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Text by Seng Yen Wah Photos by Chiew Lin May & Seng Yen Wah  Chin – The Curious Bear Chin is a female adult bear aged 10 years old. She was rescued from Tawau district, located in southeast Sabah. She was kept at a mini located in a primary school, where she was displayed illegally in a small metal cage. She arrived at the BSBCC on the 22nd of July in 2014 from Lok Kawi Wildlife Zoo. Chin is a curious bear. She is curious about everything that you offer to her. She will happily spend her day exploring. Tearing things, such as coconuts and dead logs, apart is one of the ways she explores. She does not mind getting dirty. Her happiness is seeing a dry cage with some dead logs. She will spend her time rolling on the dry leaves and try to roll the dead logs on her body. She likes to keep the smell of the wood on her, nature’s scent. Chin can nap anywhere such as a hammock, basket or even a branch that is in the right position. Chin can be kept entertained easily with just a simple enrichment that can make her day.  When Chin first arrived at BSBCC and entered quarantine for 30 days.  Lot of enrichments were offered to Chin  The Bear Cot  Chin loves to play with dead logs and she does not mind being dirty!  Aussie Dog Ball  Or just day dreaming  And, of course resting! Chin had been integrated with many bears. First, she tried with Cerah and Jelita, Tokob, Susie and Kuamut but they did not seem to get along. So in October 2016, she was introduced to two older bears – Amaco and Gutuk. They interact well and love to play fight together, especially Gutuk. Gutuk is her playmate. She loves to follow what Gutuk was doing. Gutuk loves to lie on the ground and enjoy the temperature and Chin would copy whatever Gutuk did. They are such good bear friends! However, Gutuk passed away on the 22nd of July, 2017. She seemed different after Gutuk left her alone. Her face looked sad and she clearly misses her best friend. However, Chin is using Gutuk’s memories to move on with her life and be a better her!  Chin playing with Gutuk  Gutuk is her playmate and this is the activity that they like the most!  After Gutuk passed away, Chin still missed Gutuk most of the time. In January 2015, Chin took her first steps out into the forest. She enjoys every moment in the forest such as digging, foraging, resting, and napping. She loves to explore every corner of the forest enclosure, where everything seems interesting to her! In October 2017, she once again stepped out into the forest with a different forest enclosure. She enjoys when the sunlight is shining on her body. There is a small natural pool that is ready for her when she is finished sunbathing. She likes to splash water on her body or soak in the water to reduce the feeling of sweltering heat.  Being curious in the forest!  Enjoy every moment in the forest! Chin may look like a heavy and grumpy bear but she is actually gentle and friendly. She does have a hot temper, but she is the bear who enjoys every single moment. It is never too late to protect a bear like Chin. They deserve more than that! The forest is their home! Sun bears are a ‘Totally Protected’ species under the Wildlife Conservation Enactment 1997 which means those who hunt sun bears will be fined RM100,000, or jailed 10 years, or both. Share the awareness and spread the word. Sun bears need more attention to get more protection!  Sun bears are a ‘Totally Protected’ species under the Wildlife Conservation Enactment 1997.  We need your attention to get more protection! - Chin
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Text and Photos by Barbara Katsifolis Hi. My name is Barbara and I am a travel agent from Melbourne, Australia. I volunteered at the BSBCC in Sandakan for two weeks in February 2017 and not one day goes by where I don’t think back to my placement. I have so many wonderful memories and learnt so much. I visited the Sun Bear Centre as a tourist a couple of times and I remember clearly telling my local guide that I will be back to take part in the volunteer program. Four months later I found myself in gumboots with a hose in my hand in the bear-house, sweating profusely. The whole experience was incredibly well managed by the dedicated local Ape Malaysia staff. Sumira and Mark on the ground in Sandakan are just wonderful and there was nothing we could not approach them for. Ape Malaysia has a fantastic process in place to make sure volunteers are well prepared and understand what this placement is all about. The same goes for all the staff at the centre. I wished I could speak at least enough Malay to follow the conversations because there was always laughter in the room. Everyone was very easy going but at the same time incredibly dedicated to the purpose of the centre. I felt welcome the minute I walked in and not long after I was just one of the team. One of the biggest challenges for me during the two weeks was to remember names and I do apologise if I don’t mention everyone I have