Two bear cubs, orphaned when their mother was fatally shot, are expected to be released back into the wild in the spring.
The cubs are being raised at Pauline Schneegas Wildlife Foundation facilities near Silt, and the pair are doing well, according to a media release from The Animal Law Center.
The sow was killed on August 27 on a ranch near Crestone, about 125 miles southwest of Denver, by Colorado Division of Wildlife officers. The DOW suspected the bear of killing a goat on a nearby ranch.
The foundation this morning released photographs of the cubs.
The cubs have been in the care of the foundation since mid-September. Staffers there are careful not to get to close to the cubs because the pair will have to maintain a fear of humans to help ensure a successful transition back into the wild.
Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com.
