14 DAY TRIAL // This past Saturday, two Romanian brown bears received some much needed help from the World Society for the Protection of Animals, whose members rescued them from the terrifying conditions in which they were forced to live at a zoo in Onesti.
Apparently, much like other wild animals living in captivity in this country, these two brown bears were forced to make do with the limited space they had available in their concrete cages, which simply failed to provide them with the conditions they needed in order to lead a comfortable life.
As one can easily imagine, this was because these wild predators are used to exploring rather large portions of land while in search of food and potential mates.
Moreover, concrete does anything but sit well with their paws and other parts of their bodies, especially if the animals are given no choice but to sleep on it.
Once taken out of their concrete enclosures, these two brown bears were taken to a wildlife park in Zarnesti, which is basically about 150 kilometers (93.2 miles) away from the zoo in Onesti.
Having been released in their new, bear-friendly enclosures, the bears supposedly settled in quite nicely. Once the quarantine period is over, they will be released into the forests near Zarnesti.
Sources inform us that Victor Watkins, a wildlife advisor presently working with the World Society for the Protection of Animals, made a case of how, “These bears used to live in small, concrete enclosures. They will be released soon in this beautiful forest area. That's a huge difference.”
According to recent estimates, Romania's mountains are presently inhabited by about 7,000 brown bears. However, as urban society continues to develop, people tap into their natural habitats ever more often.
As a result of this situation, confrontations between brown bears and humans occur on a rather regular basis, and country officials saw fit to allow for the killing of under 350 bears per year, supposedly in order to make sure that their population is kept well under control.