Orphan Bear Cub Review Committee Recommendations

The following is a review of the policy and procedure regarding the handling of orphaned bear cubs.

Recommendations of the Orphaned Bear Cub Review Committee

prepared April 13, 2000

The province of British Columbia supports one of the largest populations of Black Bears (Ursus americanus) and the second largest population of Grizzly Bears (Ursus arctos horribilus) in North America. Maintaining healthy and abundant bear populations is consistent with the primary goal of the Wildlife Branch, Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks, and is an important conservation issue both provincially and globally. However, increasing human settlement and land use has resulted in increased proximity of bears to humans and a dramatic rise in bear/human conflicts.

Bears are brought into contact with people for a variety of reasons, the most common being their attraction to non-natural food sources that humans provide. Once accustomed to feeding on human food, bears lose their natural fear of people and are perceived as a threat to human safety. Bears also come into contact with hunters and other people working or recreating in wilderness areas and conflicts may arise depending on the circumstances involved (protection of cubs, protection of food sources, surprise encounter, predatory behaviour). Conflicts may also occur between bears and industrial developments such as oil, gas, and logging, and both humans and bears are at risk from vehicle collisions on our increasingly busy transportation corridors.

The B.C. Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks is concerned with bear/human conflicts and has recently re-established the Bear/Human Conflicts Committee, with representatives from the Wildlife, Enforcement, Pollution Prevention, Parks, and Communication Branches. This committee is charged with the responsibility of developing and implementing strategies to mitigate bear/human conflicts and provide consistency in management of this issue.

In June of 1999, an orphaned Black Bear cub was found living in a dumpster by residents near Chilliwack. Conservation Officers seized the bear and, following Ministry policy and procedure, had a veterinarian humanely euthanize the animal. The public and press condemned the killing of the cub and focused attention on how the Ministry dealt with bear cubs that had been orphaned. This prompted the then Minister of Environment, Lands and Parks, Cathy McGregor, to announce a review of the policy and procedure regarding the handling of orphaned bears. Following the Minister’s announcement a review committee was formed consisting of 5 Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks employees from both regions and headquarters, a member of the public who originally found the bear cub, a representative from the BCSPCA, and a representative from the BC Wildlife Rehabilitation Network. The committee met several times during August and September to discuss options regarding the handling of orphaned bear cubs and produced this recommendation report.

Overview

Bear cubs are orphaned in British Columbia for a variety of reasons. A survey of Conservation Officers has indicated that the majority of cubs are orphaned from unknown causes, followed by abandonment by the sow, problem wildlife actions, motor vehicle accidents, hunting, and industrial operations. However, the age of the bears handled by Conservation Officers, or the reason that cubs of the year become orphaned, are not recorded in the data base, so exact numbers are not available. These facts are required to assess the scope of the orphaned cub issue, identify the problem areas, and address possible causes. The current Bear/Human Conflicts Committee is in the process of reviewing options regarding the development and implementation of a more effective and efficient system for recording and retrieving information regarding bear/human conflicts, including the information pertaining to orphaned cubs.

The majority of orphaned bear cub occurrences, and the majority of bear/human conflicts in general, involve Black Bears. Black Bear populations are stable throughout most of their range in British Columbia and the current population estimate is 120-160,000 bears. The Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks does not consider the Black Bear to be a species of conservation concern.

Orphaned Grizzly Bear cubs are encountered less often. This species is blue-listed in British Columbia with a provincial population estimate of 10-13,000. In 1995, British Columbia launched the Grizzly Bear Conservation Strategy (GBCS), a major initiative whose mandate is to ensure the continued existence of Grizzly Bears and their habitats for future generations. Recovery Planning has been initiated under this strategy for two Threatened Grizzly Bear Population Units in BC (North Cascades and Kettle-Granby).

The Conservation Officer Service estimates that 10-25% of all bear complaints responded to involve cubs. Exact numbers on orphaned cub occurrences is not available since exact ages of bears are not always recorded. 

Summary of bear/human conflict occurrences over the past 7 years in BC:

Current policy and procedure regarding bear conflicts focuses on minimizing these conflicts through general bear education programs and emphasizing the proper handling of non-natural attractants. The Bear/Human Conflicts Committee supports the development and delivery of ‘Be Bear Aware’ programs within the province. These programs focus on reducing access of bears to non-natural food sources by educating the public on proper management of attractants. The committee also works with local governments to promote proper management of waste facilities and landfills to reduce bear conflicts.

Provincial and regional policy and procedures also guide translocation of bears that have come into conflict with people. In general, bears will only be translocated if there are suitable release areas available and the animals do not have a history of feeding on human foods. The policy and procedure regarding Management of Problem Predators is currently being reviewed by the Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks to better define the parameters surrounding the translocation of large carnivores.

