Yampil, a 12-year-old Asiatic black bear rescued from a bombed-out zoo in Ukraine, has arrived at his new home, the Five Sisters Zoo, in West Calder, Scotland.
Named after the village where he was found by Ukrainian troops in October 2022, Yampil was one of the few animals to survive the attack in the Donetsk region. He was concussed by shellfire.
Five Sisters Zoo will closely monitor Yampil to see if he shows any issues similar to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after being in a warzone.
Adam Welsh, the zoo’s head of education, told the BBC: “Yampil has been through a lot. He could have arrived and been incredibly nervous about meeting people. We wanted to make sure we were very delicate when he arrived, so there was no loud noises. He’s experienced some really horrible things.
“Time will tell, but he seems remarkably calm, remarkably chilled out and he’s been eating already. He’s come out his crate, he’s been eating, drinking and relaxing – that’s nice to see and we’re really hoping that continues.”
Yampil, who was first moved to a Polish zoo and then the Natuurhulpcentrum animal sanctuary in Belgium, will reside in a temporary enclosure at Five Sisters Zoo.
Yampil being monitored by Scottish zoo
The zoo said the black bear has been exploring his temporary enclosure. The keeping team, it added, have been making sure he is comfortable and has everything he needs.
Brian Curran, owner of Five Sisters Zoo, said: “He was in terrible condition; five more days and they wouldn’t have been able to save him. We were just so amazed he was still alive and well.”
The zoo is fundraising to cover the cost of a new £200,000 enclosure for Yampil. So far, they have raised around £70,000 of it.
Images courtesy of Five Sisters Zoo
