Veterinarians at the University of Tehran Veterinary School have euthanized a bear brought in with more than 100 shot gun pellets lodged in its body by hunters. The bear was sighted by farmers near Eslamabad Gharb in Kermanshah province, who said the animal was “not in proper health.” Keyvan Houshmand of the local Environmental Department told the Mehr news agency the animal was a young, female brown bear that farmers saw frequently circling because of general weakness and a right-paw injury. The bear was taken to the University of Tehran veterinary hospital where a CT scan (see at right) revealed more than 100 shotgun shells fired at close range into the bear’s head, neck, front legs and upper body. The bear had been partially blinded and had trouble finding food, thus becoming haggard and weak over time, Houshmand said. The veterinary team diagnosed the injuries as too serious and put the bear to sleep. Dr. Iman Memarian, a veterinarian at the Pardisan Wildlife Park clinic, said the pellets in the head and rib cage had caused blindness and paralysis of the right paw. “The penetration of many shells to the skull and the left side of the brain is the real cause of much damage to the brain,” he said.