met. It’s because I just can’t remember them all but I will come back and try harder next time. The same goes for the bears; 44 bears are a lot even though they all have distinctive chest marks. Two weeks just wasn’t enough for me to remember them all. Thank you to the keepers and Sumira for patiently showing me again and again at feeding time who was who. We spent most our time in the bear house and someone asked me the other day, “Was it heart breaking?” It’s a valid question. I would have rather seen these beautiful animals out there in the forest where they belong but I came well prepared and with a purpose to support the staff in creating the best possible environment for the bears that cannot be released into the forest at this stage. I must say that I was just so impressed how the whole bear house was run. It’s a huge job to look after 44 bears and everything that goes along with it, and yet there were smiling faces all around and there was always time for a little joke. I am not an expert on wildlife behaviour but I am sure the bears pick up on this positive attitude around them. Of course, many of them show typical stress behaviours which relate back to their traumatic periods while being kept as pets prior to being rescued. Apart from that the atmosphere was mostly that of contentment. After the first few days we understood the daily routines, and started to have more and more time to concentrate on creating enrichment items. These range from structures that make the bears more comfortable, to toys out of bamboo, wood and old fire hoses which are donated to the centre. Every bear has a different personality and respond differently to enrichment items. Therefore a lot of thought goes into the creation of various structures and some of them may not turn out to be as appreciated by the bears as we hoped. After spending so much time with the bears, I did start to have a bit of a weak spot for Gutuk who has very poor vision and spends a lot of time on the ground, while other bears climb up into their hammocks to have a rest. One of our bigger enrichment projects was to build a “bear bed”. The idea was to encourage Gutuk to step off the floor and use this bed rather than the concrete floor. In theory, it was a great idea and we were very excited to put it into action. After a little while of investigating I did catch Gutuk once with all 4 legs on the bed.  However, in the end I think the bed turned more into a toy for Chin who is Gutuk’s companion and one of the most playful bears. He had a great time standing on top trying to rip it into pieces. Sometimes the simplest things are the most successful and I think piling up lots and lots of dry leaves in Gutuk’s cage was probably more successful than building a nice piece of furniture. Staying as close to nature as possible seems to be a good approach to keep in mind.  There is a lot of trial and error when making enrichment items. The staff are open to any suggestions and will help the volunteers turn any idea into a workable option. In fact, the most memorable moments were the afternoons we all spent together crafting for the bears. It showed how much can be achieved as a team and it was just so much fun having everyone together joking around while being incredibly productive. I would like to thank Dr Wong and all the staff at BSBCC for inviting me into the team for a short while and for Ape Malaysia who facilitate such a wonderful program.
As a travel agent specialising in responsible tourism, I have made it my goal to educate as many of my clients as possible about what a good volunteer and wildlife experience should be. I am super keen to return once a year to the BSBCC and encourage people to participate with me. As travellers, we must start to play a role in protecting the last remaining rainforests we all crave to see and support some of these amazing people that just don’t give up and put their heart and soul into wildlife rehabilitation and conservation. You are all wonderful role models and I can’t wait to come back. In the meantime, I will talk about my experience back at home and hope to raise a little awareness about sun bear conservation. See you all in 2018. That tree better still be there. 😉 Text by Bellinda Raymond (Intern Student) Photos by BSBCC Kudat is a 7 years old adult male sun bear, who was named after a district in the northern part of Sabah. Before he was sent to Kudat district, he came originally from Tawau district. Kudat was kept as a display in a private mini zoo together with a female sun bear named Panda. At the private mini zoo, both Kudat and Panda were on display as ‘black panda’. Later, they were surrendered to the Sabah Wildlife Department and BSBCC in 2013. At BSBCC, Kudat enjoy his new environment and began to explore the forest around him. Kudat’s last friend was Panda which is in year 2013. Although sun bear is a solitary animal when they are in the wild, BSBCC encouraged a healthy positive social behaviour among the bears at the centre. At BSBCC, sun bears are