At the Center for the Rehabilitation of Wild Animals – ACDB from Focșani, many unhappy animals have arrived and are still arriving! Some survive and we are happy when they return to nature, and others die and then we are very sad, burdened with a feeling of helplessness, because helplessness is when the animals are too badly injured, hit or poisoned to do anything!

But in order for all of you to understand what is happening at the Center for the Rescue and Rehabilitation of Wild Animals, we have chosen a real story that will represent us and illustrate as well as possible the emotion of the person answering the emergency phone, the road in the middle of the night to the accident, the veterinarian’s effort, the animal’s suffering and stress, our daily emotions and desperate attempts to help, to be as invisible as possible, as far away from the animal as possible and yet close to him to take care of his wounds and share with you the happiness of the animal’s release and return to nature.

Nothing compares to the satisfaction of that moment, when you open the transport cage and the animal, treated and cared for, fed and protected by man runs away and growls… turning your back to return to the forest – home!

So… the phone veterinarian from ACDB rings and someone announces dryly: „… doctor, a bear was run over by the train again… it died… a cub lives, but a paw is finished, it was trampled by the train and it’s just blood!”

From here begins the routine: stretcher, colleague, car, anesthetic, transport cage, 200 kilometers, maps, minutes, and drive quickly on the mountain serpentines. Once at the office, everything is much more visible: the entire front limb is completely crushed, the bone is mush, the muscle as well, the skin probably lost under the train wheels!

It was a clear procedure: amputation, suturing… and all the maneuvers related to such an operation, which for the rest of those waiting outside seems to never end. The operation is a success, the 3-month-old cub survives and begins a recovery program.

The following year he grows and develops enviable skills for a bear with only 3 legs, managing to do everything necessary to prove to us that he is fit to return to the forest – home. The decision of the whole team was clear and firm: the bear will return to the forest but will be constantly monitored with the help of a collar with satellite transmission to be able to intervene at any time if problems arise.

But that was not the case! 12 months, while the transmitter worked, the bear named by us „5 FEET”, because his agility impressed us, was a normal bear and enjoyed his house, the forest and everything he had received that genetic dowry of to his parents. We don’t know what he’s doing now, but we hope he’s okay and roaming the woods with the rest of the bears.

And if you liked the story, we welcome you another time! … .and we invite you to help us so we can help other bears injured or in dramatic situations. And this is very simple for you!

Just DONATE through the app here.