Bear, last of zoo’s grey wolves, dies at 14

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This article was published 13/03/2025 (192 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Assiniboine Park Zoo’s last living grey wolf, Bear, died this week.

The wolf was nearly 15 years old and had to be euthanized Monday after breaking its leg, a humane choice given his age and the nature of the injury, the zoo announced Thursday.

Bear was a “great ambassador” for the zoo who was known for being especially charismatic and social, said Dr. Chris Enright, the director of animal welfare and veterinary services at Assiniboine Park Zoo.

“He really was interactive, he was really interactive with new things in his environment,” he said. “Anything that was smelly, he was all over it and rubbing in it.”

He was the last of a pack of five grey wolves who joined the zoo in 2014 from B.C. He was close with his pack-mates and watched over them as they aged. By the time Bear passed, he was the “equivalent of a 100-year-old person,” Enright said.

“They kind of grew up together and then had an opportunity to grow old together.”

Grey wolves play a special role at zoos, Enright said. He described them as a “conservation success story” that have been used to teach people how to safely live alongside wolves. They typically live in northern hemispheres around the world and manage the populations of their prey, improving the ecosystem for all animals.

“I think what Bear and the other wolves in our care have have taught zoogoers is that wolves are incredible, and wolves are important to the ecosystem, and we can find room in our lives for wolves,” he said.

The Assiniboine Park Zoo is currently working to acquire new grey wolves, a spokesperson said Thursday.