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A beautiful little Bear who
is now free to live his life in a safe and happy environment! Boy, are
we proud of him!
TARJAN is the
'Dancing Bear' that the graduates of the 2008 Animal
Dreaming Certified Course helped to rescue, rehabilitate and release
into a "Free
the Bears" Sanctuary.
As you know, at each
three- day course, Animal Dreaming offers a raffle; the proceeds of which
go toward a very worthy cause.
In 2008, the money raised ($1100)
was given to Aleisha
Caruso and, with extra funds raised by Animal Dreaming and Aleisha
(it costs over $2000 to rescue and properly rehabilitate a Dancing Bear),
we were able to help Tarjan the Sloth Bear. Thanks to the money raised,
Tarjan was taken from the streets of India and guaranteed a future free
from pain.
ABOUT TARJAN
Tarjan is an adult male Sloth bear approximately 10 years of age who was
rescued from Purulia in West Bengal. He was surrendered by Jamiruddin
Kalandar and his extended family as part of the Kalandar Rehabilitation
Programme. When he was brought into the care of "Free the Bears",
at the Agra Bear Rescue Facility, Tarjan was in a very poor state of health.
His body was emaciated and his thin coat discoloured. He was suffering
from inappetance and anemia, opacity on his right eye and poor vision.
His muzzle wound was severe from the constant pulling on the nose rope
and had caused infected discharge in his nose.
The "Free the Bears" vets immediateiy started work on Tarjan's
many health problems and by the time his quarantine period was over he
had gained weight, strength and some confidence. Tarjan will take some
time to realise that he really is free and that he no longer has anything
to fear from people. He is a quiet bear, shy with the other bears in his
socialisation enclosure and still fearful of open spaces. He prefers his
own company and likes to rest under a shady tree. He has regained his
appetite however, and enjoys the enrichment treats.
ABOUT SLOTH BEARS
The Sloth bear, Melursus ursinus, once mistakenly classified as a sloth,
is identifiable by its shaggy black coat and Y shaped patch of cream fur
on its chest, muzzle and eyes and its highly specialised snout. The IUCN
Bear Specialist Group has identified the Sloth Bear as the most vulnerable
of all bear species and threatened with extinction.
Distribution, Population and Range: The Sloth bear resides
in forested areas of Sri Lanka, India, Bhutan, Bangladesh, India and Nepal.
This number of sloth bears remaining in the wild has declined dramatically
and whilst exact numbers aren’t available it is estimated that the
population ranges between 7,000-10,000. The size of the home range varies
with the abundance of food to be found within that region. Whilst little
research has been conducted into the extent of the home range, it has
been established that these bears do like to share it with other members
of their species.
Physical Characteristics: Whilst size and weight of the
Sloth bear varies with availability of food, they average a length of
140-170 centimetres, a height of 85 centimetres and a weight between 125-145
kilograms as an adult, the male being larger.
In accordance with their highly specialised diet the facial and dental
structure of the sloth bear has undergone major evolutionary change, whereby
the muzzle protrudes, the nostrils can be voluntarily closed and the front
incisors are absent, the bony palate behind them having been replaced
by a hollowed cavity. Together these adaptations allow the Sloth bear
to utilise its mouth and lips as a suction device to ingest its preferred
meal, termites.
To assist in digging for food and climbing trees their feet are equipped
with long curved claws. Their gait, whilst slow and shuffling can become
quite rapid if endangered.
Diet: In the tropics, termites abound and the Sloth bear
has a ready supply of food. Sloth bears will however forage for other
foods including honey, fruit, berries, cultivated sugar cane, yams and
vegetation. They are also known to eat carrion yet are not predatory in
nature. Whilst they prefer to feed at night, Sloth bears are not nocturnal
and can be observed feeding during the day. It is reported that the sucking
sound made during feeding is loud enough to be heard 300 metres away.
Hibernation: Hibernation has not been observed in the
Sloth bear, probably as a result of the annual availability of food sources.
It does however enter a period of lethargy late in the year.
Family Life: Mating occurs at different times and with
varied frequency depending upon where the population resides. In Sri Lanka
breeding appears to occur all year around whilst in India the breeding
period is restricted to June and July. After a gestation of 6 to 7 months,
the cubs are born in the dry season (December to January). It has been
suggested that the Sloth bear is capable of delayed implementation if
a food shortage is experienced.
Sloth bears give birth to one or two 300-500 gram cubs. The mothers are
particularly attentive and young cubs are often seen clinging to the mother’s
back as she forages in the forest. Carrying cubs on her back is necessary
as Sloth bears must travel long distances in search of termite mounds
and can only stay feeding at one until such time as the soldier ants attack
forces her to move on in search of another. Unlike many other species
of bear, the female tolerates the male around the young, and he appears
never to display threatening or predatory behaviour towards them.
