Two bears in Lebanon rescued from harsh zoo
Two Syrian bears were rescued from a zoo
Location: Tyre, Lebanon
Their names are Homer and Ulysses
They’re now on their way to a wildlife sanctuary in the U.S.
Four Paws International helped prepare the brown bears for their journey
(SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) HEAD OF PROJECT DEVELOPMENT AT FOUR PAWS INTERNATIONAL, AMIR KHALIL, SAYING:
"Today the team will give the bears the anaesthesia and we will transfer them from South Lebanon to a sanctuary in Colorado. It will be a long journey with a transit in Dubai then to Chicago then Colorado, so the bears need special care regarding anaesthesia and the dose given and its timing."
Homer and Ulysses were kept in a zoo for more than 10 years
Their cage had a cement floor
(SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) HEAD OF PROJECT DEVELOPMENT AT FOUR PAWS INTERNATIONAL, AMIR KHALIL, SAYING:
"Bears in nature walk more than 40 kilometres a day, it is not suitable for them to be staying in a 4x3 metres cage with cement floor which does not meet international standards. We are happy that people here agreed that these animals go to a better place to live a better life, and these bears should retire, it is not appropriate they will stay in a cage all their lives until they die."
The two bears will soon walk freely in a natural habitat
