Polar Bear Turns Purple After Medication

AP ^ | Thu, Jul 24, 2003

[presidio9]

Paint the polar bear purple and the crowds will come.

That seems to be the lesson a zoo in Mendoza has learned, after its 23-year-old bear Pelusa was sprayed with an antiseptic spray that turned her normally white fur a dark shade of violet.

The unusual color — a temporary side effect of the treatment for dermatitis — has turned the aging bear into a minor celebrity in Argentina and prompted thousands of schoolchildren and tourists to make their way to the Jardin Zoologico de Mendoza in the western city beneath the snow-capped Andes.

"We never thought she would get all the attention she's now receiving," veterinarian Alberto Duarte told The Associated Press when reached by telephone in Mendoza, 640 miles west of Buenos Aires. "We've had calls from Spain and e-mails from around the world asking about the bear."

The newspaper Los Andes, of Mendoza, reported that Pelusa's new look has turned her into the zoo's most popular attraction, surpassing giraffes Tommy and Belen.

The spray applied to Pelusa is similar to one used by pediatricians to treat children's scraped knees or lab technicians to stain micro-organisms for examination under microscopes.

Pelusa, a 395-pound bear has been temporarily placed in a cage because of the treatment, and is separated from her mate, Arturo. She is also kept back a distance from the public.

The separation, Duarte said, was needed to keep Pelusa from taking her regular plunge into an icy pool of water at the polar bear compound. That would have washed away the medicine prematurely, he said.

The isolation has not seemed to bother Pelusa but it has left Arturo, a 16-year-old male almost double the weight of his mate, a bit grumpy, Duarte said.

After all, the two — who have been together for years — have been kept apart for 20 days.

"The only one a bit anxious is Arturo, but they'll be back together soon," Duarte said. "Pelusa's condition is improving and in one more week we will stop with the antiseptic and she'll again be able to take her normal baths."

He added that once Pelusa begins to swim again, "she will lose her violet color" quickly.

Until then, though, she'll have to endure the crowds peering into her pen and possibly even the occasional paparazzi looking to snap a shot or two.

[presidio9]

I can't post pictures from this machine, but there are some really good ones accompanying the linked article.

[sine_nomine]

I never saw a purple bear
I never hope to see one
But this one thing is very sure
I'd rather see than be one.

[Pikamax]

[4mycountry]

[4mycountry]

Oh dear god, see #4. Great minds...

[Jonah Hex]

"You lookin' at me? YOU lookin' at ME?"

[Charles Henrickson]

Come over to this thread--where we have seven pictures of Pelusa--and give us your best captions!

Caption the purple polar bear

[mattdono]

Actually, I have read that Polar bears fur/hair is clear and, ironically, their skin is black.

I don't know if this is really true, but that is what I heard.

[Charles Henrickson]

The Purple Polar Bear
(Reflections on a Mythic Beast
Who's Quite Remarkable, at Least)

I never saw a purple polar bear;
I never thought I'd catch one;
But now on FR, as a scroller there,
I've got one I can caption!

[I still care]

Ah, yes. Grand old gentian violet. I spend half my youth painted purple by my mom.

My cousin had a scalp condition for which the doctor recommended gentian violet. We were fascinated by her purple hair and scalp...

[Lando Lincoln]

I suspect some goofy Minnesota Vikings fans are lining up for this stuff about now.......

[presidio9]

What for? They hate Bears.

[ZviTheWise]

Another senseless Argentinian purple polar bear tragedy.

[presidio9]

FREE PELUSA!!!

[OldFriend]

Instead of a purple diamond, Kobe should have bought his wife a purple polar bear.

[Bikers4Bush]

It's true. The fur conducts light to the skin and the skin absorbs what little heat it gets from it.

[mattdono]

Thanks for the clarification. I thought that I had heard that on a reputable show (Discovery, I think?). Sounds pretty cool.

[talleyman]

The unbearable purpleness of being?

[lilylangtree]

Must have the same ingredient as the old fashion mouth medicine called "purple violet" that was used to coat the inside of people's mouth and turned the inside purple.

[Semper Paratus]

Thought the female bears would dig the 'punk' look.