International experts to decide about future of orphaned black bear cub

Islamabad : The Islamabad Wildlife Management Board (IWMB) will constitute a panel comprising international bear experts to get to know whether orphaned Asiatic black bear cub Daboo is now ready to be sent to the natural forest area in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).

According to the details provided by IWMB, orphaned bear Daboo has learned the art of survival and also developed his wild instincts that can enable him to live in the open forest.

He was stolen from his mother that was murdered by the poachers near the Line of Control (LoC). After which the poachers brought him to Rawalpindi where the local authorities rescued him from them. Later, he was handed over to IWMB on June 3 this year and at that time he had an ear infection and was suffering from scabies.

Daboo instantly became a social media ‘star’ when his pictures and videos were largely shared on social media and many foreign wildlife lovers passionately showed their love for him.

He started enjoying his playground and climbing trees at the temporary shelter. A swimming pool was also built for him where he learned to swim after some kind of hesitation.

The IWMB received another black bear cub named Baloo on July 20 and he was a bit older than Daboo. Both of them started living together in the temporary shelter but Baloo is still tied with rope as he is yet to familiarize himself with caretakers and the environment as well.

The IWMB chairperson in her tweet stated Asiatic black bears are listed as a vulnerable species by International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and are found in mountain forests of Pakistan from where they are poached and sold into bear dancing or baiting.

She said that the international bear experts would look into the current situation of Daboo and decide whether it should be sent to the forest area, adding “If they maintain that he needs some more rehabilitation then he will be sent to a rehab facility that is being built-in AJK.”