Happy 100 Days, Luna

Text & Photos by Seng Yen Wah

"We found a baby bear in Bintang’s den!" – Our resident vet, Dr Boon, was telling us from her walkie talkie.

It was an ordinary day. On 20 May 2021, in the morning, keepers, as usual, started their routine in the bear house. The bear keeper, Marshah, was doing the faecal check. Suddenly, he heard a soft crying sound from the bear den. Then, he checked every den and found a tiny black thing in Bintang's den. Then he asked David, a senior bear keeper, to take a look. As soon as David confirmed it was a bear cub, he informed Dr Boon immediately. Dr Boon came quickly to inspect the bear cub and informed everyone in BSBCC.

After that, the day had become an extraordinary day for the BSBCC.

In these 100 days, Little Luna has been through a lot. Let pictures show how the growing process has been for Luna in these 100 days!

Day 1

Bintang did a good job being a mother for the first time. She took good care of Luna.
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She spends every second around her cub fulfilling her all needs. When Luna is crying, she returns to Luna and cuddles her to comfort her no matter where she is. Bintang loves to interact with her cub and keeps watching all her activities even when she feels tired. 

She is always alert to her surroundings to ensure Luna is safe. The mother's love is sweet and warm!

Day 9
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In the morning, Bintang was nibbling on her cub more frequently. Luna was less active. We decided to check on Luna and found that she was weak.Her body temperature was low, multiple dry wounds on her body and necrotic skin on her ears. After checking her condition, it is found that Luna’s injuries may have been caused by Bintang's over-grooming. 

After that, we made a difficult decision to separate Luna from Bintang.  The decision was tough for us as there was no doubt in Bintang’s mothering abilities. However, Luna was in poor health. Our vet and keeper quickly took her to the clinic and treated her immediately. Since then the keepers cared for her around the clock 24/7.

Luna’s health condition was unstable. Fortunately, she survived many critical moments, such as maintaining her in the oxygen chamber several times.

Day 28
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Luna couldn't wait to see the world. It was so exciting, her eyes opened!

Day 33
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Luna gets ready to crawl! She can lift her head to look around. Then Luna starts doing mini push-ups, lifting or supporting herself up on her limbs. She learns to lift herself up on all her limbs. And she begins to rock forward and backwards. She surprised us with her learning ability. Soon, she was crawling around.

Day 52
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Luna is seeing the sun for the first time. It is so great! The first time of going outdoors, she was feeling anxious. She stays with the keeper who slowly introduces her to every little thing around her. Soon, she looks around and starts to fall in love with the sun, leaves and nature. She might think this world is so cool!

Day 57

Luna is teething!

Day 77
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Meet the forest!

Everything in the forest is new to her! She never spends enough time exploring around, playing with leaves and digging in the soil. It is wonderful to see her running and hopping in a happy rhythm.

Walks in the forest allow Luna to explore the forest from an early age and learn the forest skills needed to survive in the wild, such as climbing, foraging, digging, etc. 

Day 85
Luna had a first taste of solid food, a banana! After that, she tried watermelon, snake fruit, pineapple, sweet potato and carrot. Her favourite is still the banana!
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Hold on to each tiny moment. Luna is growing too fast! She is 100 days old today! There is still a long journey for Luna. With love and patience, we hope Luna grows up healthy and happy. Happy 100 days, Luna!