Cranbeary, the 5-Year-Old Polar Bear, Returns to Memphis Zoo

Cranbeary, the five year old, 500 pound polar bear returned to the Northwest Passage exhibit at the Memphis Zoo on June 1 after recovering from a leg injury.

On February 10 Cranbeary underwent surgery to repair a broken femur sustained earlier in February, when she fell off of a 14 foot cliff into a dry moat in the Northwest Passage exhibit and broke her leg, all done while playing with fellow polar bear, Payton, who is three years old and 900 pounds.

While recovering in a suite at the Memphis Zoo's hospital, Cranbeary received hundreds of get well cards from local children and residents, wishing the bear to heal as quickly as possible.

While in the hospital, Cranbeary would rest on a very comfortable bed made of straw, and be fed the finest in polar bear cuisine. What do polar bears in the hospital eat? Well, Cranbeary was treated to fish, meat, carrots, apples, corn on the cob, granola bars, grapes, and raisins. Hospital food doesn't sound too bad, does it?

Also in the hospital, Cranbeary was given her very own portable air conditioning unit, to keep the cool temperatures that she is accustomed to.

On June 1 Cranbeary made her first appearance since the accident, and spectators could hardly tell which polar bear had been involved in the accident. Cranbeary's fur has grown back, and she hardly has a scar or limp as reminder of the injury.

Cranbeary has not been reintroduced to Payton yet. So far Cranbeary has been spending her time with Haley, Cranbeary's four year old polar bear pal. Cranbeary will need some time to get readjusted before getting to play with Payton again.

In the mean time, she is having tons of fun playing in the 130,000 gallon pool that is part of her exhibit at the zoo. Spectators are happy, too. Part of the Northwest Passage exhibit features an underwater viewing area, so guests get a great view of the bears as they swim and play in the water.

The polar bears can also be watched as they swim and play on two large flat screen televisions, which are also located in the underwater viewing area.

Since the accident, the Memphis Zoo has installed a wooden curb at the top of the cliff Cranbeary fell from and three feet of pea gravel inside of the moat. Hopefully this will prevent the same type of injury from occurring again.

Cranbeary is on display daily between the hours of 10:30 am and 6pm at the Northwest Passage exhibit at the Memphis zoo.