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I’m blown away by Kartick Satyanarayan, the “Bear Man” as he’s known by some in India. He risks life and limb in his efforts to save the Sloth Bear from the barbaric, centuries-old tradition of being enslaved and trained as Dancing Bears.

After a first-hand look at the tortuous lives these bears lead, he said, “It was shocking and we couldn’t accept those images. We thought we had to do something about it.” And do something he has. The picture below is of Kartick and a cub that was rescued from poachers.

Rescued sloth cub rides Kartick’s back

His dedication, determination and love for these battered bears is inspiring. Click BEAR MAN to see how he works through stories, photos and videos. You won’t be disappointed. He actually goes undercover to save sloth bear cubs from poachers and to rescue the battered dancing bears from their trainers (Kalandars - a nomadic tribe in India).

Along with Geeta Seshamani, Kartick Co-founded and is the Director of Wildlife S.O.S., where they are not only saving the bears, but other animals AND changing the culture through education and by retraining the Kalandars. The story is inspirational.

Pass this info on. The more people who are aware of the ways animals are treated — and how they can be saved while changing the world FOREVER, the better.

Bear hugs, Frankie

Sloth bears are found in India and they are endangered due to man (yes, us again). In India, poachers take over 100 Sloth Bear cubs annually when they are just weeks old, killing their mothers in the process.

These cubs are then sold on the black market where the buyers turn them into ‘Dancing Bears’. To do that, their muzzles are pierced and threaded with a coarse rope. They’re training starts on hot coals with sticks hitting their feet to make them “dance”. The bear lives out her life at the end of the rope. She is dragged from village to village dancing for tourists who throw coins to the bear trainer.

There is hope and safety through the India Bear Rescue Project created by Wildlife S.O.S. The dancing bears that are rescued are rehabilated and live out their lives in 1 of 4 sanctuaries — the only bear sanctuaries in India. These were started and run by Wildlife S.O.S.

I just created 2 sites about these bears:
Sloth Bears: Learn About These Wonderful Bears where I include general information about the Sloth Bear species (features, habitat, habits, etc.) along with photos and links to other informational sites and resources.

Saving The Dancing Bears Of India tells the story of these bears lives — how the practice began, the lives of the bears and bear trainers. It also has more pictures of the rescued bears — cubs taken from poachers by law enforcement before they could be sold, and the trained dancing bears. I also include information about the India Bear Rescue Project created by Wildlife S.O.S.

To date, Wildlife S.O.S. has saved 472 bears and are working to rescue the remaining (estimated at 200) Dancing Bears. Their program addresses not only the problem but also the underlying causes.

I’ll keep you posted on these bears.

Bear hugs, Frankie

This is a picture of Inuka an 18 year-old polar bear at the Singapore Zoo catching a live fish. Inuka became famous as the first and only polar bear to be born in the tropics.

Beautiful, isn’t she?

Bear hugs, Frankie

I am thrilled to announce that Polar Bears International (PBI) has created a “Cartoon Corner” which will showcase David Booth’s polar bear cartoons. Congratulations, my friend! To check it out, click PBI Cartoon Corner or the PBI logo below.