Surgery bears fruit: Hogle Zoo’s Nora back on her feet

Nora the polar bear peaks into the sea lion enclosure as she swims in her pool at Utah’s Hogle Zoo in Salt Lake City on Wednesday. The 3-year-old polar bear broke her right front leg between her shoulder and elbow in January, presumably from her signature style of roughhouse play. According to the zoo, Nora was found in her exhibit on Jan. 23 unwilling to move. Keepers monitored her closely for a few days, but Nora didn’t budge. By Jan. 26, she made her way into the back holding area, allowing the zoo’s animal care team better access. An examination the next day confirmed the 500-pound bear, who had metabolic bone disease as a cub, broke her humerus, rendering her unable to walk. A large-animal orthopedic team from Texas A&M, a human orthopedic surgeon from University of Utah Hospital and a veterinary anesthesiologist from North Carolina State University performed surgery on Feb. 4. The procedure involved implanting heavy-duty orthopedic hardware such as screws and a special orthopedic pin. Nora arrived at the zoo in the fall of 2017 to be paired with then 2-year-old polar bear Hope. Born at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, the bear then spent a year at Oregon Zoo before moving to Salt Lake City.