This Family Has Had Bears In Their Backyard For More Than 91 Years And What They Do With Them Will Surprise You!

 Having pets around is great for health and to keep things around the house light and peppy. Dogs make great pets, sometimes cats do too. People keep birds, tortoise, and fishes as pets. Some people go out of the league a little and have spiders, chameleons, lizards, and the likes as pets. But then there are those daring few, who become one with nature by keeping wolves, tigers, and lions with them. The loving nature of these wild animals shows that even though they are out in the ruggedness, they are capable of affection and beneath all the hard exterior, crave for attention.

However, you might not have yet heard of people keeping a big brown wild bear in their backyard and even if you had, what this family has in their backyard would defeat all of your conceptions of ideal pets.

Pets Are Fam

Pets are the best companions; they get super excited when you are in a good mood and silently listen to your grievances, being your best cuddle partners. They become such integral part of our daily lives that it is hard to imagine an existence without them. They are like a family member who is always there, always waiting for you to give them love and attention and reciprocate it. There are people who keep generations of animal families in their families. It’s like families of two different species are connected for generations and that bond is more special than any other. This is true for the family in this story too. 

Peculiar Pet Choices

So the people who are into exotic pets are of the opinion that dogs and cats as pets are completely obvious (and we do not agree with them) but we gotta accept that there is a slightly higher cool quotient involved when people keep an animal like the Bearded Dragon as a pet. Then there is the Sugar Glider, also called sugar baby which can, well really stink but people do keep them because they are cute. Why people keep Tarantulas, Hissing Cockroaches, skunks or a Burmese Python as pets? There is no knowing, maybe they (literally) like living on the edge!Okay, the hedgehog is kind of a cute choice but these exotic pets come with exotic attitudes too.

Exotic Demands Of Exotic Pets

So the Kinkajou could pass as a crossbreed between a monkey a raccoon and a weasel but it is related to none and the thing is they don’t like noises, so for the noisy humans, this is not the animal to go for, because if perturbed it is capable of making your house a mess. Fennec Fox looks like it could be a Pokemon but for one thing- they abhor captivity and they do are not really fans of humans. The list does not stop here, there are more quirky and peculiar choices of pets that people make which are at the least, confounding and the only question that comes to the mind when we see them is, “why though?”

Cute But Not So Much

Wallabies are like a baby, baby kangaroos but a lot more finicky, bouncy and require a lot of space. And even though Squirrel Monkeys might appear to be the ideal pet they tend to fight for the alpha status, so if you are not careful enough, they will be the ones petting you. These animals can be dangerous but not nearly as much as the one which this family kept in the backyard. How would you react if you woke up and found a bear in your backyard? While trying to hold your breath, you would probably collect all your belongings and make a run from your front door. But this family wakes up to a yard full of bears, daily and they don’t seem to mind it much.

Not So Teddy Bears

Brown Bears are usually called grizzlies, because, well even though they are dangerous they look potentially real cuddly, there’s where the term ‘grizzly bear’ comes from. They are usually found in most places in Europe, the US, and Canada and prefer the deep forest habitat and mostly like feeding on berries and fruits. However, if they are too hungry, male bears are known to eat even their young ones (yeah, extreme). They can weigh up to 700 pounds and the females can weigh 350 pounds. Why are you being given facts about bears? Because a family in Florida kept them in their backyard. Not just one or two or even five.

Importance Of Living In Wild

Wildlife belongs in the wild that is what most humans believe. But it is also humans who are responsible for the loss and depletion of wildlife. We have grazed down forests to built houses and malls and consequently, a lot of animals have lost their natural habitat. So is it really wrong for a family to keep bears in their backyard? The more important question is how did they even come to raising bears and how did they tame them, if at all? The story is of a family in Florida and it goes back almost a century- the first time a bear came in their family. Since then, the bear family in their backyard has only grown.

Bearadise Ranch

The first bear in the Welde family was introduced in 1946. It has been 91 years now and it is now a tradition for the current family members to be taking care of the bears. The Bearadise Ranch in Florida is a huge open space, suitable for bears’ habitat. Till now the Welde family has provided a home to polar bears, black bears and grizzly bears in the last 90 years. Currently, it is Monika Welde who is the President, Owner and Senior Trainer at the Bearadise Ranch. She says, “My bears are a part of my family,” and after seeing their pictures together, we are left in no doubt that she treats them all lovingly. 

