Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)

Cholita the Abused Circus Bear Enjoys Her First Steps to Freedom

Video footage:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NHUvB9wWy48

Our recent SAV post associated with this:  https://serbiananimalsvoice.com/2015/05/02/uk-london-victory-39-rescued-circus-animals-returned-to-the-jungle/

Just a few weeks after we heard about the heartbreaking plight of Cholita, an abused circus bear in Peru who desperately needed a new home, her rescuers have successfully brought her to safety and are giving her the love and care she deserves.

Cholita, who was nicknamed the real-life Paddington bear, is an endangered Andean bear, but it’s hard to tell by looking at her.

Images and video of Cholita previously taken by Animal Defenders International (ADI), the organization behind the effort to bring her to safety, are heartbreaking and tell quite a story about her abusive past in entertainment.

Her fingers had been cut off to remove her claws and her teeth were smashed to leave her unable to defend herself, according to ADI. She should be covered in thick fur, but her body is bald as a result of alopecia, which her rescuers believe was caused by stress.

She had been confiscated by authorities and placed in a zoo until a permanent home could be found for her, but there was nowhere for her to go in Peru. ADI heard about her during a rescue it was participating in at a nearby circus and stepped in to save her.

They took custody of her from the zoo and after a two-day journey traveling in her former circus cage to ADI’s rescue center in Lima, Cholita is finally getting to enjoy some of the simple comforts that were denied to her for so long.

According to ADI, for the first time in her life she’s been able to make nests, enjoy good food and play in a bath.

“Cholita has taken her first steps to freedom and is clearly enjoying herself at the ADI rescue centre, making cosy deep straw nests and eating her favourite foods, especially grapes.” said ADI President Jan Creamer. “She is elderly and quite frail so we are keeping her under close observation to monitor her health. With the public’s continuing and heartfelt response we can give this sweet bear the brighter future she deserves.”

While she’s now safe, she’s only part of the way through her journey to her forever home at a sanctuary.

Following Peru’s ban on wild animals in circuses, ADI has rescued nearly 80 animals in a months-long mission dubbed Operation Spirit of Freedom. Last week, 39 monkeys, coati mundis and kinkajous saved during the operation were finally released into their new sanctuary home in the Amazon rainforest.

The next step of the operation involves transporting Cholita, along with 33 lions and a tiger, on a flight to their new home at the Wild Animal Sanctuary in Colorado next month where they will all live out their days free from their past lives.

As we continue to oppose the use of wild animals in entertainment, more and more countries are taking a stand against their abuse by banning them from circuses. Help wild animals in the U.S. have a future like this by signing and sharing the petition urging Congress to take action on their behalf by banning them here too.

For more info on Operation Spirit of Freedom, visit Animal Defenders International.

Filed under: CAMPAIGNS - Global Animal Welfare Issues, GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional, VIDEOS |