A Bear Cub Rescue

In early May, I got a call that stopped me in my tracks. It wasn’t about a hazardous tree or storm damage, it was about bear cubs in a tree. At first, I honestly thought I had misheard. I've rescued cats before, sure, but never in my career had I been asked to retrieve baby bears from a canopy.

We headed out to a beautiful spot along the Peace River to meet with the Northern Lights Wildlife Society. That’s when we learned the heartbreaking backstory: the mother bear had been shot in the back by someone passing by. Conservation officers had to step in when they discovered her cubs alone in the area. Sadly, they were forced to put her down. The cubs had climbed high into a nearby tree, scared, confused, and clinging to the only safety they knew.

I geared up and began the climb, carefully pacing myself to avoid startling the cubs. But the moment I got close, all three scrambled out onto some small and thin branches, far beyond anything I could safely reach. I paused there, suspended in the tree, trying to find a solution that wouldn’t put the cubs or myself at risk.

We decided to try sedating one. A dart was sent up with the hopes that I could catch and lower at least one cub safely. But they were too smart and too scared. They stayed just out of range, clinging tightly to their perch. After 30 minutes of strategizing and hanging on up there, we made the tough call to back off. Sometimes, nature needs space to work things out.

The next morning, good news came fast: two cubs had made their way down and were safely caught in live traps. One of them was particularly spunky and gave the team a run for their money. A few hours later, the final cub followed. All three were taken in by the wildlife team for rehabilitation, tired, hungry, but safe.

It was one of the wildest, most emotional rescues I’ve ever been part of. Equal parts awe-inspiring and heartbreaking, it reminded me how unpredictable this work can be, and how connected we all are to the land and the creatures who call it home.

Tree care might not usually involve wildlife rescue, but when the call comes, you do what you can.