We don't know if dogs still haunt Kvitka's dreams. For years, barking dogs were part of brown bear Kvitka's life. Her tiny cage was located very close to the dog kennels. She was constantly reminded of the endless hours in which the dogs relentlessly attacking her until she was totally exhausted. Constantly having to hear her tormentors must have kept the bear in a state of constant fear.

It took two years to achieve a happy ending for Kvitka. FOUR PAWS kept on tenacioulsy until the owner agreed to let the bear go. Then things had to happen fast, as we were afraid that the owner might change his mind.

On 27 June 2018, Kvitka was finally transferred from the hunting station in Terebovlya to BEAR SANCTUARY Domazhyr near Lviv. This is where Kvitka started a new life: for the first time, she can move around, climb and bathe in a near-natural environment.

For some time after her rescue, we witnessed how much she must have suffered at the Ukrainian hunting station. When she arrived at Domazhyr, the bear was thin and emaciated and skinny. While Kvitka feels very comfortable in her new environment, nobody knows how quickly her mental wounds will heal.

Unfortunately, the brief examination before Kvitka's transport clearly revealed the bear's bad health condition. She barely had any muscle mass as a result of malnourishment and having to live in a tiny cage of four square metres with barely any space to move.

But what struck veterinarian Marc Gölkel of the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (IZW) in Berlin the most, was the condition of her teeth. Years of biting on the cage bars and a poor diet had left clear marks. A tooth was split all the way down to the nerve, and a purulent inflammation had formed – the pain Kvitka had to endure is hard to imagine.

After her arrival in Domazhyr, our vet Marc Gölkel immediately performed an emergency operation and pulled her tooth. Thankfully, she coped with the procedure better than expected. Under the constant care of our team, recovery progressed so well that she could be released into the enclosure already the next day.

Now, Kvitka can finally act out her natural instincts. Kvitka means 'flower', and how fitting that is when we see her playing on the meadow where she is able to flourish –far way from the horrors of the barking dogs.

For years Kvitka suffered on a hunting station in Ukraine, she knew nothing but confinement within her tiny cage and then unbearable suffering whilst being hunted by dogs. But when sweet Kvitka came to our sanctuary, and the years went past, both Kavitka's physical and mental wounds began to heal.

Today, the brown bear spends her days foraging for food in the forest and swimming in her own pool, she finally lives the life she deserves. During the summer, warmer months in Ukraine, Kvitka enjoys her absolute favourite snack – watermelon!

She is such a gentle bear, it's hard to imagine the suffering she faced for many years. But today she has grown a strong bond with her caretakers at the sanctuary, she will follow them from one side of the enclosure to the other! 

This year, Kvitka was the first bear at BEAR SANCTUARY Domazhyr to go into hibernation, and was already sleeping during the last week of October. Her caretakers at the sanctuary had already set up a den for her, and Kvitka didn't waste any time getting ready for her long winter sleep.

She shares her enclosure with bear Manya, and as there is already another den in her enclosure,the onsite team think that Manya will soon follow Kvitka into hibernation.

FOUR PAWS has constructed a bear sanctuary near the Ukrainian city of Lviv. BEAR SANCTUARY Domazhyr currently covers 15 hectares and provides a species-appropriate home to bears rescued from deplorable keeping conditions. Thus assisting the Ukrainian government in its efforts to implement the ban on keeping bears for bear-baiting.