Flamingo Gardens welcomes two orphaned bear cubs in Davie

Davie’s Flamingo Gardens welcomed a new pair of cute additions.

They welcomed Bentley and Treena, two orphaned American black bear cubs donated by the Chestatee Wildlife Preserve.

7News received a first look at the pair as the bears roamed around their enclosure.

“They’re very active. Play around all day. Their favorite toy is actually each other,” said Michael Ruggieri, Senior Director of Wildlife at Flamingo Gardens.

The two are brother and sister, both 14 months old.

The young cubs were found abandoned and starved in the woods, but were rescued in Jasper, Georgia, after their mom was killed in the Bent Tree community in Georgia in 2025.

“They had a really rough life in the beginning and were honored to offer them a home,” said Laura Wyatt, Wildlife Curator at Flamingo Gardens. “Their mom was lactating. So they were literally out there starving to death.”

The cubs were at a wildlife preserve in Georgia before being donated to Flamingo Gardens, which will be their permanent home now.

“This was actually the first time they touched grass since they were seven weeks old,” said Ruggieri.

The enclosure is about 10,000 square feet.

“They’re really loving climbing the trees. They’ve been climbing the trees this whole time,” said Ruggieri.

In the past two weeks, the staff at Flamingo Gardens has learned what makes Bentley and Treena unique.

“She’s kind of a little bratty,” said Ruggieri.

“Bentley is like your bigger, older kind of derpy brother, you know, having a good time. Pretty laid back,” said Wyatt. “Bentley tries to steal her peanut butter and jelly sandwich or something, she will let him know by bopping him in the head and say, ‘No, Bentley.'”

As visitors get to know Bentley and Treena, the staff at Flamingo Gardens hopes people can be educated in the process.

“Bears are one of those prime animals that are stuck in different zones of Florida with all the buildings around them. So we just got to keep educating our young kids, you know, the plight of the bear and what their struggles are,” said Ruggieri.

Now, the bears can’t be released back into the wild because they’ve been dependent on human care since their mother was killed.

They’ve been at the Flamingo Gardens for about two weeks to get adjusted to their new surroundings before they become available for public viewing on June 6.

Residents can come out and get a look at the two bears, as there’ll be activities throughout the weekend.

For more information on Bentley and Treena, click here.