our plans for bears in Ukraine
FOUR PAWS advocates for a ban on the private keeping of bears in Ukraine
In the framework of the #saddestbears initiative, FOUR PAWS advocates for a general ban on the private bear keeping in Ukraine. Our demand includes the ban of keeping bears on hunting stations and privately with trainers as well as other forms of private bear keepings nearby restaurants, hotels or in substandard zoos. We want to achieve this through:
- Public outreach and raising awareness about animal welfare in Ukraine.
- Political campaigning on a local level in order to put an end to all private bear keepings except of keeping bears in licensed sanctuaries, rehabilitation centers and proper zoos.
- The rescue of more privately kept bears in need and their transfer to BEAR SANCTUARY Domazhyr.
Till today FOUR PAWS rescued 22 bears from cruel private keeping, including bear Laska. Former fighting bear Laska was successfully transferred to BEAR SANCTUARY Domazhyr on 28. February 2019. Laska lived for years in intolerable conditions in the run-down Pokrovsk Zoo close to the city of Donetsk. We were able to verify that she was previously kept as a fighting bear and abused for training hunting dogs.
