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Dear World,

Right now in the oat fields of Russia, a mother brown bear comes out of the forest to feed. The bear needs the oat harvest, rich in protein and fat, to survive its upcoming hibernation. Tragically, something else lies in wait for the bear than just a good meal.

A shot rings out and the bear falls to the ground, victim to Russia's annual bear hunt which will leave 3,000 to 4,000 bear cubs killed or orphaned this year alone. When winter comes, mother bears will be lured from hibernation by barking dogs and then killed, leaving its cubs alone in a dark den with no chance of survival.

You are their only hope.

If the cubs are not rescued, they die alone or end up as "pets" or circus props

If the cub is one of the lucky few, it may be rescued and brought to the nearby Orphan Bear Project run by world-renowned scientist Valentin Pazhetnov.

Since 1995, IFAW has funded Pazhetnov's innovative techniques for raising and rehabilitating bear cubs. Since that time, more than 100 Russian bear cubs have been successfully released into the wild.

The rescued cubs are bottle-fed warm milk formula five times a day, massaged after each feeding, and warmed with special carpets. Voices are never used while working with the cubs and human contact is kept to a minimum, enabling the cubs to successfully return to the wild without becoming tame.

The more contributions we receive today, the more cubs we can save!

In many places in Europe, brown bears are extinct in the wild. The bears being hunted in Russia are from the last healthy brown bear population in the world.

Most bear cubs when rescued weigh only one or two pounds and cannot survive without their mothers. But with your help, these tiny handfuls of fur will grow up to become healthy bears -- eventually released into Russia's protected forests.

Together, we can make a real difference for these cubs and other animals around the world. We have already successfully advocated for a ban on den hunting in three Russian districts and we are pushing hard for federal anti-cruelty legislation in the Russian Parliament.

Fred O'Regan

President and CEO - IFAW

See how orphaned bear cubs are rescued. Play video.