A bear who was discovered being kept as a pet and fed only bread, water and milk has been rescued by a Scottish zoo.
Byara will soon arrive at the Five Sisters Zoo in West Calder after being discovered on a property on the outskirts of Murmansk, Northwest Russia.
The nine-month-old bear had been raised and fed by a local man and was living in a small wooden shelter, but the animal was saved by Russian rescuers and temporarily housed by a local animal shelter called “Society for the Protection of Homeless Animals Priyut”.
After veterinary inspection it was clear Byara could not be returned to the wild due to the fact she weighed approx 20kg.
Now she will join animals at the Five Sisters Zoo for her permanent home with fellow bear Eso.
Byara was then temporarily housed in Moscow until all legal documents, veterinary checks and tests were complete however due to COVID 19 many labs were closed therefore this took significantly longer.
In April 2021 Byara arrived at Natuurhulpcentrum in Belgium after a long 3,000KM journey.
The zoo has previously rescued a group of circus lions
Byara will make one final trip to Scotland in the next few weeks and enjoy a large two acre woodland enclosure.
The Five Sisters Zoo posted on facebook: "In September 2019, Byara was found by local authorities in a house on the outskirts of Murmansk, Northwest Russia. Byara, a young bear cub at the time had lived in a small wooden house and was fed by a local man.
"She was fed on bread, water and sometimes milk. She was then rescued and temporarily housed by a local animal shelter in Russia called “Society for the Protection of Homeless Animals 'Priyut'.
"The rescue centre did study the possibilities of Byara being rehabilitated and released into the wild however they soon realised the chances of a positive return to life in the wild would be very small for the cub as they were unsure of how much time she had spent with humans and at the age of nine months, this is not favourable for making a bear cub ready for an independent life in the wild.
"In the coming weeks, Byara will make one final trip to join us at FSZ in our large two acre woodland enclosure where she will eventually be introduced to Eso."
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