Update: See Lily the Bear a Year and a Half After Her Rescue

For Immediate Release:
July 9, 2018

Contact:
Megan Wiltsie 202-483-7382

Lily the bear was taken to The Wild Animal Sanctuary in Colorado after spending 10 years in a barren, often filthy cage—and a new PETA video catches up with her a year and a half later.

The video reveals her astonishing transformation: While she was once the most obese bear the sanctuary staff had ever seen, she has now shed at least 200 pounds, thanks to plenty of exercise, a healthy diet, and the ability to hibernate—things that she was denied while forced to live as a caged tourist attraction in a roadside zoo.

In just the last five years, PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment”—has successfully rescued 72 bears from backyard cages and roadside zoos, where they’re typically displayed in barren cages on concrete slabs that can cause arthritis, pressure sores, and severe psychological distress. But there’s still more work to be done, as nearly 1,000 bears continue to suffer in tiny cages, pits, and traveling shows across the country.

More information about Lily’s story is available here and at PETA.org.