Obese Bear Finds New Home at Colorado’s Wild Animal Sanctuary
A bear named Dillon has found a new home at the Wild Animal Sanctuary in Keenesburg, Colorado, after being rescued from his previous living conditions in Pennsylvania last week.
Dillon is an Asiatic Black Bear, who, officials at the Wild Animal Sanctuary say, is hundreds of pounds overweight.
Prior to coming to Colorado, Dillon spent decades of his life in a very small enclosure at the Union County Sportsmen’s Club. While living there, the bear's cage was just 200 feet away from a shooting range, so he was constantly hearing gunfire day in and day out. Officials also said that Dillon had inadequate amounts of water inside the enclosure and ground that was made of pure concrete. Besides being overweight, Dillon had also been declawed and is experiencing other significant health problems, such as bad teeth and infected gums.
Dillon's living conditions at the Sportsmen’s Club gained national attention, even prompting the actor Alec Baldwin to write a letter to Pennsylvania's governor about the situation. With the attention and pressure the Club began to receive, they ultimately decided to release the bear to the sanctuary in Colorado.
Since Dillon's arrival in Keenesburg, the staff at the sanctuary is focusing on taking care of his medical issues. Once those are treated, Dillon will then get to roam in the large-acreage refuge habitat along with another rescued Asiatic Black Bear.