By early July, Michael Sirochman was faced with a challenge. He quickly needed to create more space with more bear cubs seemingly arriving every day.
Sirochman serves as the facility manager at the Frisco Creek Wildlife Rehabilitation Center operated by Colorado Parks and Wildlife in the San Luis Valley. Once used by CPW as part of the Canada lynx reintroduction, the property has been used as a temporary home for orphaned black bear cubs, injured birds of prey and a wide array of other orphaned mammals.
It was only mid-April of this year when the first bear of the year arrived at Sirochman’s doorstep. It was a 6-pound cub from Evergreen. Since then, 46 more bears have found their way to Frisco Creek in 2026, a new record for the facility.
Included in the bunch was a bear dealing with a broken leg, a yearling that sustained burn injuries in the Aspen Acres Fire, and dozens more orphaned in a variety of ways during the worst year of human-bear conflict on record for CPW.
“For the last 15 years, we’ve averaged about 20 orphaned black bear cubs a year here at Frisco Creek,” Sirochman said. “Fortunately, this year we did not have any bobcats, mountain lions or red foxes, so all mammal pen space has been available and dedicated to housing cubs. We were also able to finish modifications to several pens that were set up for other species in the past and were not very useful for bear cubs. This has allowed us to take in a record number of cubs this year.”
Frisco Creek mostly takes in young-of-the-year cubs. However, treating yearling bears has also become more common. Yearlings in need of help are typically encountered in the spring or late winter, having entered into hibernation as cubs without sufficient fat reserves. Because of malnourishment, those yearlings are sometimes so small and stunted that they are mistaken for cubs.
This year, Sirochman and his team found themselves caring for a yearling male that sustained injuries in the Aspen Acres Fire. The bear arrived July 20 with burns on the bottom of all four paws. When he arrived at the facility, he weighed only 31 pounds. Now, he has healed from the burns and has soared past 120 pounds.
“We were very pleased how tolerant he was of our frequent bandaging,” said Frisco Creek seasonal employee Ashley Lestone. “Wild animals in care will often immediately attempt to remove bandages or other foreign objects from their body, but this bear seemed content to leave everything alone and give his paws some much needed rest.”
Fortunately, CPW’s field veterinarian, Dr. Jane Riner, has extensive experience with burn care for black bears and other wildlife. This case was not particularly severe compared to many other cases she has treated.
“This bear had significant burn injuries to all four paws, but they were already showing signs of healing,” Dr. Riner said. “Because he had survived the worst of it and we had a headstart, we had high hopes for a successful outcome. We were able to use special wound dressings to provide protection from infection and a multi-wavelength light therapy to accelerate the healing process. He showed incredible improvement, and within nine days, we were able to discontinue bandaging and get him comfortably back on his feet.”
The burns are now completely healed, and the yearling is preparing for hibernation. CPW’s current plan is to release him in late November when he is ready to den up for the winter.
This wasn’t the first time a bear rescued from a wildfire was treated at Frisco Creek. In 2018, a bear recovered from the 416 Fire near Durango gained international fame while in the care of CPW. It was later successfully released back into the wild and has never again been handled by CPW because of conflict, roadkill or hunter harvest.
“We have had good success treating several bears with burned paws,” Sirochman said. “In addition to the 416 Fire cub, two cubs with similar burns were brought to Frisco Creek in 2020. Despite their painful condition, the bears tolerated the treatment well and each made a complete recovery.”
Another 2026 cub arrived at Frisco Creek with a broken femur in its right hind leg. 9News first brought this bear’s story to the public in early August, shortly after a Custer County Sheriff’s deputy picked up the injured cub along a highway.
At that time, the cub was malnourished, dehydrated and limping on a broken leg. Thanks to supportive care at Frisco Creek and a successful surgical repair at Alpine Veterinary Hospital, the cub is now on the path to recovery.
A follow-up X-ray in mid-September showed Sirochman and Dr. Riner that the bone was healing properly and that the cub is very likely to return to the wild.
