Outrage as Tennessee officials euthanize 13 adorable rescued bear cubs

A Tennessee conservation group has come under fire for euthanizing 13 bear cubs from a rescue center.

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) conducted the cull cull after it was discovered that one of the bears had contracted a disease known as Streptococcus gallinaceous infection.

In an effort to stop the spread, the agency euthanized many of the cubs who had shared a fence with the sick animal.

The bears – mentioned Patty, Pickles, Mac, Special Sauce, Homer, Diamond, Champ, Sundae, Peeps, Puff, Casper, Shadow and SuBearu Bear were all put to death on December 10.

But staff at the bear sanctuary are heartbroken and dismayed by the decision.

They say the cubs showed no symptoms and none were tested.

They also say the wildlife agency has not consulted them about their plans.

‘This is the most terrible news we have ever had to post. We are heartbroken and know you are too,” they said.

In a statement, the rescue center claimed that the agency had not even conducted any tests before euthanizing the bears

The agency defended the decision, stressing that it was carried out to prevent further spread of the disease.

The agency said in a statement that the move to euthanize the cubs was intended to prevent the spread of the disease and protect the state’s wild bear population.

A statement said: ‘Once an infectious pathogen has been introduced and established in a population of free-ranging wildlife, it is virtually impossible to control it and from a precautionary point of view it is better to prevent the introduction of disease than to introduce it after it has been identified, even if the risk of disease introduction is low.’

Since news of the deaths was shared by the rescue organization, they have been inundated with comments finding the news distressing.

One person said: ‘That’s devastating. I can’t say more for fear I might do more harm than good with what I have to say.

‘I am so very sorry to everyone at ABR. This must be terrible for all of you who cared for these cubs and nursed the sick one back to health.

“I’m just really too heartbroken to say anything more.”

Another added: ‘This is devastating news! Shame on the TWRA for not including you in the conversations.

“My heart is with you all, knowing how heartbroken you are, along with so many of us, at such a horrible decision by the TWRA.”

Another wrote: ‘This is awful. I don’t understand how they could euthanize those bears without testing them for the bacteria.

“While I understand their desire to protect the wild population, I feel this was a knee-jerk decision.”

Agency officials said they had consulted with the University of Tennessee’s agricultural and veterinary schools, but not with the actual rescue facility

The agency said in a statement that the move to euthanize the cubs was intended to prevent the spread of the disease and protect the state’s wild bear population.

The Tennessee wildlife agency responsible for the cull insists the center was consulted.

At a press conference, staff members regretted the drastic step, but defended it where necessary.

“We wish we could come to you with better news, but unfortunately today we are discussing one of the biggest challenges in wildlife management, which is managing at the population level rather than at the individual level,” said Jason Maxedon, Executive Director from TWRA. .

He added: “I was very frustrated to see them claim they were not involved in this conversation. The director of ABR was invited more than once to meet the veterinarians and ask questions.

‘A second meeting was offered when I spoke to her personally and the ABR chairman also refused to speak to me about this matter.

“We did everything we could to keep them involved, but because they didn’t agree with the decision, they didn’t want to talk to us about it.”