integrated according to their body size, personality and age group. Bears integration is encouraged in this centre to bring out the positive behaviour development among the bears such as defensive skills and learning from each other through socializing. The number of cages in the bear house is very limited too where for now it only can accommodate up to 40 bears. Therefore, integration is also one of the ways to save up space in the bear house where the bears are integrated so that they can be in groups. The first step in integration is integrating the bears cage by cage. The bears will start to sniff around their new environment especially when there is a new bear next to their cage. After that, integration body contact will be carried out where the sliding door between the two cages will be opened and the bears will start to meet each other. In July 2015, Kudat started to be integrated to a group consisting Julaini, Rungus, Ah Lun, Panda and Chin. Kudat is integrated one by one from the group before they can be in one big group together. The integration of Kudat started off with the bear that is the dominant in the group. Kudat is integrated with Ah Lun first. When Kudat placed next to Ah Lun’s cage, Kudat started to become curious and keep sniffing around. He climbed the cage to have a peek of the bear next to his cage. As soon as the sliding door is opened, Ah Lun went into Kudat’s cage first. When Kudat and Ah Lun met, they took some time to get to know to each other. After they feel confident about each other, they started to play with each other.  Kudat and Ah Lun met for the first time! After Ah Lun, Kudat is introduced to Chin. When she met Kudat, she was curious at first. Kudat and Chin sniff around their new environment and even sniff at each other.   Kudat is welcoming Chin as his new friend when they first met  Kudat is sniffing his new friend before starts to play Besides Ah Lun and Chin, Kudat is also introduced to Julaini, a male sun bear who has the same age with him. Kudat is friendly to Julaini when both of them met each other. Both Kudat and Julaini immediately play when they met! The way they play is a bit aggressive compared to Ah Lun and Chin. Maybe it is just a way of male sun bears play with each other? Kudat and Julaini played nonstop and continue to wrestle.   Never tired of playing  It looks like Julaini is not giving up to Kudat!  Oh no... guess that Julaini is tired already but Kudat still want to continue wrestling Finally, Kudat is reintroduced to his long lost friend, Panda! The integration between Kudat and Panda does not make us worry when they were integrated because Kudat and Panda are best friends!  After being separated for 2 years, Kudat is happy to meet his best friend again!  Rungus is the last bear that being introduced to Kudat. Amazingly, Kudat also shows positive reaction to Rungus when they were integrated. Like the other bears in the group, Kudat played with Rungus too! Rungus is the female bear in the group that is most interested to Kudat and they played together and ignored the other bears!  Kudat played with Rungus while Chin watch them playing The integration between Kudat and all the bears showed positive integration except for Chin. When Kudat and Chin were integrated earlier, they played in a friendly manner. However, after some time Kudat and Chin started to become aggressive and they fighted. Kudat and Chin were then separated by cages. We tried to integrate Kudat and Chin again, but there are still aggressions occurred between them. This means that the integration between Kudat and Chin is negative. We concluded and decided that Kudat and Chin cannot be integrated to each other. Despite this, Kudat’s integration with Julaini, Rungus, Ah Lun and Panda shows positive result.
Kudat’s integration with the other bears is still on going. Hopefully, their integration can be successful in the end. When the integration is successful, Kudat, Julaini, Rungus, Ah Lun and Panda will be in one group and will step into the forest together. Text by Joanna Buckingham (Volunteer BSBCC) Photos by Chiew Lin May Given the space constraints and the growing population between bear house 1 and 2, integration of bears into groups is a large focus for BSBCC. Integration not only allows more of the curious bears to experience the limited outdoor forest enclosures but also lets the bears learn skills off each other that they would have normally been taught by their mother's in their natural wild habitat of the Bornean rainforest. One of the bears currently in the integration program is the 7 year old Panda. Panda's journey with BSBCC began with a rescue mission from a mini zoo in 2010 along with Kudat. Both had been mislabelled as pandas in the Kudat region and thus their names bearing testament to their previous life.  The charming face of Panda.  