casey is to be commended for the kind of work he does and the home he provides for his bears. To me it was just a way to repay the people of Kotzebue, in a manner they would like, for all the kindness they showed me. I miss that place every day and if I wasn't scheduled for tests through Sept. I'd be wanting to go back up there.
Casey operates on donations mostly and we plan on donating what we can towards the rescue of this baby, we've contacted some of the media here to see if they'd be interested in this too. Alaska Airlines ought to contribute to this because it would make for great public relations and maybe even a commercial!
And I can sleep tonight because I know little Griz is sleeping safely with a full tummy. Soon he'll have a big adventure, a plane ride and new parents and a new home in Montana--just north of Yellowstone.
My husband is so excited, says he feels like this little bears Godfather and he says our next vacation will be to Montana to see this little guy and thank Casey in person. I will also be taking lots of pictures of the little guy to send to Kotz so they can all see how he's grown and how he lives.
Just thought you might like this story...]
4710 Business Park Blvd., Ste. 18
Anchorage, AK 99503
Tel: (907) 336-8595
Fax: (907) 336-8596
