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> I’m having a hard time finding any sympathy for this trainer.

A few thoughts from somebody who has kinda been there & done that...

I spent a few weeks back in the early 70s as a roustabout with the Shiner’s Circus and on one occasion the bear trainer needed some help getting a somewhat recalcitrant critter out of his cage. “All you have to do is get behind him and push” So I did and the bear went down the ladder. I also got to be on station at ringside to move props in and out of the ring during the act. The bears seemed to enjoy themselves and, while I kept situational awareness I also did not feel any unusual level of danger. All the bears were well treated and all were fitted with muzzles. I would not be surprised if the Russian bear was as well. In fact, I would not be surprised if the bear in question was not mad or angry at the trainer but decided to have a little fun, albeit at an inappropriate time.

My other chance to get up close and personal with a member of the Ursine family was a few years later when I wrasseld “Victor the Wrestling Bear” at the local Sportsman’s Show. Victor weighed in at around 650 lbs, same as the Russian bear and was also muzzled. We danced around for a while, almost exactly like the Russian bear did in the video and then Victor hit me with a forearm across my chest. The arm had so much padding and fur that it felt like a gentle gust of wind picked me up off my feet and sent me flying six feet across the ring. I was down on my knees when Victor came over and put his arms on my shoulders. In spite of this I was able to get to my feet and the match ended in a draw. I came away from the match with a cool story to tell and Victor was rewarded with a bottle of Pepsi which he chugged down in one long series of gulps. At the end of the video the other trainer is seen kicking the Russian bear trying to get him to stop. While it may look inhumane and got the bear’s attention I assure one and all that the bear was probably thinking “Is that the best you’ve got ?”

One further observation. While the trainers all respected their animals, Lions and Tigers and Bears, oh my, the only trainer who was outright scared schifless was the Chimp handler. They were totally unpredictable and could pick a grown man up by the scuff of the neck and throw him across the room. We were warned multiple times to be extra careful anytime we were around the chimps.