Bubu, Orphaned Andean Bear
Cub
Bubu is an Andean bear
cub who was rescued by the Andean Bear Foundation. We believe
that his mother was killed, some time in early 2009, leaving him an
orphan. He was kept for a while in a private house, in
unsuitable conditions, then sent to another place which also did not
have space for him. Then Bubu was rescued and Quito Zoo very
kindly kept him in quarantine for several months. The zoo did
not really have enough space for Bubu, but at least he was safe and had
a proper diet and veterinary care.
Bubu was moved to a
temporary new home in the spring of 2010, where he lived while we
prepared the rehab cage up on the paramo.
We are very grateful to Bubu's temporary landlord, Sr. Kohn,
who took care of him, and also to the many friends who
donated to help us purchase the materials needed to repair the rehab
cage.
On June 12th, 2010 Bubu
was moved to
the rehabilitation cage up on the paramo at Hacienda
Yanahurco, where he will now spend a few
months learning what to eat in the wild. The costs of Bubu's
rehab are about $35 a day and we are very grateful for the donations we
have received so far to pay for this. Once he is large
enough and has learned to eat the foods he will find in the cloud
forest and paramo, Bubu will be fitted with a collar to track his
movements and
released. For this we will need donations
to cover the costs involved, and a helicopter to get to a
suitably remote area. We are hoping our friends the
Ecuadorian Army
will help us out again with a helicopter as they did with our last bear
liberation - see
the bear release video here.
Releasing Bubu won't just
make life better for one little bear, it will make a difference to the
species as a whole. Andean bears are an endangered species
and, especially in Ecuador, have low genetic diversity, which makes
them vulnerable to disease. Due to habitat fragmentation,
small populations of bears are isolated from each other and become
inbred. We will be releasing Bubu in a different area to
where he was found, and we hope that he will go on to sire cubs there
which will increase the genetic diversity of the bear population in the
area.
Bubu has his own profile
on Facebook and is always delighted to make new friends. Find
Bubu
Bear on Facebook. Thanks to Dawn Edwards, you can
also find Bubu's photo gallery on Flickr.
How you can
help get Bubu back to the wild where he belongs:
Donate Online
Donations for Bubu can be made to the Andean Bear Foundation online,
using
PayPal - just click on the button on the right and we will know that
the money is for Bubu. PayPal charge us 2.2% + $0.30 per
transaction from within the USA, or 3.9% + $0.30 from outside the USA.
If you prefer you can enter PayPal through your own account,
rather
than the button below, and on the send money page, click Personal, then
Gift, then opt to pay the fees yourself rather than having them taken
out of the donation. Whichever method you choose, we end up
closer to being able to free Bubu than we were before. Many
thanks from Bubu for your help!
You can also donate for Bubu using your
credit card, through Click & Pledge. Donations made
in
this way incur a 4.5% + $0.35 processing fee (taken out of your donation,
not added on top of it). Don't forget to put a comment telling us it's for Bubu! You will be sent a receipt
as soon as the donation has been received. All donations are
gratefully
received, however we cannot accept
donations less than US$10 through Click & Pledge. Donate
online
with Click & Pledge now.
(Please excuse us, Click and Pledge still have our old logo - we
are hoping this will be updated soon). Thank you for your donation!
The other online option to donate to Bubu, if you have a Facebook account, is at our "Save Orphaned Andean Bears" Cause.
which takes a flat processing fee of 4.7%. Other Causes users will be able to see your name and
the amount you donated to Bubu. Thank you for
your support!
Donors who work for an
American corporation may be able to get their employer to match their
donation - go on, ask them! The employer
will probably need the EIN number of
the Andean Bear Foundation, which is 81-0664911.
Buy from Bubu's Zazzle Store
Select from t-shirts, mousemats, coffee mugs, keyrings and many more
products featuring Bubu and other Andean bears. The profits
go the Andean Bear Foundation, who will use them towards the costs of
Bubu's rehabilitation and release. Make sure you use this
link to Bubu's Zazzle Store, in this way Bubu will receive a
referral bonus at no cost to you.
Buy yourself a bear cub!
Buy a plush spectacled bear from Into the Wild
and they will donate 10%
to the Andean Bear Foundation to help get Bubu back to the wild.
** For July and August 2010, Into the Wild are kindly donating 10% of ALL sales, so stock up on gifts now! **
Any help you can provide
for Bubu's rehabilitation and liberation will be very much appreciated.
Anyone living in Ecuador who would like to donate in cash or
can provide transport, construction materials or other assistance,
please get in touch at info@andeanbear.org.
Bubu,
Orphaned Andean Bear Cub
Save the bear cubs! Donate to the Andean Bear Foundation to
help us get Bubu and other bear cubs back to the wild where
they belong.
