APOPKA, Fla. — A young bear has found itself in a predicament after wandering into an animal sanctuary over the weekend.
The bear was discovered Saturday night in a tree over a tiger enclosure at the C.A.R.E. Foundation in Apopka.
A worker discovered the bear after he noticed the tigers in the enclosure underneath the tree kept staring up.
TRENDING NOW:
- Sanford boy dies after being hit by vehicle
- 'He was my life': Family pleads for justice after teen shot, killed near Daytona Beach school
- Michigan state trooper pulls over banana car, gives driver $20
- Florida man's body falls out of tree as crew dredges canal
On Monday morning, the bear was still high up in the tree, lounging on a branch, all while the tigers kept a watchful eye.
"It's petrified," said Christin Burford, director and founder of the Care Foundation. "It keeps looking down and the tiger keeps looking up and yeah, I think it wants to come down, but it's not too sure if that's a good idea."
By midafternoon, the bear slowly moved down the tree but was still too afraid to make an escape off into the woods.
Officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission came out to assess the situation and decided not to tranquilize the bear to get it out of the tree. They believe it will eventually come down when it is hungry or thirsty.
An FWC spokesperson said they will have to monitor the bear and its demeanor as it remains in the tree to determine if they need to come back out to remove it with a tranquilizer.
They do believe it is old enough to be out on its own once it comes down, but they didn't rule out that its mother could be looking for it.
DOWNLOAD: Free WFTV News & Weather Apps
Not near a TV? Click here to watch WFTV newscasts live
Cox Media Group