If the cub survives the first year of life it will stay with the mother
for 2 to 3 years. Due to a lack of research estimates on cub mortality
is nonexistent although it is believed that the survival rate is dependent
upon the mother’s skill.
Conservation Status: The Sloth bear is listed on Appendix
1 of CITES, as a species that cannot be traded commercially.
Threats: Sloth bears share a habitat with many predatory
carnivores such as tigers, leopards and wild dogs and are constantly under
pressure from natural predation. Loss of habitat and illegal poaching
for the animal trade has taken a serious toll on Sloth bear numbers to
the point it is estimated that less than 10,000 remain in the wild today.
The Sloth bear is at the heart of the dancing bear trade and cubs
are often sold as pets by Kalander gypsies. It is reported that despite
protection afforded these bears under India’s Wildlife Protection
Act 1972, up to 1,000 sloth bears are kept in captivity as dancing bears
and 100 cubs are poached annually to replenish and expand the supply.
Free the Bears Fund continues
to campaign against the continuation of the dancing bear trade and refutes
the argument that this is a cultural tradition that should be respected
and allowed to continue. Dancing bears are seen frequently at major tourist
centres in India, particularly Delhi, Agra and Jaipur. The Fund realises
that this so-called ‘tradition’ is supported primarily by
tourists, who delight in seeing these bears perform. The Fund therefore
urges travellers to become aware of the torturous process involved in
training these bears: the painful piercing of the sensitive snout in order
to thread ropes and chain through the perforation, the removal of teeth
without an anaesthetic, and the placement of tender paws on hot plates
in order to train the bear to “dance”. As a result of such
treatment these bears, which are capable of living up to 25 years in the
wild, rarely live to be 10 once captured, succumbing to infection, malnutrition
and stress. When travelling in these countries we urge you to consider
what entertainment you support and the hidden suffering that must be endured
to provide it.
Free the Bears Fund urges you to write letters of protest to the Indian,
Turkish and Bulgarian governments to end what is often viewed as a cultural
tradition but is in fact little more than a barbaric sport.
References: The above has been prepared by reading
the information provided by John Seidensticker and his article “Sloth
Bears” (ZooGoer Vol. 28(2), 1999), Don Middleton on his web-site:
www.naturenet.com/bears and the Bear Den at www.bearden.org. I am also
indebted to John Joseph, Asian Regional Manager, WSPA for information
on the dancing bears of India campaign.
ABOUT THE "FREE
THE BEARS FUND":
 (A
photo of Mary with one of her beloved Bears)
In 1993, Mary Hutton was watching
a local current affair program in Perth, Western Australia. She saw a
segment that would change her life, and the life of her family. The segment
contained horrifying footage of Asiatic Black Bears held in coffin sized
cages unable to move or turn with non-surgical steel pipes inserted directly
into their gall bladder. Every two weeks or so their keeper would insert
a syringe into the tube and "milk" them for their bile - an
Asian cure-all medicine. Gall bladders have been used in Asian medicine
for centuries, however bear bile farming is a relatively new procedure
so that the bear, instead of producing only one gall bladder from it’s
carcass, can be "milked" of its bile for its entire adult life.
The next day, Mary drew up a petition and stood herself at the entrance
of the local shopping mall. Within months, she had thousands of signatures,
a regular group which became a committee and was beginning to receive
information from other animal funds around the world - Free The Bears
Fund was formed.
When the petition signatures reached around 130,000 Mary and a small delegation
of school children representing Free The Bears Fund were permitted to
present them in person to the Chinese Embassy in Canberra. The surrounding
publicity and continued public interest eventually lead to plans to play
an even more active part.
In order to do more, money was needed. Lamington drives, film nights,
raffles (using donated prizes) and collection tins placed in shops and
vet centres laid the foundations. Soon donations were being received and
fund membership and merchandise became available.
During this time, Mary became aware of the plight of other bear species,
particularly the Sun Bears of South East Asia. Not only were they the
least known and most endangered bear species, they were undeniably the
worst treated. Mary received a phone call from an Australian business
man, Mr John Stephens, who was based in Cambodia. He informed her of some
small Sun Bear cubs that he has acquired from restaurants in Phnom Penh,
Cambodia's capital, and was holding at his house. "Could Free The
Bears find a home for these cubs". He had tried everyone else to
no avail. Mary got on the phone and did not get off until she had the
answer she was looking for.
Mr Wil Meikle, Director of Life Sciences at Sydney's Taronga Park Zoo,
said if the criteria could be met, he would gladly give them a home.
After a lot of import, export and quarantine procedures, a first was achieved.
The three Sun Bears, named Mr Hobbs, Victoria and Lucille, became the
FIRST transfer of an endangered species from Cambodia to Australia.
Free The Bears Fund Inc is now active in several countries in south-east
Asia, including Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Kalimantan and India,
saving sun bears, Asiatic black bears and sloth bears.
