Boki, a brown bear who underwent life-saving brain surgery in October, has emerged from hibernation “happy and healthy,” according to his keepers at Wildwood Trust in England.
Last year, an MRI scan revealed that Boki had hydrocephalus, a condition where excess fluid builds up in the brain, causing seizures. To address this, surgeons placed a stent between his brain and abdomen to drain the fluid in a delicate six-hour operation.
“He’s looking brilliant, he’s looking happy, he’s looking healthy, and we haven’t seen any negative signs or anything like that from him,” said Jon Forde, head of bears at Wildwood.
“One of the first things he did when he got up was wander outside. All his personality traits are still there. He’s still our same old Boki that we all love, which is great news.”
Bear Boki made incredible recovery
The young bear has made an incredible recovery. The surgery was performed just before Boki entered a period where medication would have been difficult to administer. Now, he is playful, active, and full of energy, as if he never had an operation, the team at Wildwood said.
His interactions with other bears have been positive. Keepers are closely monitoring his behavior in preparation for reintroducing him to his bear companions later this year. The team is thrilled with Boki’s progress and will continue sharing updates on his journey.
Boki was adopted from Port Lympne Wild Animal Reserve in 2022 after being rejected by his mother. Since then, he has learned natural bear behaviors and bonded with Wildwood’s two adult bears, Fluff and Scruff.
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