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ROMANIA, ZARNESTI & ONESTI OCT12 - Together with the Zarnesti Bear Sanctuary, my colleagues from WSPA International paid two visits to the defunct zoo at Onesti in northern Romania and removed three bears out of squalid captivity.
It seems that lack of adequate facilities and ultimately, funds, as well as new EU regulations on the welfare of animals has meant that this zoo had to part company with some of its bears. An all too common story in Romania, where a multitude of bears have been found suffering in small and rusted cages around the country where they were used as pets or as attractions for restaurants and petrol stations.
Once transferred to the Zarnesti Bear Sanctuary, the new arrivals underwent a veterinary checkup before being released into a training enclosure. With over 160 acres (70 hectares) spread over a wooded hillside, this is Romania's first bear sanctuary and today houses 67 bears rescued from ramshackle zoos and cages at roadside restaurants.
jre/Photos by Jiri Rezac
13 imagesROMANIA ZARNESTI OCT12 - Images of the Capathian landscape and a shepherd tending to his flock of sheep under a dramatic sky. Photos by Jiri Rezac
50 imagesROMANIA, ZARNESTI & ONESTI OCT12 - Together with the Zarnesti Bear Sanctuary, my colleagues from WSPA International paid two visits to the defunct zoo at Onesti in northern Romania and removed three bears out of squalid captivity. It seems that lack of adequate facilities and ultimately, funds, as well as new EU regulations on the welfare of animals has meant that this zoo had to part company with some of its bears. An all too common story in Romania, where a multitude of bears have been found suffering in small and rusted cages around the country where they were used as pets or as attractions for restaurants and petrol stations. Once transferred to the Zarnesti Bear Sanctuary, the new arrivals underwent a veterinary checkup before being released into a training enclosure. With over 160 acres (70 hectares) spread over a wooded hillside, this is Romania's first bear sanctuary and today houses 67 bears rescued from ramshackle zoos and cages at roadside restaurants. jre/Photos by Jiri Rezac
123 imagesROMANIA ONESTI 26OCT12 - Animals in captivity at the Onesti zoo. The story contains graphic images of bears and other animals being kept in small cages, as well as a bear rescue by way of a transfer cage. The Ornesti zoo has been shut down due to non-adherence with EU regulations on the welfare of animals. jre/Photo by Jiri Rezac / WSPA © Jiri Rezac 2012
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