The bear was trapped in a cage for years but was rescued by the animal organization PETA in 2020.
Here’s an update on how Dillan has been doing in recent years after his release.
“This is absolutely one of the worst cases I’ve ever seen,” said Debbie Metzler of the animal welfare organization PETA about the bear’s medical condition after all those years in the cage, according to Pennlive.
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In the town of Millmont, Pennsylvania (USA), the discovery made headlines and in early 2020 led to massive discussions on social media.
The bear was kept on a concrete floor in a small cage. For several years – perhaps even a whole decade – he had been part of the Union County Sportsmen’s Club, an association where people of all ages engage in various types of physical activities, such as shooting and hunting, among others.
The bear Dillan was trapped in a cage. And he had become extremely large.
The bear became too heavy in the small cage
After all those years without physical activity, the sedentary bear gained a massive amount of weight, as you can see in the photos.
In early 2020, the animal protection organization PETA managed to get him out of there. Then he had to go to an animal shelter in Colorado.
A representative of the shooting club was said to have commented that because of Dillan, the bear “generations of children have been taught to interact with animals,” according to Pennlive.
Hollywood star behind the rescue
It all started when Hollywood actor Alec Baldwin wrote a letter to the state governor, Tom Wolf. Baldwin described how Dillan had been neglected all those years.
After nine months of negotiations, PETA managed to get the bear out of the cage – and now, he is being taken care of at The Wild Animal Sanctuary in Keenesburg, Colorado. At first, they were afraid the bear would be in such bad shape that he wouldn’t survive the journey – but he did! And now, animal lovers around the world hope that his treatment at the animal shelter will help him feel better.
It’s been over three years now since Dillan was rescued.
A year ago, PETA provided an update on the case of the formerly enclosed bear. That’s when we got to see the following video showing him now living his best life.
“Dillan is no longer the lonely bear who once lived in solitude with pain,” said Brittany Peet, director of the PETA Foundation for Captive Animal Law Enforcement, in a statement.
Thanks to PETA’s efforts, he now has an enormous natural habitat to explore and friendships to cherish.
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