Ontario black bear cub survives gunshot to head

An 18-month-old bear cub is recovering after surgery to repair a gunshot wound to its head. Wildlife veterinarians removed shattered tooth roots.

An Ontario animal sanctuary is caring for a young black bear that was shot in the head, an injury that required specialized surgery and care before officials could consider returning the animal to the wild.

The approximately 18-month-old female bear was brought to the Bear With Us Centre, a wildlife sanctuary in Sprucedale, Ont., on June 8 after staff from the Ministry of Natural Resources in the Sault Ste. Marie district captured it.

Discovery of a severe injury

The sanctuary reported the yearling was small, weighing just 10.2 kilograms (22.5 pounds) upon arrival. After a period to allow the bear to settle in, it was sedated for an initial assessment.

“While the cub was sedated, a wound that was infected was noted on the cub’s jaw,” said Bear With Us founder, Mike McIntosh, in a social media post in late June.

Further investigation by Dr. Sherri Cox from the National Wildlife Centre, who arrived on June 21, revealed the severity of the injury. X-rays showed the cub had been shot. The bullet broke the bear’s left lower mandible, removed two molars and left fragments in its face and neck.

The sanctuary indicated the shooting was connected to the illegal killing of the young bear’s mother.

Surgery paves the way for release

The bear has remained in the sanctuary’s care to allow the infection to diminish and for the jawbone to heal. During this time, the bear gained significant weight, reaching 36.5 kilograms (80.3 pounds) by early September.

On Sept. 5, Dr. Sherri Cox and Dr. Dana Cox performed an hour-long surgery to remove the roots of the two shattered teeth to eliminate future pain and infection risks.

Dr. Sherri Cox told CTV News that the bear will no longer be in pain and will be able to live a normal life.

“It has an excellent prognosis, in terms of healing of that jaw and returning to full function,” said Dr. Sherri Cox.

“Bears, bears do a lot with their lips. They’re very, very, tactile and very gentle ... when they eat.”

“Now, after a short healing period, this young bear will be returned to her wild home,” the Bear With Us Centre wrote in a social media post on Sunday.

Bear With Us

The Bear With Us Centre was founded in 1992 with the cooperation of the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources. Since its inception, it has assisted over 700 orphaned and injured bears return to the wild and provides a permanent home for bears that cannot be released. The centre is not open to the public.

With files from CTVNorthernOntario.ca journalist Cory Nordstrom