Making bear friends Panda's time was finally up and it was decided that she would be integrated with an established group of bears around her age who currently enjoy pen D, Julaini the male of the group and the two females Ah Lun and Rungus. Integration into this group began in February 2015 introducing Panda to the most aggressive of the group first Ah Lun. This is to ensure a successful match as integration of bears who are normally solitary can take a long time. If the dominant bear doesn't accept the new bear then it would be wasted time to familiarise Panda with the other bears if ultimately she would always be rejected by the "leader". It is all a bit high school! While the BSBCC team began the group integration from February 5th, the integration work is still continuing several months later demonstrating the patience and time needed to group the bears. As part of my volunteer program, I got to observe one of Panda´s integration sessions in July 2015. I noted quickly that while Panda is large for her size due to a previous diet of a daily chicken in the mini zoo, she doesn't use that to her advantage as she is much more interested in playing with the other bears. It was great to see Julaini and Panda played with each other with playful barks and bites on the back. Both take turns using their strength to pull the other down. Bear playfights reminded me of growing up with my three siblings while sometimes it looks too rough, the bears know their limits and know when to bark in a way to demonstrate that they have had enough or the playing has gone too far.  During my observation, Panda and Ah Lun played in their cage while Julaini alternated between watching from the hammock or resting between the cages. It is a good sign when bears are happy to rest while the other bears are in their cage as it shows that they are happy to be in each other´s presence. Also another good sign is if the bears are happy to share food.  Bear play fights – much like young siblings It was also decided after an unsuccessful integration with another group that Chin would be introduced to this group. Chin perhaps learning from the previous experience always displays her dominance. Chin was introduced last during my observation as the team know that Chin will show these traits. When Chin was introduced into the third cage, giving the bears more space in case the dominance went too far, she was quick to growl and bark and pull back her nose to show her teeth when she approached the other two cages. Panda showed interest in playing but Chin was more interested in ensuring that no one came into the cage she was occupying and sat firmly in the doorway. Ah Lun showed some signs of fear as Chin ended up in the doorway holding the other three bears in one cage and not letting any of the bears play with her or enter the other cages. Chin was quite interesting to watch as the noises they are make are quite unusual and can grow from low growls to barks like a dog. Chin also shows her dominance by standing up.  Almost like a wresting match, Panda and Chin square off Panda and Chin´s integration into the group continues at BSBCC and demonstrates the time, patience and expertise of the BSBCC team. Supporting BSBCC will ensure my bear friends like Panda will have the time dedicated to her to ensure that she integrates into an accepting bear group and get to experience the outdoor enclosures.  Text by Claire Buckingham (Volunteer) Photos by Chiew Lin May   It sounds cliché to say it, but the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre is all about second chances. Chin, now nine years old, came to BSBCC in July 2014 via a wildlife rescue unit, who took her from a primary school’s mini zoo. It’s illegal to keep sun bears as private pets, especially in small cages like she was. She was also not given much in the way of enrichment, which may have some bearing on why she’s been christened “The Curious” at BSBCC. At the centre she finally has the opportunity to explore her surroundings and learn something about life in the forest as a sun bear! Things cannot be just that simple, of course. When the bears are brought to the centre it is a big adjustment for them simply to become accustomed to life in the dens in the vicinity of other bears, and also the humans who provide their food and tools for enrichment. But even when this just becomes day to day life, the bears still need to learn about life in the forest, and life around other bears. Sun bears appear to be primarily solitary animals, except when a mother is looking after her cubs. This doesn’t mean they live in the forest alone – they still need to have some idea of how to act with other animals, whether in play, mating, or defence; being that sun bears don’t generally get a lot of their protein from meat, they probably don’t need to practice a lot of attacking, but they do need to know how to stand up for themselves. At the centre, there are two bear houses, and currently only one is open to the enclosures outside; bear house two will be open shortly to its more recently completed forest enclosures. Several enclosures allow bears to go outside alone, such as those used by Kudat and Manis, but the other