Bear cub badly burned in 416 fire has its bandages removed at rehab center

The bear cub that was rescued from the 416 fire nearly a month ago has had the therapeutic bandages removed from her paws and is on her way to a full recovery, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials.

Firefighters spotted the cub wandering through a burned area in late June. She was taken to a wildlife rehabilitation center near Del Norte a few days later, to treat her severely burned paws, after her mother failed to appear.

“The burns have healed nicely, and at this point I’d say her paws are about 95 percent healed,” said Michael Sirochman, manager of the Frisco Creek facility that has been treating the cub. “She still has a few nicks on her feet that we’re keeping an eye on, so we’ll probably examine her a few more times during the next month.”

She was treated with an antibiotic salve and pain medication, and was even visited by the iconic Smokey Bear.

Since then, she has been removed from isolation and placed in a pen with four other cubs.

Officials say it will be a while until she is well enough to be released into the wild. Right now, the plan is to release her and the other orphaned cubs at the wildlife center into a remote area sometime in January.

The massive 416 fire continues to burn near Durango. To date it has burned more than 54,000 acres and is 50 percent contained.