124 
FOREST Al^t) Sf kEAM. 
If EB, 13, 1904, 
Breeding Bears in Confinement. 
Although bears are among the commonest animals 
shown in menageries and zoological gardens, they very 
seldom breed in confinement, and little is known about 
their breeding habits. Even old hunters are ignorant of 
this subject, and there are many men of wide experience 
who will tell you that they have never known of the kill- 
ing of a female bear carrying young. 
An early instance of the breeding of the black bear in 
captivity \vas told by Mr. F. J. Thompson, then in charge 
of the Cincinnati Zoological Garden, in Forest and 
Stream in 1879. He bred some black bears and reared 
therti successfully. Subsequently, at the same gardens, 
a pair of grizzly bears v/ere born, but did not live. From 
Mr. Thompson's experience, and that of others later, we 
know that the young are born in January, are very small 
when they make their first appearance, are covered with 
a fine down, and are blind for a long time — forty days, 
M'e believe. A few years ago a litter of black bears were 
born in the Prospect Park Zoo in Boston, and, we believe, 
were reared. This very winter a Rus- 
sian bear at the park of the New York 
Zoological Society in the Bronx is said 
to have given birth to young. 
By far the most notable success in 
the breeding of black bears is told of 
in a paper recently printed in the 
Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections 
by Mr. Arthur B. Baker. Mr. Baker 
says : 
It is well known to those familiar 
with collections of wild animals 
in zoological gardens and parks 
that bears in such places seldom pro- 
duce young, and that to rear the cubs 
is still more unusual ; so that it is gen- 
erally conceded that the conditions inci- 
dent to captivity almost preclude suc- 
cessful propagation. It is therefore 
worthy of notice that in a private park 
near Akron, Ohio, a pair of black bears 
has regularly bred and raised cubs dur- 
ing the last twelve years. 
A little more than twenty years ago, 
Mr. R. H. Lodge established a picnic 
park along the shore of little "Silver 
Lake," at Cuyahoga Falls, near Akron, 
Ohio, operating it for several years by 
himself, and later with his son, Mr. W. 
R. Lodge. From the outset a small col- 
lection of North American animals 
was one of its features, and this was 
increased from time to time. In 1888 
a pair of black bears was added. The 
female, captured on the north shore of 
Lake Superior, was received in July 
when about six months old, and a male 
of the same age was obtained shortly 
afterward from central Michigan. The 
two grew up together, and when too 
old to be safely handled were placed in 
a brick pit built for, their use. Here 
they have since lived (August, 1903), 
and that they have thriven during the 
fifteen years of captivity is apparent 
from the accompanying illustration, 
which shows the two old bears and 
their three seven-months'-old cubs. 
The first cub was born toward the 
end of January, 1892, when the parents 
were four years old. The male was 
then seen at the entrance to the den 
with a dead cub in his mouth, but a 
prompt and careful examination of the 
premises failed to discover any others. 
With the exception of three years, 
when conditions were unfavorable, this 
pair of bears has since prodiiced young 
each year, the record of births being 
as follows : 
1S92, January 23. One male' cub, 
found dead. 
1893, January 24. Two males and 
one female. 
1894, No cubs born, owing to young 
of previous year having run with the mother throughout 
the summer. 
1895, January 23. One male and one female. 
1896, January, 24. Two males and one female. 
1897, One male (exact date of birth not noted, but be- 
tween January 21 and 27). 
1898, January 24. One male and one female. 
1899, January 27. Three males. 
1900, No cubs born, as young of previous year had run 
with the mother during the summer. 
1901, January 26. Two rnales and one feinale. 
1902, No cubs born. 
1903, January 21. Two males and one female. 
After the first litter, all of the cubs were raised, ex- 
cept five which met accidental death at ages varying from 
one to eight months. 
The bears are kept in a circular brick pit 20 feet in 
diameter and 12 feet deep, lauilt on the eastern slope of a 
hill, where the ground is dry, and there is good drainage. 
