Bored Polar Bear Dances For People At The Zoo

Polar bears are some of the most popular animals that people enjoy seeing at the zoo. The only other animal that might beat them in a popularity contest are elephants. Part of it is due to the awe-inspiring sight of animals that we never get to see in our day to day lives. Part of it is also due to the amazing size of these animals when you are up close and personal with them.

Some of the polar bears that you see in captivity and at zoos can weight up to 900 or more pounds. There is a part of you that can imagine what a nearly 1000-pound animal looks like up close but you can’t really do it until you see that animal in person with your own eyes. A polar bear’s paw can be more than three times bigger than a human’s hand. It is an astoundingly big. However, at the zoo, polar bears need very specifically built enclosures. They have to have cold water that mimics the Arctic waters. They also need a lot of mental stimulation.

IF they don’t get that kind of stimulation they can end up doing the strange dance that this bear does. Some research we read calls this dance, “pacing.” Basically, it is a bored bear getting stuck in a kind of routine where they do the same thing over and over again. Some articles we read described pacing as similar to people who twiddle their thumbs or play with their hair. These days zoo keepers do a lot to keep polar bears stimulated with different colored toys, oil drums that mimic seals, windows into other animal enclosures and even digging pits.