Ask Cherokee to Close Cruel Bear Pits

Tucked away in the Qualla Boundary area of western North Carolina are three roadside zoos—Cherokee Bear Zoo, Chief Saunooke Bear Park, and Santa's Land—that keep bears in grossly inhumane conditions. As though locked in a 1950s time warp, these Cherokee facilities display neurotic bears in desolate concrete pits and cramped cages, denying the animals the opportunity to carry out even the most basic natural behavior. The captive bears pace back and forth, walk in endless circles, cry, whimper, fight with one another, and beg tourists to toss them a morsel of food.

Surrounded by four solid walls, the bears in Cherokee's bear pits cannot scan the horizon, gain a perspective on their surroundings, or make much use of their acute sense of smell. The barren, concrete cages lack adequate climbing structures, foraging opportunities, barriers for privacy, and substrate for digging, resting, and nest-building.

The USDA has cited these facilities for serious violations of the federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA), including for unsafe handling, failure to provide veterinary care to sick animals, damp and moldy feed, feces caked into animals' fur, and otherwise filthy conditions. But the agency has not taken action to remedy the bears' cruel living conditions.

You can help ensure that this otherwise tragic saga has a happy ending for the bears languishing at the Cherokee bear pits. Won't you take action now and urge officials to immediately close these dilapidated facilities? Feel free to use the form letter below, but personalized comments are always preferred.

Please take the following actions:

• Take a moment to write to Michell Hicks, principal chief of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, and politely urge him to help close Cherokee's bear pits and retire the animals to sanctuaries, where they can live the rest of their lives in a more suitable environment:

Michell Hicks, Principal Chief
Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians
P.O. Box 455
Cherokee, NC 28719
michhick@nc-cherokee.com

• Also write or fax a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Thomas J. Vilsack and urge the USDA to act on PETA's 63-page bear welfare report documenting serious problems found at these facilities by a team of bear experts:

Secretary Tom Vilsack
U.S. Department of Agriculture
1400 Independence Ave., S.W.
Washington, DC 20250
202-720-6314 (fax)

Please refrain from using the words "bear" and "Cherokee" in your e-mail subject line when writing your letter to avoid having your e-mail blocked by Principal Chief Hicks. 
Suggested Form Letter Body:

I was horrified to learn about the conditions for captive bears in Cherokee. There has been no attempt to provide these animals with a natural habitat or environmental enrichment to satisfy their intense curiosity. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has cited each facility with numerous and serious repeat violations of the Animal Welfare Act, and bear experts report that the animals are suffering.

When confined to barren enclosures without room to roam and with no opportunity to express natural behavior or make choices about their daily routines, bears quickly become stressed, frustrated, and bored. They often develop neurotic behavior. Captivity-induced neurotic behavior—such as pacing, circling, head-tossing, and begging—are signifiers of poor welfare and are displayed by virtually all the bears exhibited in Cherokee.

Please take action to help close the bear pits and transfer these animals to a sanctuary.