For cubs, extensive knowledge of their surroundings is critical to their survival, and the mother is considered a patient and sensitive teacher. Sloth bear cubs have a good chance of survival, as male sloth bears rarely display the predatory instincts toward cubs observed in other bear species. Cubs stay with their mother until they are independent and can care for themselves, at 2 or more years of age. Hence, females have breeding intervals of two or three years. These animals were initially classified as bear sloths, due to their slow gait and ability to climb trees.
Sloth bears have a long, rough and shaggy coat of thick, reddish-brown to black fur.
There is little hair on their underbelly. Some sloth bears also have a white muzzle and white paw tips. Sloth bears prefer to forage at night, in a solitary fashion, when temperatures are cooler. However, females with cubs forage during the day, so as not to compete with other bears or nocturnal predators for resources. Perhaps another reason that sloth bears were thought to be sloths was their massive consumption of insects, especially termites.