What Does The Bear Say?

Have you ever wondered what the bear in the famous “Funny bear walking like human” video say? To answer some questions from curious readers about my animal communication skill, here’s a short conversation that the bear and I had. Whether it’s an imaginary or a real conversation, only the bear and I know 🙂

Me: Isn’t it hard to balance yourself and walk on hind legs?
Bear: No, I’m comfortable doing it. It’s not difficult at all.
M: Why do you walk like that?
B: I feel more comfortable walking like this. It’s not wrong to walk like this, is it?
M: What do you mean ‘more comfortable’? Isn’t it easier for you to walk on four legs?
B: Look at my legs, they are very short! What can I see by standing on those short legs? I need better vision of my surrounding.
M: But you know what your enclosure look like. Why do you still need better vision?
B: So I know when food is approaching.
M: Don’t you get enough food already?
B: It’s never enough.
M: Then what can make you feel better?
B: Water. It’s very hot recently.
M: I mean what kind of food can make you feel better or less hungry?
B: Banana.

Do you have questions you want to ask the bear? Leave a comment below or contact us. I’ll convey your questions to the bear and publish the answers in the next few days.

The Story Behind Funny Bear Walking Like Human

In the video above you can watch a very funny Asiatic black bear (Ursus thibetanus) walking on his hind legs, just like how human walks. Everyone finds this very amusing, even me! I laughed when I first saw him walking like that and still smile whenever I see him walk like that in his big open enclosure.

Many volunteers and staff asked me why he walks like that. At first I could not answer their questions but after further observation here is my educated guess:

This bear was rescued from bear bile farm where he was kept in tiny cages and fed very little amount of food, only to keep him alive so they could extract his bile liquid. With this living condition it’s not surprising that he’s malnourished, which is shown by how short his legs are and the body size is disproportionately small for his head size. He is much smaller than an adult Asiatic black bear of his age should be. Click here to see how it’s like to live in bear bile farms.

Before his current place was turned into a rescue center, it functioned as a zoo where visitors could feed him and other bears by throwing food from outside the fence. With his smaller and malnourished body, it is easier for him to stand on his hind leg because his spine can support his light body weight. Standing up and waiting for food slowly became a habit which he does on a daily basis now. Click here to read what conversation I had with this bear regarding his condition now.

It was human who took him from the wild.
It was human who put him in bear bile farm and tortured him.
It was human who saved him from the farm.
It was human who fed him and ‘taught’ him to stand like that.
It is human greed which destroys our beautiful environment.

Off Day = Bear Surgery Day

It’s been a week since I gave training for police officers during my off day. I thought this week I could finally relax and have some me-time for one whole day but apparently I was wrong. One of the bears at our rescue center was badly injured and needed immediate treatment. So how could I say no when a bear was in great pain?

Thanks God the storm had stopped the night before so we could start the surgery in a sunny morning. It had been a while since I last did field surgery. Even though field surgery is not an ideal situation for surgery because of the lack of cleanliness and sterility, but I kind of missed it. I like the whole process is shone by the sun instead of surgery lamp. I like when the cool breeze blows instead of air conditioner. I enjoy the view of grass and trees and flowers in the background instead of cold surgery room wall. Overall, I feel more relaxed when I do surgery in the field than in the surgery room.

I’m not going into the details of the surgery. Long story short, the bear was darted successfully but it took a second anaesthetic dose to knock her down completely because I underestimated her body weight (Dear bear, it’s a compliment. I think you are slim but sorry, the truth is painful, you are fatter than I thought).

Once everything was set, I examined the wounds carefully. Her right hand was not too bad. There was only one cut that needed a few stitches. I examined her left paw and inhaled deeply. One of her fingers was exposed and I could see broken bone sticking out. I said sorry to the bear because I had to amputate the finger. I imagined the whole nasty process of debridement and amputation that I had to do, and silently asked myself, “Why did I become a wildlife vet?”

Ventral part of the bear’s paw. Trust me you don’t wanna see the dorsal part.

During the whole process two people almost passed out. One almost fainted because he saw blood and flesh and bone. The other one felt dizzy because it had passed our lunch time but the surgery was still ongoing. I was hungry and tired too, but of course I couldn’t stop halfway. Again, at that point I asked myself “Why did I become a vet?”

As I was bandaging the bear’s paws, I felt so relieved and happy at the same time that I had saved this bear today. As I saw the bear waking up from her deep sleep, I smiled to myself and answered my own question “Because I want to see the animals healthy and happy.”

Another off day is gone as I’m typing this post, but I’m glad that I lost it for a good cause. Get well soon my dear Bitey. Now that you’re awake it’s time for me to sleep.

Happy World Wildlife Day!

Every March 3rd each year is known as the World Wildlife Day. Here’s a super cute video of a bear cub enjoying her first fish enrichment ever.

Watch the video fo funny bear cub rolling on the floor here:

This female cub and her sister were rescued last year. They arrived at our rescue center as orphaned cubs, confiscated from rich people who kept them as pets. Their mom was most probably killed by poachers.

If you travel somewhere and see cute baby animals, remember, the easiest way to get a baby animal is to kill its mother.
Enjoy your day and please don’t support illegal wildlife trade!
Happy world wildlife day 🙂