On the upper side, the top of the brick wall rises about 
three feet above the surface of the ground. The floor of 
the pit is of terra -cotta blocks set in cement and slopes 
toward the entrance gate, where drainage is provided by 
a gutter of the same materials. The brick-lined entrance 
passage, about 10 feet long and 6 feet high, is provided 
with inner and outer gates of iron grating and thus 
affords a chamber to separate the bears from the main 
pit when desirable. There is a water tank about 3 by 6 
feet at one side of the pit. Two retiring dens are ex- 
cavated in the bank, each about s by 6 feet and 4 feet 
high. These are 8 or 10 feet beneath the surface of the 
ground, are lined with brick, and connected with the pit 
by a 24-inch circular opening. The entrance passage is 
provided with a similar but somewhat larger retiring den 
.with a ventilating shaft in the top, while the only open- 
ing in the others is that leading to the pit. There is a 
supply of water, under pressure, within convenient reach, 
and the pit is frequently and thoroughly washed with a 
hose. When the retiring dens require to be cleaned, the 
bears are confined in the gateway passage. 
The male bear is put with the female about the first of 
June and they mate in the latter part of June or the first 
week in July. They remain together in the pit until the 
time of hibernation. The cubs are born between the 21st 
and the 27th of January. Their presence in the den is at 
once made evident by their whimpering, which can easily 
be heard at the ventilator, but they are not seen till early 
in March. They are surprisingly small as compared with 
the size of the adult, for they weigh, at birth, only nine to 
twelve ounces. The eyes are closed and remain so for a 
month or more, and a little short, velvety hair on their 
bodies is the only indication of the heavy coat which they 
later acquire. 
As the mother is likely not to breed while giving atten- 
tion to the cubs, they usually are separated from her be- 
fore the end of May, and thereafter are raised by hand. 
For the first few weeks their food consists entirely of 
milk; then they are gradually , transferred to the mixed 
THE FAMILY OF BEARS AT SILVER LAKE PARK. 
diet of the older bears. The cubs are vicious in their 
greediness, and cannot be trusted to take their milk to- 
gether; when only three and a half months old, one killed 
his brothers in a fight over a pan of milk. ' 
The food given to the older bears is approximated as 
nearly as circumstances permit to that which they would 
obtain in the wild state. Scraps from the hotel and picnic 
tables furnish a considerable part of: their fare during 
the summer, but throughout the season they are liberally 
supplied with such suitable green food as can be obtained. 
Dandelion tops, clover, and some other vegetables come 
with early spring, and are followed by green corn, berries, 
and watermelons; and in the fall acorns are gathered for 
the bears. Green corn seems to be the favorite food, and 
is consumed most largely in the fall, when the bears be- 
come very fat. 
Accumulated fat and the approach of cold weather 
combine to dull the bears' interest in the outside world, 
so that they turn their attention to securing fetreats for 
winter, for at the first severe weather each animal begins 
to make ready its den by dragging into it large quantities 
of dry leaves. They become more and more sluggish, and 
about the, middle of December withdraw to the dens for 
their long winter sleep. Usually they remain undistiirbed 
until the beginning of March, when the first warm days 
bring them out to reconnoiter, and they soon afterward 
resume their interest in the activities of bear life. 
The old bear is a model mother to the cubs as long as 
they remain under her care, even refusing, on their ac- 
count, the attentions of her mate, but when they are taken 
away her affection for them seems soon to end. The two 
cubs of 1898 were removed in May and returned to the 
mother early in October, after first beihg k^t for two 
weeks with only a grating between. She had seemed to 
recognize them, but when they were put together she at 
once caught the little male by the head and killed him, 
and only forcible measures prevented her from climbing 
the tree and repeating the operation on the other cub, 
which had taken refuge there. The father cannot bfe 
trusted at all with his offspring while they are very small. 
This fact is recognized at Silver Lake Park, and has been 
only too often proved in zoological collections elsewhere. 
A number of the bears reared at Silver Lake have been 
sent to other parks, while some have been sold for meat. 
Several females were kept till they reached breeding age, 
at four years, and a second pit was built for them similar 
to the original one. They have produced a number of 
cubs. 