enclosures have bears sharing their spaces with one another. Two of these enclosures can be seen from the feeding platform, and anyone who has come to BSBCC will no doubt have fond memories of hungry bears at play amongst the trees. Bears in the outdoor enclosure cannot be immediately controlled by the keepers – and in some ways, they should not be. Hopefully many of the bears at BSBCC will eventually return to the wild, and there they will need to be able to take care of themselves. This doesn’t mean all care isn’t taken to ensure the bears are familiar with one another – and this is why integration between bear individuals and groups takes place in the bear house before they are allowed to mingle together in the forest enclosures. Chin’s first chance at returning to a more naturalised surrounding began with her integration into a group of six bears. Tokob was the dominant female, and was most closely associated with Susie and Kuamut. Three more females rounded out the group: Cerah and Jelita, and then Lawa. Given these six females had already comfortably sorted themselves into two groups of three, it would always have proved somewhat of a challenge for Chin to find her place amongst them. However, within the confines of the bear house, it appeared Chin was accepted by the group and happy enough with her place within it. In January 2015, Chin was released into Pen C with these six bears. It was to prove, unfortunately, a difficult four days for her. The other bears rejected her, and she resorted to hiding under a tree to avoid their attacks. They caused injuries to her hind foot, and to her muzzle. Curious as she was about her new surroundings, she was distracted by the need to be constantly on alert; this can be seen by her behaviour in a favoured spot, where she kept her back to a large tree. Its shape kept her protected on three sides, and gave her a vantage point to watch for the other bears.  In those four days, the other bears did not permit her to share in the food brought to the enclosure. It was definitely a tough few days for Chin, and when she finally came back inside it was decided she would not be placed in this group again. In February 2015, she was instead introduced to another group, known as the Rungus group. This comprises the females Rungus, Panda, and Ah Lun, and the male Julaini (whose brilliant chest mark adorns a BSBCC t-shirt that became my favourite!). The group tentatively began to play together within the bear house, and then Chin began to show dominance. It appears she learned this from Tokob, and she learned it well. I personally first met Chin in June 2015, which is when she was first beginning to be encouraged into Pen A. Because of her experiences with Tokob’s group, it was decided she would not be immediately placed in the forest enclosure with the Rungus group in Pen B, even though they appeared to be integrating well within the bear house. Instead, Chin would be given her second chance by being allowed into Pen A on her own. Chin was one of the first bears I got to know, as she tends to night den in one of the four cages just inside bear house one’s entrance. Given the only other bear in this area is Bermuda – a big, no-nonsense male – she was easy to recognise and to get to know. I spent my first three days primarily in the kitchen, preparing and splitting up the food for the bears depending on where they were. On day three, I came in and immediately noticed a change in the food split – Chin was categorised today in Pen A. Chin was going outside! After her earlier experience with the forest enclosures, Chin was naturally somewhat recalcitrant about the very idea of it. Most of the dens have four entrances – two side doors for transfers between dens, one main entrance, and the back guillotine door that leads to the enclosures. The guillotine door usually opens to either a climbing frame or a ramp, and Chin would make good use of her ramp. Indeed, when Lin May came to tell me about Chin’s release to the forest plan, she showed me how Chin was going about it – and I peeked into the den to see little more than two bear feet hanging over the lip of the door.  Chin’s naturally curious, and likes to play – certainly I often found her attempting to use her water bowl like a bath, despite the fact it was barely large enough to take only her backside. So Chin couldn’t quite resist the lure of the outdoors, though she was also nervous of it. More than once I saw her seated sideways in the guillotine door, one front paw appearing to prop the door up, a faraway look in her eyes as she surveyed the forest beyond her den. Other times, she’d stay inside, but displayed a frank fascination with the door structures. She would pick at the tracks with those massive claws, and then get irritated and yank the back door right down, as if to say, “I said I wasn’t going out today!”  