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Animal welfare organisation Four Paws has launched a petition after Slovenian authorities blocked the rescue efforts of four bears trapped in tiny cages, with three used as restaurant decoration.

The animal rights NGO described the situation as dire and called for urgent action to save the four bears, named Masha, Mici, Mitko and Tim, with three kept at restaurants and the fourth at a private zoo in Slovenia.

Footage released by Four Paws showed the bleak reality faced by the bears, who remain confined in small, barren concrete cages with minimal furnishings and no opportunities for enrichment.

All four bears are reportedly infested with parasites, suffering from painful teeth worn down by gnawing on cage bars and enduring wounds caused by the harsh concrete floors.

Professor Djuro Huber from the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Zagreb, Croatia, condemned the conditions in which the four bears are kept, stating that they are living in deplorable circumstances.

SHOTLIST:
1.The video shows bears Felix and Mascha that Slovenian authorities blocked from being rescued and transferred to a sanctuary in Arbesbach, Lower Austria State, Austria. An authorities blocked from being rescued and transferred to a sanctuary in Arbesbach, Lower Austria State, Austria;
2.The video shows bear Mitko that Slovenian authorities blocked from being rescued and transferred to a sanctuary in Arbesbach, Lower Austria State, Austria.

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