The success of the Messrs. Lodge with their bears 
should not be attributed to any one feature of their man- 
agement. The large amount and the character of the un- 
cooked vegetable food used probably have much to do 
with It, but the opportunity for isolated hibernation in 
snug, dry dens, and the manner of treating the mother 
and young, must have contributed largely to the result. 
The fact that there has not been a case of sickness among 
their bears, nor a death except through accident, is suffi- 
cient measure of their success. 
It must not be inferred that bears 
have not bred in captivity elsewhere 
in the United States, for instances are 
well known, including the following: 
. A grizzly bear in one zoological gar- 
den produced, in twelve litters, twenty- 
two cubs, but only one was reared. In 
another, twelve cubs out of thirteen 
died on the day of birth, and one lived 
eleven days. Mr. W. T. Hornaday, 
Director of the New York Zoological 
Park, writes as follows regarding a 
birth in Prospect Park, Brooklyn: "In 
a den of about 20 by 30 feet, in which 
were five black bears, the oldest female 
/ gave birth to two cubs, and reared 
' them_. Her den was shallow, and its 
, interior was badly exposed, but the 
mother persistently fought off all 
would-be intruders, and took good care 
of her young." 
In Forest Park, at Springfield, Mas- 
sachusetts, several cubs were born, one 
of which was reared. A black bear 
from the Yellowstone National Park, 
which was received at the National 
Zoological Park at Washington, on 
, „ .. October 15, 1893, gave birth to two 
cubs on the 4th of the following Feb- 
ruary; one was accidentally killed by 
the mother the following day, while 
the other she reared to maturity. The 
weight at birth was nine ounces, and 
the length eight and a half inches. The 
eyes were first opened on the thirty- 
ninth day. 
Hibernation in captivity appears to 
be more unusual than breeding, though 
several instances of this have been 
noted, and one, given by Mr. W. T. 
Hornaday, is especially interesting. 
- The bear in question was at Mandan, 
-North Dakota. He was kept on a 
long chain in a vacant lot, and on the 
advent of severe weather dug a hole 
about five feet deep in the open prairie, 
going down at an angle of about 45 
. degrees. He retired into this hole on 
December 14, and did not reappear 
; . until March 17 of the following year. 
... 'In closing this brief account, 
acknowledgment is made of the cour- 
tesy of Messrs. R. H. and W. R. 
Lodge in giving information and fur- 
nishing photographs, also of attentions 
received from them during a visit to 
Silver Lake Park. It is hoped that a 
knowledge of their methods in caring 
for bears may be of service to others 
who have these animals in their 
charge. 
. , In response to our inquiry as to the 
recent birth of the bear cubs at the 
ISfew York Zoological Park, Mr. 
Hornaday, the Director, has very kindly written us: 
, "The Russian. bear cubs which we now have were bom 
on January 31, 1904, or at all events that was the date on 
which their cries first made us aware of their existence. 
We are unable to state the length of the period of ges- 
tation. The mother of the present cubs gave birth, on 
January 17, 1903, to her first litter of two cubs, both of 
which died because the mother did not properly care for 
them. Three days after birth, the male specimen of the 
two measured as follows: 
"Length of hfead and body, 8^ inches. 
"Tail, ^ inch. 
"Circumference of chest, 634 inches. ' 
"Height at shoulders, if standing, 354 inches. 
"Weight, 15 ounces. 
"For a newly born bear, this specimen was quite well 
clothed with hair. 
"We suppose that the specimens in the present litter 
are now of abput the same dimensions as those given 
above. 
/'None of our bears hibernate in winter; but in severely 
cold weather the sloth bears remain the most of the time 
in their den. In fine weather, however, they come out in 
the middle of the day, and do not by any means appear to 
stififer from the cold. Of the eleven species now in the 
dens, the Syrian, bears, from Asia Minor, are the most 
lively' and playful. All the bears from Alaska are more 
quiet and less playful than in warm weather; but there 
is positively no hibernation. Beyond doubt hibernation 
is a habit born of sheer necessity. 
"It is my belief that breeding in captivity is only a 
question of satisfactory seclusion and sufficient food ; but in 
a zodldgical garden 'seclusion' often spells 'impossibility,' " 
