By Gwendolyn Craig
A black bear that escaped again from a refuge has returned home.
Two bears housed at Adirondack Wildlife Refuge in Wilmington escaped on Thursday, according to a statement from the state Department of Environmental Conservation. One bear was recaptured but the second bear remained missing through the weekend.
The refuge, owned by wildlife rehabbers Steve and Wendy Hall, posted on its Facebook page Tuesday that the bear, Ahote, was found and returned to her enclosure.
This is the second time Ahote has broken out and made a run for it. In 2019, the bear was missing for weeks along with her partner bear, Luvey. The Halls wrote on their Facebook page that over the last couple of days they had made repairs and renovations to the bears’ enclosure, including a triple wire interior electric fence.
The DEC said refuge staff recovered the bear without DEC’s assistance.
“The circumstances of the bear’s escape are under DEC review,” a spokesperson wrote Adirondack Explorer. “DEC identified and communicated deficiencies in the bear enclosures after the 2019 escape. Additional information will be provided as it becomes available.”
Is there a reason these two bears cannot be released to the wild? Seems like they like it there.
I agree with Boreas. have the refuge owners gone into details as to why they must remain in an enclosure?
Been to this place, and it is more like a zoo. Wolves are treated like pet dogs than wild animals by the owner. Don’t even keep them wild. Fed like dogs are. Bears have a tiny enclosure, seems cruel. The bird cages and other wildlife enclosures looked filthy when I visited. Felt so sorry for those animals. The “refuge” actually received violations for “years of noncompliance” in 2020. There seems to be a local adoration with these “rehabilitators” but these folks should be investigated.