An endangered bear with a mysterious illness has been found and rescued more than two months after footage of the “alien-like” animal went viral online.
More than two months after footage of the “alien-like” animal went popular online, an endangered bear with an unknown condition was discovered and rescued.
“The bear is in a good and safe place,” Nickson Robi, from the Sarawak Forestry Corporation (SFC), told The Dodo. “She has eaten the food and drank the water we gave. But she still is hairless and sick, and we need to find out what the sickness is.”
A group of plantation workers near the hamlet of Sibu in Borneo initially observed the “weird” animal in January. Unsure of what she was, the employees allegedly struck her with sticks, pushing her back into the forest.
A video showing the animal fleeing her attackers has been viewed online nearly 6 million times.
Despite rampant conjecture on Malaysian social media that the animal was of alien origin, police felt she was a sick sun bear. The species is protected in Borneo, Robi explained, “so we needed to do something, to rescue and give her medical attention.”
A team from SFC had been searching for the bear since January, but she was finally spotted in another adjacent plantation on Wednesday, according to the Borneo Post.
After all she’s been through, it’s no surprise that the ill bear is scared and violent.
Now she’s getting the help she needs.
“I just took the bear to our wildlife center here,” Robi said. “A veterinarian there will check up on everything to find what medication should be given to the bear. We are hoping that the bear will recover quickly, so we can put her back to the wild.”
Photo: ST
To give you an idea, this is what a healthy sun bear look like:
Screenshot
Shortly after the rescue, the animal was brought to Matang Wildlife Center and she was placed in the care of Silje Robertsen. The veterinarian said the bear is suffering from skin infection, moderate anemia, and mite infestation, Fortunately, the animal soon showed signs of recovery and if her health improves further, they hope to release her back into the wild.
According to veterinarians, the poor animal has skin infection, anemia, and mite infestation.
