Our Bears - Zero

In July of 1996, the Appalachian Bear Center received its first cub. It was eventually tattooed by the center with the number "000" and soon afterwards was being referred to by ABC volunteers simply as "Zero".  He came to the center as an orphan from Sullivan County in Tennessee; presumably, his mother had been killed by poacher. Thankfully, he was found and with the help of the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA), he made his way to the Appalachian Bear Center.

Within a few months he was large and old enough to make it on his own. As you can see from his picture, he grew into a healthy and strong young bear who loved to climb trees! A day was finally chosen in September for his release back into the wild.  When the door to his transport cage finally opened on that glorious September morning, one needed quick hands and fingers to get a picture of him. "Zero" knew right away that he was free once again and bolted to his wonderful wild home.  It truly was a sad but wonderful sight.