Experiencing The Joy Of Rescue At The Bannerghatta Bear Rescue Centre

To battle the rampant and brutal practice of ‘dancing’ bears, Wildlife SOS with its mission to conserve and rehabilitate the sloth bears in captivity saw the absolute need to develop a rescue centre for them. We also aimed to ensure rehabilitation for the Kalandars, a community that practised the tradition of bear-dancing in India. With this focused thought, the Bannerghatta Bear Rescue Centre (BBRC) was born through an agreement with the Karnataka Forest Department and Zoo Authority of Karnataka, which was signed on November 28, 2005.

Since then, BBRC has been instrumental in rescuing and providing long-term care for over a hundred sloth bears rescued from the ‘dancing’ bear trade, poaching, ill-kept zoos, and human-bear conflict situations. With additional retiring dens built and the much-required renovations made to the existing dens, the centre currently holds over 60 rescued bears amidst the lush greens and rocks of the dry-deciduous Bannerghatta Biological Park, making it the world’s second-largest rescue centre for sloth bears. BBRC is a perfect home for them to spend the rest of their lives away from the trauma and torture of dancing on the streets.

The bears now have a healthy and nutritious diet thrice a day which includes porridge, honey, and large quantities of fruits with additional supplements for proteins, vitamins, and calcium. To ensure they burn enough calories, the caregivers build and develop many enrichment structures for the bears to hone their natural skills. BBRC also houses a well-equipped veterinary clinic and a team of experienced veterinary doctors to ensure round-the-clock care and monitoring of these rescued animals.

Our year 9 students, visited this facility last week. They were engaged while they were given an insight into the conception of the facility. They also visited the kitchen, and operation theatre, cleaned the enclosures, and set up and distributed puzzle feeders that stimulate the bears mentally and encourage their natural foraging behaviours.