200,000+ Sign Petition To Move 'Sad Bear' To Better Life In Canada
Social media has dubbed Arturo, a polar bear living in an Argentinian zoo, the "world's saddest animal" and more than 200,000 people have signed an online petition asking that he be moved to a "better life" in Canada.
Photos of Arturo, 29, looking distressed and lying flat out on his stomach that circulated online have prompted the petition. The bear's enclosure mate, Pelusa, died two years ago, the BBC says.
According to The Telegraph, "Arturo is currently being kept in a cramped, concrete enclosure at Argentina's Mendoza Zoo, where temperatures can climb to 104F (40C), with just a 20-inch-deep pool for him to keep cool."
Even former House Speaker and GOP presidential candidate Newt Gingrich has gotten into the act, posting a video on his Facebook page urging people to sign the petition. However, as The Washington Post notes wryly, the only thing missing from the Gingrich post "was a link to the actual Change.org petition."