But Lin May would come open it right up again, and Chin would go back to her dreamy watchful state. Sometimes, if a little food was scattered, she’d go back to lying belly-down on the ramp like a little kid about to take their first slide all the way from the top. It was also interesting to watch some of the indoor integration she continues to have with the Rungus group. I watched her “talking” with Panda one day; the bears were in separate dens, but the grate that locked the side entrance gives the bears a way to watch one another. At first Chin just pulled her lips back over her teeth, moving her muzzle in a silent roar; Panda echoed the motion. Then Chin appeared to pull back, front paws straight out before her and her backside raised, head ducked down low. I thought this was a submissive position and, confused, asked Thye Lim about it as I had been told that Chin was acting dominant amongst the Rungus group. He explained to me that this is, for Chin, a dominant posture; much like elephants tuck their ears back before they charge, this is Chin getting down into a charge position. Being that they were in separate dens it wasn’t going to happen, but I did notice that Panda backed away and left the grate between them when Chin did this. I also watched her with the others, split between two dens with an open grate; Chin spent a lot of her time at the grate, appearing to act as both a watchman and a gatekeeper. She particularly seemed determined to stop Julaini from coming over to “her” side. Later, she had to be bribed with honey to come back to den 13, where she would have access to the forest. Instead of going out, she played with the now closed and locked side gate. She even managed to lift it just a little, only to be disappointed to find the only way out was to the forest! Of course the only time Chin went fully outside was on one of my days off – though she only managed ten minutes before she decided it was time to come back in again! Since my last day at BSBCC she has continued on these little jaunts outside, and Lin May told me the next step is to close the guillotine door and see what happens next. This is all a part of Chin’s second chance – both at getting back into the forest enclosure, and then just in her general life. She’s had a cruel start to things, but at BSBCC she has a chance to learn what it is to be a regular sun bear. It’s not going to be easy, but they don’t call her Chin the Curious for nothing. I think she’s going to be all right.  Text and Photos by Chiew Lin May Chin was rescued from the Tawau district where she was kept at the primary school’s mini zoo. On October 20th, 2014, we relocated Chin to our BSBCC bear house to join a gorgeous group of bears. We started to introduce Chin to other female adult bears so that they can live together. Integrating sun bears is a helpful process through which the bears can develop and learn pertinent skills for survival in the wild. We hoped the integration would go well. Chin was introduced to the adult female bears which included Susie, Kuamut, Tokob, Cerah, Jelita and Lawa. Because it would be too overwhelming for Chin to meet all six sun bears at the same time, one by one introduction was started for the first seven days. Through the expressions of Chin’s behaviour, she could not wait to play with other female bears. Five of the female bears were very pleased to have a new playmate, inquisitively sniffing and offering a friendly paw to Chin. Chin is very playful bear! A few months on, they continue to enjoy and learn to understand each other better, and no aggression was noted. They would play chase, climb around and share enrichment with each other. Their friendships blossomed. Here are couples of photos shows the integration Chin with the other female adult group. Integration Chin with Cerah   Chin (back) was so excited and she like to displayed a "dancing move" to her friends.  Cerah showed dominance over Chin !! Integration Chin with Jelita  Jelita (front) tried to show Chin (back) that she has the strength too !!  After tired of play, finally Chin can lying down on ground floor to rest. Integration Chin with Lawa  Lawa (back) started to accept Chin's (front) presence. Both of them play happily!  Chin (right) sniffed on Lawa (Left) and was very curious. Integration Chin with Susie  First met with Susie!  All of the strong claws and canines were showed up during the play fight.   Integration Chin with Kuamut  Say "Hi" to Kuamut!   Tired from play fight, both had a rest and were gasping for breath.  