Hooray! Six Poachers Arrested for Electrocuting Baby Bear and Mother

Just yesterday, we shared the story of a baby sloth bear being rescued by Wildlife SOS after he was sadly electrocuted with his Mom on the outskirts of the Sanjay-Dubri Tiger Reserve located in Sidhi district of Madhya Pradesh in India. The baby bear survived the shock and was heartbreakingly found clutching his dying mother while nursing from her. And now we have an exciting update to share with you! Six poachers have now been arrested in connection with the electrocuting the mother sloth bear and her cub. According to an Indian Express report, Preliminary investigation by forest officials suggest that the poachers had set a trap using a high voltage wire.

Although the arrests won’t bring back this now orphaned baby bears mother, we are happy to see that some justice is being served. 

The poachers confessed to the crime and have been arrested for poaching a sloth bear under relevant sections of India’s Wildlife Protection Act 1972, under which sloth bears are protected. “We are shocked that these poachers resorted to this terrible method of poaching and have electrocuted this endangered sloth bear. The young bear will receive all possible medical and life time care at the Agra Bear Rescue Facility as we have specialized medical facilities and well trained veterinarians and care staff familiar with natal care,” said Geeta Seshamani, co-founder Wildlife SOS.

Sloth bears’ habitat has become increasingly threatened because of the over-harvesting of forest products, expansion of human settlements, and the establishment of monoculture agricultural activities. The bears are also poached for their body parts and fat, which are used to in folk medicines and to ward off evil spirits. Poaching is a tremendous problem around the world that is leading to the extinction of several animal species. While these occurrences happen far away from us, and may seem like too big of a problem to tackle, we can all play a part in putting an end to this cruel practice. To learn more about what you can to help stop wildlife poaching, click here. And if you would like to help Wildlife SOS continue their life-saving efforts, you can donate via their website.

Image Source: Wildlife SOS