“We are very pleased with the healing progress so far,” said Frisco Creek intern Elyana Pollard. “Her limp has disappeared, and she seems to be getting around normally and pain-free. In addition, she was able to reach a healthy weight, and is now quite chubby, fluffy and ready for hibernation. While we will be keeping her at the facility through the winter months to ensure her leg is properly healed, we are hopeful that she will be fully healed and ready for release come spring.”
‘Some peace of mind’
While some bears have a more complex story or unique care plan, most arrive because their mother has died. Those mortalities can occur for several different reasons, including roadway collisions with motorists, landowner conflicts and when CPW is forced to euthanize a bear for breaking into homes.
When it is clear that cubs have been left behind in these situations, CPW strives to give them a chance at survival by sending cubs to Frisco Creek or to a private rehab facility in Silt – the Pauline S. Schneegas Wildlife Foundation. That facility has taken in an additional 34 cubs this year.
“In difficult bear years such as this one, we work closely with Frisco Creek to make sure these cubs have a good place to go that has a proven track record of successfully holding cubs and returning them to the wild,” said CPW Area Wildlife Manager Adrian Archuleta of Durango. “Cubs can get orphaned in several different ways. It does provide some peace of mind knowing these cubs will get the best shot at a second chance.”
In rare cases, cubs can be orphaned when a mother abandons them. That has been a more prevalent issue in 2026, which has been the worst year of natural food production for bears that CPW has recorded. The widespread food failure can be attributed to historic drought, late spring freezes and multiple large wildfires across the state.
“Each year, we collect staff survey data on natural bear food fall conditions around the state, and 2026 will go down as the worst statewide results we’ve seen since we started surveys in 2008,” said Mark Vieira, CPW’s Carnivore and Furbearer Program Manager. “While a final data summary is not available yet, many parts of the state are reporting complete food failures in most common bear food sources like acorns, serviceberries, chokecherries and plums.”
The 47 bears at Frisco Creek this year have come from all over the state. Twenty-one have come from CPW’s Southeast Region, 18 from the Northeast, seven from the Southwest and one from the Northwest, with many more Northwest cubs going to Silt.
‘Return to the wild’
Through the years, Frisco Creek has had as few as four orphaned bear cubs in one year to as many as 40. That work has continued the legacy of the Dieterich family, who originally owned the property. Herman and Susan Dieterich were retired veterinarians who cared for more than 3,000 injured or orphaned wild animals, including black bear cubs, at the property before CPW purchased it in 2004.
After taking in 29 cubs in 2025 and now 47 in 2026, Sirochman hopes to see a return to more average totals – around 20 cubs or less – and that the recent spike doesn’t become the new normal.
CPW typically does not bring many cubs to rehab after Aug. 15, as research has shown that cubs in good body condition after that date are able to successfully find food on their own and survive the first winter denning without a mother. However, 13 bears have come into Frisco Creek after the Aug. 15 date this year because they have been well underweight compared to what a wild black bear cub would typically weigh by that time of year.
After addressing any potential starvation issues, focus turns to fattening bears up so that they can eventually be released.
Cubs are normally housed in groups of up to 10. In busy years, up to 15 or more will be housed together in a single pen. The bulk of their diet consists of a commercial bear feed and is supplemented at times with grocery store produce, rose hips, native berries, fish and other natural vegetation growing inside a large outdoor pen area within an Aspen grove.
Extreme care is taken by Sirochman and his team to keep bears and all of the wildlife species that visit the facility wild. Visual barriers allow caretakers to go through the daily feeding and cleaning routine without bears seeing people. The goal is for the bears to act like wild bears in the end and leave the facility without being comfortable seeing humans, being near humans or hearing their voices. This gives them the best chance to succeed and avoid human-bear conflict when released.
Cubs are released at an appropriate time of year and after reaching a minimum release weight to ensure adequate fat reserves for the winter. Upon release, male cubs weigh a minimum of 70 pounds and female cubs a minimum of 60 pounds. But most cubs weigh 80 to 100 pounds, with a few cubs weighing more than 120 pounds.
Weights generally correlate with the length of time the cubs have spent in captivity. Prior to release, food is slowly tapered off over approximately three weeks and is eventually removed entirely to prepare cubs for winter torpor.