Existing provincial policy, however, clearly states that orphaned bear cubs are not good candidates for translocation and should be killed in all situations. This policy exists for several reasons:

• orphaned bear cubs are believed to be unlikely to survive and to be successful on their own if left in the wild;
  
  
• large predators such as bears are difficult for wildlife rehabilitators to deal with in captive environments;
  
  
• there is a public safety concern regarding the release of large and potentially dangerous predators that have been raised in a captive environment, if they rely on humans for food and lose their fear of people;
  
  
• there is a lack of agreement in the scientific community on whether bear rehabilitation is successful in returning bears to the wild; and,
  
  
• as stated earlier, Black Bears are not a species of conservation concern and the Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks has limited resources. These resources are more appropriately aimed at managing species that are at risk.

Given the limited amount of resources available, the lack of conservation concern for Black Bears, the public safety concern, and lack of solid scientific data supporting the success of captive reared cubs returning to the wild, orphaned bear cubs have most often been euthanized.

Despite this policy, however, Conservation Officers, wildlife staff or members of the public took 102 bears to rehabilitation facilities over the past 10 years, with the majority of these bears being cubs. There are a complex set of reasons leading to Conservation Officers placing bear cubs in rehabilitation facilities, including the public interest in this procedure, a change in some regional policy direction on this issue, more wildlife rehabilitators becoming interested, and the development of bear cub rearing and rehabilitation protocols in the U.S.

No adjacent jurisdictions in Canada or the U.S. have written policies regarding the handling and disposition of orphaned bear cubs. Cubs in Alberta, the Yukon and elsewhere have been given to zoos but there has not been any rehabilitation and release in these two jurisdictions, to our knowledge. Orphaned cubs in Alberta are sometimes released if it is felt they are sufficiently large enough to survive on their own, however, no monitoring of released animals has occurred. Washington and Idaho have been attempting to rehabilitate and release Black Bear cubs for years but with little or no routine monitoring of released animals, other than the return of ear tags from animals that were legally harvested. Washington and Idaho have used radiocollars, satellite collars and abdominal implant transmitters to monitor selected bear cubs, however, the expense of these activities has only permitted low numbers to be monitored for usually short periods of time. Cubs are raised with minimal human contact and released in dens in the fall.

There is no firm evidence regarding the success of captive reared bears to survive and breed in the wild other than low numbers of returned ear tags and anecdotal comments. It is debatable which option is more humane: to euthanize orphaned bear cubs or to raise them in a captive environment and release them into an unknown area without the proper skills needed to survive and thrive. It is commonly felt among bear experts that these individuals often succumb to starvation or are killed by other bears. Captive-raised bears may also become conditioned to humans and identify them as a source of food, leading to public safety concerns.

Any program involving the captive rearing and release of bear cubs would, therefore, need to be combined with a rigorous monitoring program to identify the outcome of the release. The resources required to conduct such a rearing, release and monitoring program are substantial and would run into the tens of thousands of dollars for each individual animal. Considering the limited amount of operational dollars available to the wildlife and enforcement programs within the Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks, along with the concerns described earlier, rehabilitation and release of Black Bears has not been a priority for the Ministry.

There are few rehabilitation facilities within British Columbia that have the capacity to properly raise bears for release back to the wild. A total of 6 private facilities have been involved in handling or caring for the 102 bears referred for rehabilitation over the past 10 years. This implies that if this practice continues, only a limited number of animals could be placed in rehabilitation centres each year and that these animals would need to be selected as the best candidates for successful captive rearing and release. The facilities themselves should meet strict conditions regarding the construction of enclosures, feeding and handling of bears to ensure minimal human contact. The bears should not be conditioned to human presence nor given the opportunity to associate people with food. The development of these standards, and the monitoring of facilities to ensure they are met and maintained, would be the responsibility of government. Adequate funding would be required in the form of staff time and operational dollars to fulfil this commitment. Private wildlife rehabilitation facilities are responsible for raising their own funding.

Cubs orphaned later in the year, that appear in good condition and are of adequate size could be released within their native territory without any captive rearing, provided they have not been feeding on human foods. These animals must be monitored following release to determine their outcome. The likelihood of long term survival of a cub, at an age when it should still be under the instruction and protection of its mother, is still debated by the bear research community.

The alternative of placing orphaned bear cubs in zoos or other captive rearing facilities that train animals for the entertainment industry was unanimously rejected by the Orphaned Bear Cub Review Committee due to the inability to ensure animals would be properly handled. It has been reported that these animals have often been cared for poorly or sold to other sources. It was felt that captive-bred bears should be used to provide animals for that market. Wild bears should only be reared in captivity for eventual release back to the wild.

There is definitely a large societal demand to place orphaned Black Bear cubs in rehabilitation facilities and raise them for release into the wild. This has led to an "underground" rehabilitation movement operating unofficially in the province where unknown numbers of bears of unknown habituation status may be reared and released to the wild with no ministry knowledge or monitoring.