A Tragedy Too Soon

Monika is actually Jhonny III Welde’s wife, which sort of made her an outsider in the family. The family tradition of having the bears became dicey when quite recently Jhonny III, the caretaker and the patriarch of the family died of a heart attack just after he turned 60. Monika said, “I know the bears miss him, they do notice his absence.” She continued, “but our son and I decided to continue the family legacy and go on for my husband.” Monika decided to not let anything happen to the Ranch and she along with her son Jhonny IV who is 27 years of age, decided to take the responsibility.

Hand Raised 14 of ’em!

The Bear Ranch is Jhonny IV’s inheritance and Monika has been taking care of these bears for 37 years now, but how do they manage it? Monica has been in the Welde family for 37 years and she has handraised the 14 bears who currently live in the Bearadise Ranch. When asked if she prefers bears more than humans she laughed and said, “Yeah, sometimes I do.” Well, there is got to be something really interesting and inspiring about these bears. She informed that “Over the course of 91 years some bears have been born in the family, some have been adopted.” 

The Heir

Monika, in an interview, said that “My son has been raised with the bears, he has been interacting with them since he was a child,” and Jhonny IV went on to confirm saying that, “I have been around the bear since I was 3 years old… They are like family to me, I see them every day so they’re just my siblings basically.” He told his routine, “I go out and take care of the bears, feed them, clean them, interact with them a little bit, you know, talk to them.” He further told that they “let them out in the habitat so that they can run around, play… be bears.”

Missing The Teacher

The unexpected and sudden death of Jhonny III left his son in a lurch. He emotionally accepted, “My Dad was my best friend, he taught me everything I know. We were extremely close and I plan on carrying on his legacy for as long as I’m alive.” He went on, “My mum is also very close to the bears, they are her family, for my mom and dad they are everything to them. She loves the bears very much. I am very proud of her for carrying on my dad’s legacy with me, it’s not easy but we are getting through it.” The way the bears look happy in their company, it can be safely assumed that they are doing great. Now it is time to meet the 14 beary beasts.

Time To Meet The Grizzlies

The oldest bears in the Welde family are 23 years old and their youngest ones are 5. This is Kenai. He is a 5-year-old male grizzly bear. He was adopted by the Welde family about 3 years ago and he is NOT full grown yet. Imagine if he is this big right now, how huge he will be in half a decade! He loves attention and honey. He is a sloppy kisser and likes to lick honey when it is drizzled on his paw but it is never enough for him because he is always craving for the new bottle. Since he loves attention, Monika makes sure to visit him daily.

Communication Is The Key

“Our daily interaction with our bears is communication- loving, petting, they thrive on that physical contact.” However, she continued, “We never forget that they are bears, they are bears first, even though we share our lives with them, we respect them for what they are and we want them to live like a bear and that is why we built the Bearadise Ranch,”- Monika said. The bears get all the diet they need, they are healthy and happy and very comfortable with the Welde family.

Lucy And Tootsie

Lucy and Tootsie are 8-year-old female bears and the really cute bear on top of the stone is Misha. She is one of Kenai’s sister and is 5 years old. Jhonny IV said, “To us they are very safe. They are not keen on strangers, which is understandable, we have raised them so, to us they are very very sweet.” The fact that the bears adapted to and love the Welde family is the proof that no matter how strong or dangerous an animal is, it always responds to love and attention and Monika and Jhonny IV made sure there was no dearth of that.

Fred And Ginger

These are Fred and Ginger, they are both 23 years old- European Brown bears. Jhonny IV said, “We had both of their parents and their siblings and when they are born they could fit in the palm of your hand. My mom hand raised both of these from cubs.” Fred weighs around 800 pounds and Ginger weighs 400 pounds. A full grown male healthy bear weighs around 700 pounds and female around 350 pounds. Fred’s weight is the proof that the family is taking good care of the bears. 