The cubs that weigh enough in time for a hard release ahead of denning will be released between mid-November and mid-December during periods of fair weather in areas that are mostly free from snow cover to allow unimpeded movement while they search for a suitable winter den location. Cubs are most typically released in groups of two or three.
Sirochman cited two recent studies on orphaned wild black bear cubs held and released ahead of winter. Those studies have shown that bears on average travel for seven days before locating a suitable location and making their own natural dens for the duration of winter. That week is likely used to prepare the site for denning, for example, excavating a den or gathering nesting materials.
Importantly, the studies show that this is instinctive behavior and occurs without the assistance of a mother bear. Cubs at Frisco Creek also display this same behavior prior to release, digging dens up to 7 feet long and gathering fir branches, leaves and other natural nesting materials in preparation for hibernation.
Cubs that are not able to put on enough weight to enter torpor in time for a hard release ahead of winter remain at the facility longer and will begin to hibernate in artificial dens. Wildlife officers may then release the cubs into artificial den sites mid-winter, most often in February. Next spring, those bears will emerge from the artificial dens directly into the wild, no different than if they had found their own den ahead of winter.
Hard releases also help ease use of CPW resources. Artificial dens require significant agency time, effort and money to snowmobile bears into the backcountry for that style of release.
Because so many of this year’s cubs came in severely underweight, Sirochman estimated 16 of the 47 cubs this year will have to go out in artificial dens or remain at the facility throughout the winter and be released next spring when they are large enough to be self-sufficient.
“We anticipate that 31 of the cubs will be ready to return to the wild this fall, mostly by the end of November,” Sirochman said. “The remaining cubs still need more time to grow and pack on essential weight for hibernation. Depending on their progress, some cubs will be released this winter into artificial dens, while others will spend their entire winter at Frisco Creek until spring brings abundant natural forage. Ultimately, our approach is to provide each animal with a timeline that meets its specific needs.”
‘Help us understand’
Earlier this year, Sirochman received a grant through Great Outdoors Colorado to place GPS collars on 10 cubs released from the facility in the fall. These collars will allow the bear’s movement and survival to be monitored for up to 18 months after release. This data will help measure how successfully the cubs adapt and determine whether current release strategies are effective.
“While we have gathered enough information over the past 15 years to be confident that cubs successfully den on their own, the GPS collars will provide more detailed data over a longer timeframe than we’ve been able to capture in the past,” Sirochman said.
The research is the latest action Sirochman has taken to not only follow the latest research in black bear rehabilitation strategies but to also study the topic directly. The research project just recently received acceptance by the Animal Care and Use Committee.
“In the past, we have attempted to use ear tag data to learn the fate of orphan cubs after release,” Vieira said. “Unfortunately, that has yielded information on only a very small subset of total animals – those that survive and are encountered again. It provides no information on the animals that die without being encountered. It also does not provide specific information to help us understand how cubs den independently for the first time. This pilot study will help us determine if future monitoring of orphan black bear cubs is practical and feasible.
“If hard releases prove to produce the same overwinter survival, it can help the agency reduce increased habituation of cubs and costs associated with a longer stay at the facility before artificial den site releases.”
‘Meet that need’
While late October usually signals the winding down of hyperphagia and bears begin to seek suitable dens for winter, Sirochman and CPW remain ready if and when more cubs need assistance during this difficult year.
Sirochman has already made plans to free up space this winter if starving cubs emerge from dens mid-winter. Every bear that is able to be released ahead of winter will create new space for the next cub in need.
While Frisco Creek used to be mostly empty of bears from mid-February to June, recent years have seen at least a few bears on site every month of the year. While it creates more challenges, Sirochman is doing everything he can to say “yes” when a wildlife officer calls looking for somewhere to take a cub that needs a second chance.
“Most wildlife officers will tell you that killing a bear is one of the worst things they ever have to do, and we constantly hear how grateful they are to have a place to send the orphan cubs,” Sirochman said. “We will continue doing everything we can at Frisco Creek to meet that need and provide that second chance.”
By John Livingston. John is the Southwest region public information officer for Colorado Parks and Wildlife.
