PHOTOS: How do you run tests on the hair of a grizzly bear?
Two of the resident grizzly bears at WSU undergo a procedure to gather samples in hopes of figuring out their fur loss
PULLMAN — A group of staff and volunteers at the Washington State University Research, Education and Conservation Center, worked together Tuesday to carry two of the 11 bears living at the center into their den.
The bears were sedated and carried indoors where they underwent a procedure to try to discover why some of the bears have been losing fur.
Although it was a minor procedure, the work took close to six hours from sedation to recovery, and required a slew of carefully measured drugs and precautions.
Zuri and Adak, two 8-year-old grizzlies, took the procedures well and several skin scrapes and punch biopsies were successfully recovered from the bears. Throughout those hours, the center staff and volunteers also carried out their regular daily care regimen for the rest of their resident bears.