Given the public demand, it was agreed to by the Orphaned Bear Cub Review Committee that provincial policy and procedure should be revised to include the option of rehabilitation and release of bear cubs, where appropriate. Furthermore, strict biological and behavioural criteria for the suitability of and acceptance of cubs into an orphaned cub program and specific written protocols for effective rehabilitation and release need to be developed if this option is considered. Also, an information program designed to educate people on the concerns and difficulties associated with the rehabilitation and release of orphaned cubs, and the need to avoid situations in which bears become habituated to humans, or conditioned to human foods, should be developed.

Recommendations

Standardized recording of the number of orphaned cub occurrences handled by the CO Service and the reason that these cubs were orphaned, if known, should be implemented. This information is needed to confirm the scope of the orphaned cub issue, identify the problem areas, and address possible causes. This information could be gathered in conjunction with other bear/human conflict data that is being proposed by the Bear/Human Conflicts Committee. Some additional resources would need to be identified, in the form of support staff within district offices, to allow for the accurate recording and processing of this data.

An information program designed to educate people on the concerns and difficulties associated with the rehabilitation and release of orphaned cubs, and the need to avoid situations in which bears become habituated to humans, or conditioned to human foods, should be developed. This information could be incorporated into the existing Bear Aware program. The Bear/Human Conflicts Committee is currently involved in promoting and coordinating the delivery of this program to communities throughout the province.

Provided that: adequate funding can be provided to the wildlife program to develop standards and monitor rehabilitation facilities; and that rehabilitation facilities can provide adequate funds to rear, release and monitor bears; and that adequate facilities are available, consideration should be given to the rehabilitation and release of orphaned bear cubs that are considered suitable candidates.

Cubs orphaned later in the season should be released within their home territory if they meet certain written criteria and appear sufficiently mature to survive on their own.

Orphaned cubs that do not meet these criteria should be euthanized as per current policy.

The Orphaned Bear Cub Review Committee proposes the following criteria for the rehabilitation and release of bear cubs in British Columbia:

• In order to be considered as candidates for rehabilitation and release, cubs must be in good health (of adequate size with no serious injuries or obvious illnesses) and not be habituated to humans or conditioned to human food sources.
  
  
• Grizzly Bear cubs would take priority over Black Bear cubs.
  
  
• Cubs that are brought to rehabilitation centres must be examined by a veterinarian, after which Ministry of Environment staff will decide whether the cub should be euthanized or reared by the rehabilitation facility for eventual release.
  
  
• Adequate and suitable facilities must be available at a rehabilitation centre that meets provincial standards for the rearing of bear cubs for release into the wild.
  
  
• Strict standards and protocols regarding the rehabilitation and release of bears and a program to ensure inspection and monitoring of the facilities and their success with rehabilitation must be developed by the ministry before bear rehabilitation is sanctioned or conducted. Sufficient government funding will need to be identified to develop orphaned cub acceptance criteria and rehabilitation standards and implement inspection and monitoring of facilities.
  
  
• Existing rehabilitation centres that have successfully raised orphaned bear cubs in the past, and whose facilities are considered close to standard, could be grandparented, pending a business plan identifying a time frame and process to meet the required standards and protocols. No new rehabilitation facilities would be permitted to raise orphaned bear cubs for release until standards had been developed and approved.
  
  
• It is mandatory that bears be released in the same general area that they were captured to avoid genetic dilution of unique populations.
  
  
• Release sites that meet the regional criteria regarding available habitat and distance from human development must be available (this implies that southern regions would be much more limited in their ability to translocate bear cubs and the Lower Mainland Region may never be suitable).
  
  
• Monitoring is an essential component of rehabilitation and release and no program should be undertaken without the necessary resources in place to conduct post-release monitoring. The monitoring program should be designed by the Provincial Large Carnivore Research Biologist.
  
  
• Funding for all costs associated with the rehabilitation, release and post-release monitoring of orphaned bear cubs should come from private sources. There may be an opportunity to partner with the Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks towards monitoring released bear cubs if the Ministry is already conducting other monitoring programs in the same general area.
  
  
• Rehabilitation facilities to be considered for rearing of orphaned bear cubs for release must provide a business plan that identifies:

- financial status, including proof of sufficient funding to conduct rearing and post-release monitoring.

- facilities suitable for bear rearing in isolation.

- staff training requirements.

- past experience with wildlife rehabilitation, specifically with large predators.

- member in good standing with the Wildlife Rehabilitators Network of British Columbia.

• Cubs that are orphaned later in the fall that appear in good condition and are of adequate size could be released within their native territory without any captive rearing, provided they have not been feeding on human foods. These animals must also be monitored following release to determine the success of these releases.
  
  
• The criteria for assessing cubs in the fall that could be released back to the wild would be similar to the criteria identified for captive rearing. In order to be considered as candidates for release cubs must be in good health (of adequate size with no serious injuries or obvious illnesses) and not be habituated to humans or conditioned to human food sources. Cubs should be moved as quickly as possible and with as little handling as possible. They should be released within their current home range area but far enough away from the area they were found that it would be difficult for them to return quickly.