All Natural

It is quite astounding how something which is so small at birth can grow up to be potentially one of the most destructive forces in the world. Monika Welde said, “Here at Bearadise Ranch our bears have a natural habitat, where they can come out and enjoy, they have a spring fed pond, we have pools, grass, trees. My husband and I thought that it would be nice for the bears to just live like a bear.” What’s respect worthy is that the Welde family has not kept the bears in confinement or limited spaces. The bears have ample natural space.

Licenced To Take In Bears

Adopting bears is not as easy as adopting a dog or a cat. The Welde family is licensed to adopt bears. By converting their backyard into a bear friendly environment, the Welde family have proven their worth to be able to take care of these wild beasts. Keeping animals in confinement means robbing them of their natural habitat and restricting their movement. Welde family have especially gone out of their way to make the bears feel one with nature. They also take care to provide them with a good diet and loving environment.

Trainers

The Weldes’ are certified professional trainers who have trained their bears over the years. What’s impressive is that the bears have responded as well. If Monika or Jhonny IV ask them for a kiss, the take their tongues out or pout and kiss their lovely caretakers. Jhonny IV has also trained them to control their food habits. They understand basic commands like stay, sit, stand. It is like having a big bear dog, who is a ‘good boy’. But understanding these basic commands is not the coolest things about these bears. Chances are you have seen them somewhere.

Disney Stars

Since the time Welde family started keeping bears, many of them have appeared in various Walt Disney movies. So if you come across a bear in a Disney movie, remember that it is not special effects or a random shot of some wild bear, chances are it is one of the Grizzlies from the Bearadise Ranch. The bears have also been trained for various TV shows. Their learning and understanding have really make it easy for directors to shoot them but Monika or Jhonny are always present to command them. 

Never Any Incident

“My bears have never attacked anybody, we never had any incident with the public or with ourselves,” said Monika Welde. It is amazing how the mother and the son got these wild beasts to love and respect all humans even though they are not comfortable with strangers. All their food, mate and love requirements are fulfilled in the Bearadise Ranch so they need not attack any human or other animals for that matter. But Monika herself, do have some scars. 

Bears After All

In response to the question whether she herself has been attacked by any of her bears or not, Monika said, “I do have a few scars on me from their claws, that is natural, they are very powerful animals.” However, she went on to say, “They’ll lick us and kiss us and hug on us and touch us. I have worked with bears for 37 years and I have all my fingers so it’s a good track record.” Not taking the marks giving these animals as a sign of their savagery and being practical about it what has kept Monika keep going. 

Bears Shouldn’t Be In Human Care?

When Monika was asked to comment on some people’s belief that bears should not be in human care, she replied, “I am sure there’s people out there, that say you shouldn’t have a bear in human care, they should be in the wild. What do I have to say to people like that? First of all the wild is disappearing, There are so many people on this planet, we are taking all the resources from the animals, all their habitat is shrinking.” All of what Monika is saying is true, however, she went on to make more valid points.

Better Off With Me

Monika continued, “6 out of 8 species of bears on the planet are threatened and endangered. Are my bears safer, here with me than in the wild? I would say so. I have spent thirty-seven years of my life with bears and as long as I am physically able to, I will work with the bears, till I grow very old. And I feel very confident that they will be taken care of after I am gone. We didn’t see it ending with my husband’s death, so we are going to continue the Welde family legacy and keep the Bearadise Ranch thriving.”

Goofing Around

The bears have ample natural space in the Bearadise Ranch, they also have accessibility to pool so they can be found rolling around in the grass after a dip in water or simply goofing with each other. However, seeing Jhonny and Monika every day and playing and spending time with them is the highlight of their day. The love, attention, and cuddle they get from these members of their family is irreplaceable. Some people might object to this domestication of wild animals but the truth is the Welde family doesn’t force it on them, the bears respond to their love.

Wonderous

Surprising right? It might seem like an easy an light task to be looking after a family of bears but imagine having to feed and bathe 400-1000 pound creatures daily, it is a humungous task and a lot for just two people to take care of. Jhonny IV actually gave up an academic career just to look after the bears. For him, the family legacy holds more importance and he plans to take full responsibility of Bearadise Ranch even after his mother.

In times when humans are clearing out forests and killing bears for their skins, the Welde family has taken upon them to save and nurture as many bears as they physically can.