The environmental organisation Arcturos has acquired the first ambulance in Greece specifically designed to carry large mammals such as bears, wolves, jackals, lynxes and deer.
It will be used by the organization’s Rapid Response Team that’s deployed to deal with incidents involving animals caught in illegal traps or hit by vehicles, in the rescue of orphaned wildlife, or for general transportation.
Photo Credit: Arcturos
The acquisition of an ambulance comes at an important time for Arcturos, as the organization reports an increasing number of interactions between humans and wild animals.
Depending on the severity of injuries sustained by rescued mammals, they will be transported to either the Arcturos Wildlife Clinic situated at the organization’s premises, or to the Veterinary School of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.
Thanks to conservation efforts groups like Arcturos, Greece’s once-decimated population of Eurasian brown bears has grown to an estimated 565 to 870 individuals that live mostly in the northern mountain ranges of Pindos and Rhodope.
Arcturos was also pivotal in eradicating the “dancing bear” that was common in Greece during the last century. Caught as cubs after killing their mother, young bears were subjected to a brutal training process that included piercing the bear’s nose with a ring for chaining, breaking its canine teeth and forcing the bear to tread on hot metal plates to the sound of a tambourine. Over time, the sound of a tambourine was enough to cause the bear to rise on its hind legs and “dance,” for money.
Cover Photo Credit: Arcturos
