Valkyrie, the black bear cub found with severe burns in December, is recovering well

A black bear cub rescued after it was burnt severely this past December will eventually be introduced to other bears at the sanctuary where it's recovering in Smithers, B.C.

Rescuers said the bear was burnt while hibernating in a slash pile near Dawson Creek, B.C., and suffered serious burns on its feet, face, and back.

Northern Lights Wildlife Society was alerted to the bear cub and rushed to take it into its care on Dec. 20.

Now, Angelika Langen, manager and co-founder of the society says the bear — since named Valkyrie — has settled in but its treatment will last several more weeks.

While its face is healing well, the cub's paws will take some time — they are bandaged with creams to promote healing and prevent infection, she said.

"We're really happy with her progress. We finally found a way, with the help of some duct tape, to keep the bandages on her, and that really helps in the healing process," Langen told CBC's Radio West.

Valkyrie is last year's cub, born in January or February 2025, added Langen. She will slowly be introduced to the other bears in their care and could be released back into the wild in June.

Langen says the bear was initially spotted curled up on a road in the Dawson Creek area, and the society was alerted because the cub was in rough shape.

"We kind of thought that the animal was just hypothermic," she said. "And we had no idea that there were other issues."

"When we did the first intake exam it became apparent that, actually, it was burnt."

Volunteers drove Valkyrie to Prince George and then to Smithers, after the cub was warmed up in a box, a nine hour journey in total.

It's common for hibernating bears to make dens within human-made piles of plant debris that workers intend to burn, Langen said. She suspects Valkyrie made a den in a slash pile that was then set on fire by someone not realizing there was a bear curled up inside.

The bear then faced bitterly cold winter weather, Langen said, noting temperatures plunged from –24 C to –34 C the night after Valkyrie was rescued.

"She was really lucky to be found, because she wouldn't have survived," Langen said.