Ben the Andean bear made headlines last month when he escaped not once, but twice, from his enclosure at the St. Louis Zoo. Now, St. Louis is saying goodbye to Ben as he heads for a new home in Texas.
The Zoo shared the news in a Facebook post. They say that while Ben’s habitat met all the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ standards for his species, it was determined that Ben would need to be rehomed to a place that would better suit his “specific and unique personality.”
The Zoo collaborated with other organizations and zoos to determine that the best place for Ben would be Gladys Porter Zoo in Brownsville, Texas. The Gladys Porter Zoo, they say, has a long history of working with Andean bears, and their habitat has a moat instead of steel mesh. The group say they believe it’ll be a better environment for Ben.
In the meantime, Ben has been living in a private area of the St. Louis Zoo with indoor and outdoor areas and a pool. The Zoo says, “Staff members are providing Ben with excellent care and fun enrichment opportunities while also using positive reinforcement training to help him become comfortable with his travel crate so that he has a smooth journey to his new home in Texas.”
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