A bear that had pioneering brain surgery to save his life has emerged from semi-hibernation “looking brilliant, happy and healthy”.
Boki, a European brown bear, was suffering seizures and vision problems due to a build up of fluid putting pressure on his brain.
Vets feared if they didn’t operate before he went into torpor (a winter dormancy similar to hibernation) he might not wake up again.
In October, he had a three-hour operation to run a tube run from his brain, under his skin and down to his bladder so the excess fluid could be drained.
The Edinburgh-based specialist in charge, Romain Pizzi, had only done it once before – on an Asiatic black bear in Laos.
Three-year-old Boki has now made a “remarkable recovery” and is off his medication with no adverse effects, according to the Kent-based Wildwood Trust.
His emergence from semi-hibernation is said to be a key step in his recovery.
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“He’s looking brilliant, happy and healthy and we haven’t seen any negative signs from him. All his personality traits are still there – he’s still the same old Boki that we love,” said head of bears Jon Forde.
“Boki did well for his first ever winter sleep,” he added.
“He lost around 30kg – we think a lot of this because he’s actually grown while he was asleep so a lot of energy has been used for that.”
The bear was rejected by his mother as a cub and moved to the trust, based near Canterbury, in December 2022.
Boki was being integrated with two adult bears, Fluff and Scruff, but had to be separated after the seizures started.
It’s now hoped they can get reacquainted and become friends.
“While the signs are very positive, we still need to proceed with caution and to take care with the reintroduction to Fluff and Scruff,” said head of zoo operations Mark Habben.
“This will involve boisterous play, which we want to minimise in these early stages post-torpor.
“We will monitor him very closely and, at some point over the coming months, we will conduct that introduction if everything continues to go well.
“We have to take this step for his wellbeing and theirs as well – they want to be together.”
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Boki’s condition is called hydrocephalus and also occurs in humans, affecting one in every 500 births.
Other cases can be triggered by illness or injury later in life. However, it’s believed to be rare in animals.
