Starving and desperate, the orphaned black bear cub did what most wildlife do when stressed: It sought out an easy food source.

The bear found sustenance in dog food left in a barn in the tiny town of Columbus, N.M., near the New Mexico-Mexico border. Luckily, state Game and Fish officers arrived to rescue the critter and took her to The Wildlife Center near Española for rehabilitation.

At the off-site large-mammal facility, the bear has quickly regained some weight, going from 12 to 40 pounds in about four weeks. Kathleen Ramsay, the center's founder and lead wildlife veterinarian, is now working to acquaint the bear with proper food sources it will find when returned to the wild, hopefully sometime in early spring.

It won't be an easy chore for the solitary bear, said Katherine Eagleson, the center's director. Unlike two cubs born about the same time and recently released where they were captured near the Capitan Mountain Range in the Lincoln National Forest, this bear has several strikes against it. Likely a Mexican subspecies, the bear won't hibernate because of its low weight and will need to be fed throughout the winter, increasing the chances of it becoming accustomed to wildlife's greatest foe — humans.

"This is the worst time to be getting them in (for rehabilitation) if they're not in good shape," Eagleson said. "It always creates issues when you have a bear cub by itself. They do much better when they are in twos; it's much easier for them not to habituate to humans."

The Arroyo Seco nonprofit, the state's only wildlife rehabilitation facility, rehabilitates about 1,400 mammals, raptors, songbirds and reptiles yearly. Its off-site facility north of Española shelters larger mammals, including several bobcats.

The latest cub is learning that humans aren't to be messed with, Ramsay said. The bear is now self-feeding and makes itself scarce when it senses human presence. It's also discovered a denlike box to hide in, a structure volunteers built just for that purpose.

It's not known what happened to the bear's mother, Ramsay said, although she was likely killed. That happened to the two other bear cubs that came in the spring. The male and female cubs quickly added weight and were released a few days after the most recent arrival. The release was timed after bear hunting season.

"They were nice and fat," Eagleson said. "They went from 10 to almost 100 pounds, and it was time to get them out. They'll mess around for a month or so and then den."

It was just the right time to release them back in the wild, Ramsay said, noting the bears were consuming between 12,000 and 15,000 calories a day.

The three bears are typical of many of the larger mammals that come into the center for rehabilitation, Ramsey said. Often, a black bear is found in trees or on someone's property and shot; later, the bear's cubs are found.

Bear cubs stay with their mothers for about 17 months and then venture out on their own. That time spent with the mother is critical, Ramsey said, as they learn what foods to eat and other survival skills.

At the large-mammal off-site facility, habitat-specific foods are brought in for the bears to discover. The two bears found near Capitan were fed site-specific foods like twigs, roots, fruits, berries and young plants.

An American black bear's diet is mostly vegetarian, Ramsey said, but it does include carrion or small mammals and fish when they are easily caught. The center's volunteers bring in fruits of all kinds for the bears, along with road kill from state game officers.

Ramsey is working with groups in the southern part of the state and south Texas to learn about the proper diet for the female cub for its return to that habitat. Cactus plants and juniper berries will be a large part of its diet, she said, and once the bear discovers those foods, she'll continue to search them out.

"It's amazing that once they find it and taste it, they find it's good," she said. "This bear didn't know what to look for because it was on its own. That's why it got into trouble."

At the off-site facility, only one person leaves food for the wild animals. That person is charged with making sure the wildlife doesn't habituate with humans. There's little contact, and if there is contact, it's meant to be intimidating. The feeder will yell or throw something at the wildlife to ensure the creature knows humans aren't to be messed with, Eagleson said.

While typical black bears in New Mexico can reach weights of up to 400 pounds, this subspecies will likely average only around 200 pounds.

The average weight is dependent on available foods, Ramsey said. Black bears in Alaska, for example, often reach weights of up to 600 pounds. This cub's target release weight is around 85 to 90 pounds.

While the two recently released bears were returned to the habitat in which they were found, relocating a wild animal is often a tricky task. Wildlife compete for a limited amount of suitable habitat, Eagleson said, with humans encroaching more and more upon that space.

People are often quick to call wildlife officials to relocate an animal without considering why the animal is there in the first place. It's an unfortunate but common issue, Eagleson said.

"Bears might be in someone's apple orchard and they will call up and say, 'Geez, I love wildlife, but get rid of these bears.' Putting them in a different location doesn't always work; they will try to find a way back."

A better solution is to learn to live with wildlife but be savvy about it, Eagleson said. Fences work well, along with big dogs to keep wildlife away. Being knowledgeable about food sources that attract wildlife goes a long way in preventing problems.

"Relocation is not a solution," Eagleson said. "It doesn't work for the animals and it doesn't work for the people. If you don't change what brought them in to begin with, more are just going to come back."

People can't pick the wildlife they want to live with without disturbing nature's balance, Eagleson said, adding that wildlife is a part of the cultural mix of New Mexico.

"The public needs to know there's a trade-off," she said. "You can love wildlife, and many of us do, that's why we live here, but if you have a good habitat for wildlife, either learn to live with it or move."

Help the wildlife

If you would like to help offset the costs of rehabilitating the bear or any other animals at The Wildlife Center, call 505-753-9505, or send a check to The Wildlife Center, P.O. Box 246, Española, NM 87532. The center's winter hours are 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday. It is at 19 Wheat St. Visit the Web site at www.thewildlifecenter.org.