Rare Surgery In Seattle For Bear Hit By Car On Kitsap Peninsula

SEATTLE, WA - A 260-pound black bear is recovering after surgery to repair her pelvis after she was hit by a car in December. The life-saving surgery was completed recently by a special team of wildlife experts from PAWS, the Woodland Park Zoo, and the Seattle Veterinary Specialty Center.

The bear was hit on the Kitsap Peninsula sometime last December, and was found by state Department of Fish and Wildlife officers. The bear was healthy, but obviously injured and in need of medical help.

The officers contacted PAWS, which is the only permitted rehab facility for black bears in Washington state. Veterinarians at PAWS' main facility in Lynnwood examined the bear and found multiple rib and pelvis fractures.

The PAWS vets contacted other local wildlife facilities, assembling a sort-of dream team to put together a plan to heal the bear. Woodland Park Zoo provided a surgical facility and an ambulance ride for the bear. Veterinarians from the Seattle Veterinary Specialty Center helped with the surgery.

Three veterinarians and six vet techs performed the surgery on Dec. 13, piecing the bear's pelvis together with metal plates. About two weeks later, on New Years Day, the bear was in a routine of eating, sleeping, and walking around.

The bear is doing well, and PAWS vets think she'll be ready to go back into the wild this spring.

“This bear’s resilience and the heroic effort of the PAWS Wildlife Center, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, Woodland Park Zoo, and the Veterinary Specialty Center have provided her the best hope for a second chance at a life in the wild,” says PAWS Wildlife Center Director Jennifer Convy said in a statement. “The PAWS veterinary and rehabilitation staff is optimistic she’ll make a full recovery and be released back to the wild this spring.”