Bear Mici

Bear Mici spent more than 20 years in a cage next to a restaurant in Slovenia. Once her owner declared he was willing to hand Mici over to FOUR PAWS, nothing stood in the way of her rescue anymore.

On November 25th, 2025, Mici was brought to her new home, BEAR SANCTUARY Arbesbach.  
Her first three weeks, she spent in quarantine, in an adaption enclosure. As is the case with most bears that spent many years in captivity, Mici will need a lot of time to get used to her new home and all the new impressions, and to gain trust

To avoid overwhelming her, Mici spent the initial period after quarantine in a small section of the outdoor enclosure. This allowed her to gradually gain experience, build confidence, and develop trust.

Mici is curious and she inspects toys, such as cardboard boxes filled with sawdust, with great interest and is rolling around in the sawdust with devotion. In the first few weeks in her new home, Mici slept outdoors. In the meantime, she has discovered the cave as a perfect place to relax and sleep.

Mici now has access to her entire enclosure. She is curious and inquisitive. It's a great joy to watch her inspect toys like cardboard boxes filled with sawdust, roll around in the sawdust with great enthusiasm, or play with an old volleyball. Every now and then, she gallops exuberantly through the enclosure before running back into the frozen pond.

Despite all the justified enthusiasm, the consequences of Mici's decades of unnatural living conditions are still evident. Years of ingrained stress-coping strategies, such as stereotypical pacing, cannot be discarded overnight. But it is motivating to see the progress Mici has already made in such a short time.