Asian black bears living in the wild can live up to 25 years without natural enemies or accidents, with a maximum of 33 years. However, due to human illegal hunting and captivity, some Asian black bears lost their freedom and life very early. When they are in prison, they meet people from the ambulance center and collide with stories of redemption and hope.
01 The naive image, the past of blood and tears
The two protagonists Xiong Da and Xiong Er in the cartoon “Boonie Bears” have been loved by many people for their naive images. Their prototypes are actually the Asian black bears.
▲ Stills of the cartoon “Boonie Bears”
Asian black bears are mainly distributed in the eastern part of Eurasia, as well as in the forests of Japan, Taiwan, China and other places. Their body hair is black and long, and there is a white spot on their chest, which looks like they are wearing a crescent-shaped scarf, so Also known as “Crescent Bear”.
▲The white hair on the chest of the Asian black bear looks like a crescent moon, also known as “Crescent Bear”
Although they are bears, Asian black bears are more timid and vigilant in temperament. Under normal circumstances, if they encounter humans in the wild, they will avoid them. Rarely actively attack and harm humans. Due to human activities, the forests that Asian black bears depend on have been cut down and destroyed. Their habitats are getting smaller and smaller.
▲The edible and medicinal value of bear paws have caused many Asian black bears to be brutally murdered
Because of the loss of habitat, in order to survive, Asian black bears will break into people’s residences to find food, and will also be attacked by frightened people and lose their lives. At the same time, because the gallbladder and bear paws of Asian black bears have certain medicinal value, the international illegal trade in them has been rampant. Many black bears have been illegally captured and lost their freedom. The number of Asian black bears has plummeted, and it has become an internationally recognized trade name endangered species. In order to save and protect these poor lives, someone took action. In 2002, the Sichuan Longqiao Black Bear Rescue Center was established, and the Asian black bears ushered in their light of hope.
02 Rescue and Guardian, the story of Oliver and Little Rainbow
In 2002, with the support and help of the former Sichuan Forestry Department China Wildlife Conservation Association, Sichuan Longqiao Black Bear Rescue Center was established. This is a social welfare organization integrating black bear rescue and ecological education, located 26 kilometers north of Chengdu. It has a good black bear activity environment and a professional rescue team. Since its establishment, it has rescued and guarded many Asian black bears, and left countless touching stories.
▲The rescued Asian black bear enjoys the sunshine on the lawn and woods of the ambulance center
Oliver the black bear is one of the lucky ones, and the process of rescuing it can be described as twists and turns. In April 2010, the ambulance center traveled thousands of miles to Shandong to rescue Oliver and his companions. At this time, Oliver has lived in a harsh environment for 30 years. 30 years is just a period of life for human beings, but for black bears, its life is approaching the end. The rescuers rescued Oliver and set foot on the road back to Sichuan. For the frail Oliver, the long journey is an extremely dangerous challenge.
▲ Oliver’s condition suddenly worsened, and the accompanying veterinarian urgently treated him in the truck
What people were worried about finally happened. During the trip, Oliver’s condition suddenly deteriorated, and the accompanying veterinarian had to treat Oliver in the truck. On the way to the hospital, the rescue team encountered a big traffic jam again. In desperation, they had to ask the local traffic control department. Soon the traffic police cleared the way for the team and allowed Oliver to arrive at the hospital smoothly.
The hospital director lent the medical equipment, and Oliver was successfully treated. With the help of people, Oliver and his friends returned to the ambulance center safely. In the ambulance center, Oliver slowly recovered to health, where he spent the happiest 4 years of his life. It can embrace the sun and breathe free air. Although the end of his life is approaching, Oliver can spend his later years happily, which is more important than anything else.
Little Rainbow was a little black bear rescued by the rescue center. When the staff went to rescue it, it had been trapped for a long time. The bear’s paw was injured by the homemade animal trap, and the injury was very serious.
▲The little rainbow brought back to the ambulance center
It was urgently brought back to the rescue center, but unfortunately, due to the severe injury, the veterinarian had to amputate Little Rainbow’s bear paw.
▲Little Rainbow who underwent amputation on the operating table
Then the Little Rainbow was placed in a wooden box covered with straw, which was to limit the activities of the little rainbow and to speed up the healing of its wounds.
▲The little rainbow being taken care of, volunteers looked at it gently
Under the careful care of the volunteers in the ambulance center, Little Rainbow was able to recover. Whether to leave it in the center or release it to nature has become a tangled issue for the ambulance center. After synthesizing the opinions of all parties, the rescue center decided to release the Little Rainbow into the nature, after all, that is the home of the Little Rainbow.
On the day of the release of Little Rainbow, it started to drizzle in the sky, in the midst of the rain, and people were watching. The Little Rainbow was released into nature and returned to the embrace of Mother Nature.
03 Francie and Rupert, love never goes away
The Asian black bears who lived in the ambulance center said goodbye to the suffering of the past and were reborn. Here, they depended on and comforted each other, and staged many touching stories, such as Francie and Rupert’s “romance with younger bear”.
Francy came to the rescue center on a rainy day. She was short and thin. She looked like a minor bear. As a matter of fact, Francy has reached a very old age, and her arrival is extremely special for Rupert, another black bear.
Rupert is a male black bear who looks stupid. Due to his long-term injury, his brain has been damaged, and his reaction is far less than his brothers and sisters who live here with him are such Rupert, Very fond of sticking to Francie. At first, Francie hated this “brother” very much, and would often lose his temper at it, and would slap Rupert’s face with his claws, but Rupert never gave up on it. If you don’t forget it, there must be an echo, and Francie finally accepts Rupert, two black bears who have both been hurt, often snuggling together to keep each other warm.
▲ Francie and Rupert cuddling each other
Tragedy always shatters the good in the world, and Francie is old. The body is getting worse day by day, and eventually, it left this world because of heart failure. Rupert, who lost Francie, often wailed sadly. In the winter that Francie left, it snowed in Chengdu, and Rupert sat in the snow for a long time until his body was covered with snowflakes.
Seven months later, Rupert was in the ambulance center, breathing peacefully because of excessive thoughts. The ambulance center buried Francie and Rupert in the center’s “Moon Bear Cemetery”, and they slept together and never separated. Although Francie and Rupert met at the last moment of their lives, for them, love has already crossed life and death. Although there are regrets, it is unforgettable.
Now, more and more people know the existence of the Sichuan Longqiao Black Bear Rescue Center. People walk in here and see the black bears who were once locked up in iron cages, and now play happily on the grass, the sun is shining on them in the dark A little bit of light is reflected on the hair of the man, and he can’t help but feel happy for them. Although their lifespans are nowhere near as long as their healthy counterparts living in the wild, being able to enjoy their final moments in peace here is more important than anything else.
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