Badly burned bears back on their feet after Brazilian fish skin treatment

Two bears severely burned in the Thomas Fire were released back to the wild recently after several weeks of intensive care that included treating their burns with fish skin, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife website.

The bears were brought to the Wildlife Investigations Lab in Rancho Cordova with oozing wounds and burned paw pads. During treatment it was discovered that one of the bears was pregnant.

The bears were treated by Dr. Jamie Peyton, chief of Integrative Medicine at the UC Davis Veterinary Teaching Hospital, who used a homemade burn salve for the bears’ paws and a covering tilapia skin. The tilapia skin was sutured into place and covered with a dressing of rice paper and corn husks. The fish skin, which contains collagen, is often used by doctors in Brazil to treat burns on humans, according to the CDFW website.

The bears were placed into artificial dens five miles apart from each other outside the fire zone in the Los Padres National Forest last week. Satellite collars were fitted to the bears and tracking cameras were set up near their dens. Care was taken to make sure the animals were released away from the fire zones with plenty of food and water nearby.

This story was originally published January 22, 2018 at 12:50 PM with the headline "Badly burned bears back on their feet after Brazilian fish skin treatment."