Taking rest first! They spends the day with chasing, rolling and play fight together without aggression behavior. However, Tokob did not welcome the newcomer. Tokob’s reaction toward Chin was very strong, growling and barking on a defensive way. Tokob has a very strong sense of curiosity, but maintains her distance around Chin. Tokob is very alert, and demonstrates a bit more dominance than Chin so we will have to be patient while this integration unfolds. We will continue to monitor these two bears until we are certain that they are good playmates and we will keep you updated on their progress! Integration Chin with Tokob  Chin was climb upside down and aware when Tokob did not show interest on her. Text and Photos by Chiew Lin May  Chin finished her quarantine period and was moved to bear house where she will start her brand new life! Chin, a 13 year old adult female sun bear arrived to BSBCC from Lok Kawi Wildlife Zoo on July 22, 2014. Chin was rescued from the primary school’s mini zoo in Tawau, a town in the southeast region of Sabah. We are happy to report that Chin has successfully completed the quarantine period and has been moved into the bear house to live with other bears her age. On October 20, 2014 two veterinarians from the Sabah Wildlife Department, Dr. Laura Benedict and Dr. Timothy Fong, teamed up with our sun bear team to help in the moving process.  After the sedation procedure, Chin was carried out of her den and put into the transportation trolley. The trolley then moved Chin from the quarantine area to the bear house. Every bear that is being moved undergoes routine check-ups during the transport. Chin’s weight, blood, and hair samples were tested to ensure general health and organ functionality. She weighed in at 35kg and showed a bit of hair loss on both forelimbs. Dr. Laura suggested that Chin take a supplement to help her adjust.  While under sedation she was weighed.  The first step to her freedom was to move Chin from the quarantine which requires a general anesthetic and a transfer trolley to her new home situated at bear house.    Reached bear house!  Dr. Laura and Dr. Timothy conducted a full physical exam and collect any samples needed for health and genetics. This include collecting blood samples,hair samples, dental records, and growth measurements.    Finally, when all the checks have been performed and recorded. Chin is gently put in her new cages.The bears in the bear house took interest in her.  The bears in the bear house took interest in her right away; however Chin seemed a bit displeased upon awaking from the sedation. She barked, growled, and showed a bit of aggression once she began to hear and smell the other bears.   Growls for strange sound and people! Over the next few days she began to settle into her new home at the bear house, but remained alert to her neighbours. Chin is very attentive and watches with curiosity and interest at the world going by. She is still exploring her new space and enjoys climbing around the cages while she adapts to her new home.  Enjoying new facility.     Food hidden in Aussie Dog Ball. This will encourage Chin to spend time searching for extracting her food. Chin now has a brand new life free of fear and pain. The next step for Chin is she will be access in a pristine forest where she can climb high in the trees, forage for grubs, and socialize with other bears. This new lifestyle is just one step in the direction of becoming a wild sun bear.  Be on the lookout for future updates on the progress of Chin. We look forward to the day when she can be introduced to the rest of the adult female sun bears.
Text and Photos by Chiew Lin May This rescue did not change the world that we lived in, but it definitely changed the whole world of these three rescued bears! Why does sun bear’s survival threatened? Sun bears are threatened for various reasons; one reason in particular is humans. Human activities pose many threats to sun bears and their habitat. Intensive illegal logging paired with increased agricultural expansions are just two ways in which humans are forcing sun bears out of their homes. Illegal animal trade is also leading to the extinction of sun bears. Mothers are being killed so that their cubs can be taken in as pets; many of which end up in small cages, and due to a lack of knowledge on how to properly handle the babies, often times they become malnourished and traumatised. This needs to stop if we ever want to see wild sun bears living happy and free in the rainforest! This past July, the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre received three rescued sun bears named Ronnie, Susie and Chin. These three rescued sun bears arrived at Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre from the Lok Kawi Wildlife Zoo in Kota Kinabalu.  On July 15, 2014, 2 rescued sun bears (Ronnie and Susie) successfully unloaded at Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre at around 5pm.  On July 22, 2014, Chin, an adult female sun bear is the 8th bear to arrive at the Centre this year. We prepared a quarantine area for the bears which included a den enriched with decayed wood, climbing structures, hammocks, and green leaves. Upon arrival to the centre we unloaded the bear’s cages and secured it safely to the gate of the den. When we opened the doors the bears were hesitant to go inside. All three of them were slightly stressed from the move, but eventually each one entered its new home and began to explore.  Let the bears into their quarantine dens for the start of their new lives.  All newly rescued bears must undergo a month long quarantine period so that wildlife veterinarians can conduct an extensive health check, blood and hair examinations, and monitor the body measurements of the bears.  