Today is World Wildlife Day and your urgent help is needed to free the #SochiBears

Since they were tiny cubs, these two bears have been held in captivity in a restaurant in Sochi, Russia. Kept in filthy, cramped cages these defenceless bears are fed cake and chips by guests and even made to drink beer. Instead of grass beneath their paws, home is a concrete bunker behind a steel fence.

After years of neglect, poor diet and abuse, the bears are in urgent need of veterinary care and attention. We know that one of the bears is completely blind.

We are currently working with Big Hearts Foundation to rescue the bears from their misery and move them to the space and freedom of the Romanian Bear Sanctuary.

This week a court order comes into effect, making the local Ministry of Natural Resources responsible for seizing the bears from the current owner. We will then urge the Ministry to take the bears somewhere safe – away from the misery and filth – giving us the change to arrange a journey to the safety of the Romanian Bear Sanctuary.

The more people that sign the petition, the greater the chance we have to change the lives of these bears forever. With space for the bears at the Sanctuary right now, this may be the best chance they will ever have for that freedom.

When you sign the petition, please spread the word on Twitter and Facebook and use the hashtag #SochiBears.

Together we can give these bears a life they have never experienced – a life free from suffering and pain.

Please take action today. Thank you.