Victory! The last two bears also left Marghazar Zoo, Pakistan where the loneliest bear in the world lived
Victory! The last two bears also left the Marghazar Zoo, the park in Islamabad in Pakistan where the loneliest bear in the world lived, Kaavan, recently released thanks to the help of singer Cher. Yesterday, Himalayan brown bears Suzie and Bubloo said goodbye to their prison and are now headed for a sanctuary in Jordan.
It is the end of the Pakistani zoo which today, for the first time, will not reopen its gates. All the animals have been moved to sanctuaries and are finally free. The last two were the Himalayan brown bears Suzie e Bubloo, both aged 17. The international association Four Paws has moved them to Jordan, where they will find a suitable home for them at the “Al Ma'wa for Nature and Wildlife” sanctuary, run in collaboration with the Princess Alia Foundation.
Their departure has an important significance: there are no more animals in the Islamabad zoo, that has finally closed the gates forever. Since August 2020, Four Paws, together with Pakistan's Ministry of Climate Change, the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board (IWMB) and financially supported by American businessman Eric S. Margolis, has pushed for the closure and release of the animals and made it.
?? ?#FOURPAWSinPakistan???: BREAKING NEWS! The relocation of the two Himalayan Brown Bears Suzie and Bubloo, kept at…
Posted by FOUR PAWS on Sunday, December 13, 2020
It all started with The formula, the loneliest elephant in the world has been locked in a zoo for 35 years, whose story has moved and indignant the world. Since then, organizations have been mobilized but also famous people like Cher. But she certainly couldn't be the only "lucky one".
The last animals of the Marghazar zoo
Other animals were also still present at the 28-hectare Marghazar Zoo. Originally opened in 1978 as a wildlife sanctuary in the Margalla Hills in Islamabad, it was later transformed into a zoo. The latter has repeatedly made headlines due to its poor conditions in which the animals lived. Only in July 2020 did shocking videos appear of two lions fighting a fire in their small enclosure. Both eventually died from smoke inhalation. In recent years, more than 500 animals have disappeared and, in the last four years alone, dozens have died.
But now it's really over. After years of suffering, the last two animals, Suzie and Bubloo, will also be free. Before arriving at Marghazar Zoo, they had literally been used as dancing bears. To prevent them from hurting their owner and bystanders, both of them had nearly all of their teeth removed. The Four Paws team also found severe behavioral problems in the animals. Vets had to perform emergency surgery on Suzie in August 2020, as she was suffering from a severely infected chest wound likely due to a recent tumor removal.
“After witnessing the departure of their zoo companion Kaavan, Suzie and Bubloo are also finally starting a new life. By leaving for Jordan, we can give the bears the medical care and love they desperately need. After nearly four months of hard work in Pakistan, we are closing the gates of the Marghazar Zoo once and for all. The last minute cancellation of bear export permits was a brief setback last week, but luckily the Islamabad High Court and the IWMB once again came out in favor of animal welfare " Four Paws rejoices.
Today is a day of celebration, let's hope it's the first of many!
Sources of reference: Facebook / Four Paws, Four Paws International
READ also:
- Cher meets Kaavan: 'the loneliest elephant in the world' begins his journey from the zoo to the Cambodian sanctuary
- Singer Cher cries for joy: Pakistan's "loneliest elephant" has won his battle for freedom