We conducted Ronnie physical check up at the BSBCC. It went on very smoothly with the help from the SWD vet, Dr Laura and Dr. Sandy.  Susie physical check up.  Chin physical check up. Ronnie, a five month old female sun bear cub is always capturing people’s attention! Her history is still unknown but we believe that she was kept as a ex-pet and was sent to the BSBCC on July 15, 2014. Her mother was most likely killed by poachers, and now, this kind natured gentile sun bear is quickly adjusting to her new surroundings.  Meet Ronnie, one of the youngest sun bear cub at the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre  When Ronnie arrived at the centre, she weighed only 7.9 kg and took the spot as youngest bear at the centre, as well as one of the smallest. Now her weight is 10.8 kg.   She is learning all the skills pertinent to survival in the wild. She is also enjoying this learning process very much, and loves to play in the dirt! She also likes to dig, and tear apart the dead wood around her.     So wonderful to see her grown up very fast!  Learn climbing tree time!!     If we give her ginger leaves or decayed branches, she will spend an entire day biting, twisting or tearing apart her enrichments.    During play fights, Ronnie likes to show her small curved canines and sharp claws.   Now that Ronnie is getting plenty of milk and fruit to eat she is developing a big belly too!  She has a nutritious diet that comprises fruits - Durian, Tarap, Mangosteen, Rambutan, Banana and etc.     Yummy! Enjoy Ronnie!  Big belly! We special made a new sleeping platform for Ronnie so that she can seek shelter and hide when she encounter strange condition.   Aside from playing in her new environment, she also enjoys her nap time and snoozing on her sleeping platform.   She is simply a beautiful sun bear, and returns our smiles with an open mouth!   The chest mark of Ronnie similar to sun shaped with sprinkled with light black dots.  Susie, a 3 year old sub-adult female sun bear came to the centre on July 15, 2014. She was kept illegally as a pet by an individual who bought her from the Pensiangan Village in the Keningau District while she was still cub. He paid RM 200 for Susie. The owner's son then surrenders Susie to the Sabah Wildlife Department on June 2014. The previous owner fed her primarily rice, meat, honey and fruits. Susie now weights 23 kg.  Susie, one of our recent arrivals at the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre.   Susie can be short tempered and rather sensitive, and is quite aware when strangers are around. When food is present, especially her favourite varieties of fruits, she eats extremely fast.       Susie has a large and broad chest mark with a “meteor” at the middle of her body.  Chin, an adult female sun bear, arrived to BSBCC from Lok Kawi Wildlife Zoo on July 22, 2014. Chin is named after the primary school that she was rescued from in Tawau, a town in the southeast region of Sabah. Chin was kept at the primary school’s mini zoo for a very long time and was displayed illegally in a small metal cage. She was previously fed fruits, bread, and milk while she was kept at the school.  Introducing Chin, one of the latest arrivals to the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre!  Upon arrival we discovered that Chin is missing her left hind claw, which for a human would be the ring finger on the left hand.  Chin may look like a heavy and grumpy bear but she is actually a gentle and friendly bear.    We believe that Chin was never given any enrichment when she was kept at the mini zoo, which explains her curious behaviour towards enrichment activities. Here at the centre she is finding more and more activities to enjoy! Chin loves to tear things into pieces, such as dead logs and coconuts, and is a big fan of ginger leaves! She also loves playing in the water and enjoys splashing water out of the water basin onto her chest.        Tired of play...taking a rest first!  Her first time taste the durian fruit!  Showing her special long tongue!  "Growl" Alert with surrounding sound... Chin's chest mark  Well, these three new bears are doing well at BSBCC now! The bears slowly put their past behind them and are learning to live like wild bears again! Next step for the rescued sun bears will be integrating them with other bears, and slowly giving them access to the natural forest enclosure. The bears are in good hands with our caring staffs, and have been nurtured back to health. Throughout the day we provide different types of enrichment for the bears, and allow them the ability to freely explore, play, and forage. These activities stimulate their natural behaviour and help to prepare them for life back in the wild. Currently the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre is taking care of 35 rescued sun bears, and is delighted to care for these bears!
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