Brown bear Taras, who was brought from Ukraine to Ouwehands Zoo in Rhenen earlier this year, died on Wednesday. The bear suffered a complex fracture, after which treatment was no longer possible. The zoo had him euthanized.
“It’s very sad. He was only here for a short time and a lot of effort was made to get him here from Ukraine,” says zoo director Robin de Lange to RTV Utrecht.
De Lange suspects that the bear, who came from Ukraine together with bear Roza, had misstepped somewhere in Het Berenbos. After consulting with various veterinarians, the zoo concluded that treatment was impossible.
“We would have liked to have given him many more wonderful years in Het Berenbos, but after extensive and especially difficult consultation, it was decided to euthanize him for the welfare of the bear,” Ouwehands Zoo reports on Facebook.
Last year, Taras and Roza were still staying in a private zoo about 20 kilometers from the front in eastern Ukraine. In October, the shelter was hit by rockets. The animals had to be evacuated. They were initially taken to an overcrowded shelter in Lviv.
Thanks to a crowdfunding campaign, the Bear in Mind foundation was finally able to bring the animals to the Netherlands. After a long journey, they arrived in Rhenen in May. There they first went into quarantine. After a health check, they moved to Het Berenbos.