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BEAR RESCUE PHOTO GALLERY:
This was Tarjan before
his rescue
This is Tarjan
after his rescue and rehabiliation
This is a photo
of the man in India (the Kalandar) that "Free The Bears" gave
our money to. He will now be able to use the money we donated (known as
"seed money") to establish a new business so he may support
his family. In exchange for the seed money, the man surrendered Tarjan
the Bear to the rescuers. Tarjan will now live a happy and safe life in
a "Free the Bears" Sanctuary.
In this photo, the
Kalandar is making a solemn promise to never use or exploit Bears again
as a way of making money.
The letter of thanks
that was sent to Animal Dreaming and Aleisha after Tarjan was rescued
The 'Rescued Bear Certificate'
sent to Animal Dreaming and Aleisha after Tarjan was rescued.
** If you are a graduate
of the 2008 Animal Dreaming Certified Course who contributed to the raffle
that helped save Tarjan's life ... and you'd like a copy of this certificate
... simply email the Animal
Dreaming office and we will send you a copy.
SLOTH
BEAR DREAMING
(extracted from Scott's book,
Animal Messenger)
Keyword:
Familiarity
The Sloth Bear, also known as the Indian Bear, Jungle Joker and Lip Bear,
inhabits the forested areas and grasslands of India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh,
Bhutan and Nepal. Sloth Bears feed primarily on Termites, which are abundant
throughout these areas. They also enjoy eggs, honey, fruit, flowers and
fresh buds, which are obtained by climbing or shaking particular trees.
The evolution of the Sloth Bear has made its eating of Termites easy.
It protrudes its naked lips and then literally sucks the Termites into
its mouth, an ability made possible by the lack of inner, upper incisors
common in other Bears. A gap is formed by the absence of these teeth through
which the insects are easily and quickly consumed. The sucking noises
created by a feeding Sloth Bear can be heard over 100 meters away. Sloth
Bears also have long, sticky tongues that enable them to lick up stray
Termites. They close their nostrils to prevent the Termites from entering
and they have thick skin on their muzzles that protect them from the insect’s
painful sting.
According to Asian tradition, the protruding tongue was a sign of fecundity,
power and positive chi-energy, and was likened to the emergence and growth
of the erect male penis. The lips, particularly when parted in readiness
for a kiss, were said to symbolically resemble the vulva. The tongue protruding
from the lips, therefore, was seen as an imitation of sexual penetration.
To this day, the vulva is properly referred to as labiae (meaning ‘lips’)
while the Latin lingus (‘tongue’) is a derivative of the term
lingam, which refers to the male penis. Despite the positive chi implication
of the protruding tongue in northern India and Tibet (where such an act
is still seen as a sign of welcome and greeting), in Western culture it
has become a sign of rudeness, equivalent to someone extending their index
finger, which carries similar connotation. Sloth Bear Dreaming invites
us to ponder the relationships we enjoy with the people in our life and
to assess the level of familiarity we share with each of them. Sloth Bear
encourages us to consider whether or not we have honoured these relationships
properly by showing them the respect they are worthy of. Have we been
demonstrating appropriate and fitting behaviour deserving of each of these
relationships, for example? Have we perhaps undermined them by displaying
inappropriate or forward motivation, or have we underrated them by not
paying enough attention? Sloth Bear asks us if we are guilty of taking
others for granted, thus undervaluing their merit, or have we been showing
favouritism toward those whose efforts are overrated or lacking? Sloth
Bear Dreaming invokes a sense of accountability and respect for all relationships,
by explaining that what might be appropriate in one situation may not
be appropriate in another, that all are worthy of equal esteem and that
the best way to earn respect is to first show it toward others in a way
fitting of what you feel you deserve.
CONTACT
'FREE THE BEARS':
Visit "Free the
Bears" HERE
Contact "Free
the Bears" by clicking HERE
CONTACT
ALEISHA CARUSO:
Aleisha is a Wildlife Advocate for the United Nations Association of Western
Australia (UNAA-WA)
and a Board Member of Pandas
International USA
Telephone: +61 410 132 867
Facsimile: +61 8 9451 4446
Email: aleisha@grasp.org.au
Visit Aleisha
on Facebook (search for
'Extinction Sucks and join the group)
On January 24th,
2008 Rove McManus and Tasma Walton travelled to Phnom Penh and were introduced
to two of the Fund's newest bear arrivals: 2 Asiatic black bear cubs that
had recently been confiscated from a wildlife trader.
Rove and
Tasma are both well known throughout Australia, and indeed, worldwide.
Rove is the host of his self-titled TV show "Rove" and a successful
stand up comedian, whilst Tasma has acted in numerous TV series including
"Blue Heelers". She is also a talented screen writer.
Both Rove and Tasma are extremely conservation minded and are truly passionate
about protecting and preserving wildlife.
Read more HERE
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