JULY 16 2024 – Last Friday, July 12^th, bear Dushi, a popular resident at BEAR SANCTUARY Müritz, passed away. Dushi was a 15-year-old brown bear with three legs rescued from neglect and substandard conditions in Albania. She spent her last 5 years at the sanctuary exploring her enclosure and swimming in her pond. Supporters and fans also know Dushi for her playful disposition, photogenic nature, and that she won the title of Sleepiest Bear this year during March Napness, the annual competition to see which bear hibernates the longest.

Sadly, Dushi suffered an accident in which one of her hind legs was injured. The animal caretakers on site reacted quickly and moved Dushi to a safe area where they gave her pain relief medication. Veterinarian Julia Bohner from the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (IZW) Berlin quickly arrived at the site to examine Dushi. The X-ray examination revealed that Dushi's femur was broken because of the accident. The injury was so serious that, according to the experts, a lengthy and painful treatment with little chance of success would have only prolonged Dushi's suffering. Dushi was spared that. In consultation with the veterinarian, BEAR SANCTUARY Müritz decided not to prolong Dushi's suffering.

"Dushi's death is a big shock for all of us and it will take time to come to terms with it. Every colleague has wonderful memories of Dushi as a very special bear with a very special fate. We were able to give Dushi five wonderful years in our sanctuary. That is a comforting feeling," says Petra Konermann, press officer at BEAR SANCTUARY Müritz.

Dushi had been living at the FOUR PAWS sanctuary since 2019. Prior to that, the bear had to endure the most appalling conditions at the Fier Safari Park Zoo in Albania. The zoo was described in the media as "Europe's worst zoo". There, Dushi had to starve and thirst in a small cage before she was rescued by FOUR PAWS in October 2018.

When she was rescued, the brown bear was in such poor health that it was critical if she would even survive the 1,100-mile journey to the sanctuary. After recovering at Tirana Zoo in Albania, she was able to be moved to BEAR SANCTUARY Müritz in April 2019 and start a new life in a species-appropriate environment. Here, the keepers lovingly cared for her so that she gradually settled in.

During a routine check, encapsulated projectile particles were discovered in Dushi's body. Experts assume that the bear had been shot at in the past and probably lost her left front paw due to that incident. Her handicap did not prevent Dushi from exploring her enclosure, bathing and socializing with her conspecifics. The bear showed a preference for hibernation, which she was denied in her previous catastrophic husbandry: for months she rested in her winter den under a large tree in the BEAR SANCTUARY Müritz. A sign that Dushi was able to live out her instincts.

Dushi will be remembered at BEAR SANCTUARY Müritz with her own memorial stone under a 200-year-old hornbeam in the park - just like all the other bears who were rescued by FOUR PAWS and who were able to enjoy their lives at BEAR SANCTUARY Müritz.

BEAR SANCTUARY Müritz is nestled in the heart of the Mecklenburg Lake District surrounded by nature. It is Western Europe's largest bear conservation center and a FOUR PAWS animal welfare project. Twelve brown bears, rescued by FOUR PAWS from catastrophic conditions, currently live in the BEAR SANCTUARY Müritz. On the 16-hectare site in a natural forest, they find a habitat that meets their natural needs, can rediscover their natural behavior and simply be bears. The animals can retreat at any time and avoid park visitors and fellow bears as they wish. Many of the bears have only found their way back to their natural behavior here and went into hibernation for the first time after their arrival in the sanctuary. BEAR SANCTUARY Müritz primarily serves to protect the bears, but also makes an important contribution to the awareness-raising and educational work that FOUR PAWS has set itself as a goal.