Brown Bear Rehabilitation Centre | A Sanctuary for Brown Bears
A Sanctuary for Brown Bears: How Are the Animals Rehabilitated?
There are many reasons for the creation of this «bear sanatorium». In recent years the number of cases of cruelty towards bears has risen sharply. They are not only abused and tortured, but also kept in appalling conditions. What is more, their population has decreased greatly, and today there are a mere 300 brown bears at most in Ukraine.
In connection with this, on the initiative of the public and the Ministry of Ecology of Ukraine, a rehabilitation centre was opened at the Synevyr National Park in 2011. The location for the Centre was not chosen by chance - the local climate and landscape are as conducive as could be to the animals’ recovery; it is here that the bruins feel in their element. They are not released beyond the Centre’s bounds - in the forest, their natural habitat, they are not adapted to survive.
About the Brown Bear Rehabilitation Centre
The Brown Bear Rehabilitation Centre is divided into two sections: a quarantine area with an enclosure, and a fenced-off forest that has almost everything the animals need for a normal life: comfortable dens, artificial lakes, play structures, and whole plantations of blueberries, blackberries and raspberries. In the near future the Centre is set to be expanded - the number of bears in need of help keeps growing.
At first a newly arrived bear is thoroughly examined by the vets, then quarantine awaits it, and after that - the wondrous healing nature of the Carpathians, the cheerful company of new friends and a balanced diet of fresh food. The Centre’s grounds are enclosed by a metal mesh fence carrying an electrical current - the so-called «electric shepherd». Touching the fence is strictly forbidden, and reaching your hands through it is not permitted.
Every resident of the rehabilitation centre - has its own sad story. Most of the bruins were subjected to cruel treatment; they lived in captivity and in unsanitary conditions. For instance, a little bear named Benia was placed on a red-hot stove so that he would learn to dance in a travelling circus. Potap and Diurii were used as bait for hunting dogs, and Maliuk was handed over to a private entrepreneur for amusement. And the she-bear Ira spent more than 30 years in a small metal cage and could barely move. Some of the animals were found and brought to the brown bear sanctuary by foresters, others were found abandoned by local residents, and some were given up voluntarily by their hapless owners.
Today, thanks to rehabilitation and an enhanced, vitamin-rich diet, the bears have adapted, almost fully recovered, play actively, and their weight has grown several times over. The heaviest is Potapych - over 600 kg! The Centre’s staff say the bears have quite an appetite. The males eat up to 20 kg of food a day, the females a little less. They are very fond of feasting on fresh fish, carrots, bread, apples and, especially, aromatic Carpathian honey.
Every year thousands of tourists come to the «Synevyr» National Park to see with their own eyes how the animals live in this «bear reserve». The bears are no longer afraid of people and have grown used to their frequent guests.
You can visit the brown bear sanctuary during the excursion to Synevyr «Pearls of Mezhyhir’ia».
