ALPINE (CBS 8) - Two Himalayan black bears have a new habitat at the Lions Tigers and Bears Sanctuary.
Bear brothers Teddy and Baloo are among the latest additions to Lions, Tigers & Bears in Alpine, where they are settling in to their new digs and amazing the sanctuary's visitors.
“It's a way for them to live out their lives in dignity. They have a couple of acres, rocks, trees, grass. They got it made in the shade,” said Bobbi Brink with Lions, Tigers & Bears Sanctuary.
These Himalayan black bears, also known as Moon Bears because of the crescent-shaped white marking on their chests, also have plenty of admirers. Some visitors even had a chance to feed them Thursday morning.
The two bears survived a very difficult past. They were captive-born and bred and kept in cinder block pits where they were on display at a roadside zoo in North Carolina.
"To think that a beautiful bear like that would be in a small cement cage. It's just horrific,” said visitor Dewayne Taylor
Life is now much sunnier for these Moon Bears, who were rescued at the same time as another sibling pair - a brother and sister.
Cherry Bomb and Albert are grizzlies who were also victims of the exotic animal trade. These bears, now embarking on a new life.
These bears are just a few of the 69 rescued animals currently living at Lions, Tigers & Bears.