Bears in the air: DHL flies two Himalayan brown bears to their new homes

• The two highly-endangered bears are settling in Al Ma'wa for Nature and Wildlife in Jordan after a temperature-controlled multimodal journey from Islamabad
• DHL took care of the customs clearance and logistics, while global animal welfare organization FOUR PAWS provided animal expertise

SINGAPORE - Media OutReach - 14 January 2021 - Bubloo and Suzie, two 17-year old highly-endangered Himalayan brown bears, took the flight of a lifetime and have safely arrived at Al Ma'wa for Nature and Wildlife in Jordan. After months of extensive preparation, which included health checks, planning of routes, customs clearance and training for the bears, DHL Global Forwarding and FOUR PAWS, a global animal welfare organization, brought Bubloo and Suzie to their new home on 17 December.

"Being able to leverage our logistics expertise, temperature-controlled capabilities and customs clearance solutions to help animals, such as Bubloo and Suzie, relocate brings another perspective to our mission of "Connecting People, Improving Lives". The successful move, like so many others that we have done, might have required more elaborate planning but brought the teams so much satisfaction. We are glad that the bears are settling in their new home in time to ring in the New Year," said Kelvin Leung, CEO, DHL Global Forwarding Asia Pacific.

The freight forwarding specialist of Deutsche Post DHL Group managed the logistics of flying the animals, while veterinary specialists from FOUR PAWS, who accompanied them on the same flight, provided insights to make the journey comfortable for the bears. DHL chauffeured Bubloo and Suzie, weighing 120 kilograms and 90 kilograms respectively, to the Islamabad International Airport in custom-built cages that adhere to the International Air Transport Association's regulations. From there, they boarded their flight to Jordan with a short layover in Doha.

"We are pleased to report that, after their first-class flight experience that ended at the Queen Alia International Airport, Bubloo and Suzie are thriving in their new home. The months of detailed planning with DHL in coordination with local Pakistan officials and the financial help of American businessman Eric S. Margolis, have paid off as the bears begin to build their new lives at Al Ma'wa for Nature and Wildlife, a sanctuary run by the Princess Alia Foundation and FOUR PAWS," said Dr. Amir Khalil, FOUR PAWS veterinarian and leader of the rescue mission.

On 30 November, DHL and FOUR PAWS relocated Kaavan, also known as the world's loneliest elephant, from the Marghazar Zoo in Islamabad to the Cambodia Wildlife Sanctuary. In previous years, DHL successfully helped four grown endangered Ussuri brown bears travel across continents from Japan to England, and sent two giant pandas on a climate-neutral journey from China to Finland.

Note to editors:

Kaavan, a 36-year old Asian elephant, was the first-ever adult elephant that was flown out of Pakistan. Here's a behind-the-scenes look at the logistics that moved the Asian elephant, which was kept captive for decades in a Pakistan Zoo, to a Cambodian wildlife sanctuary to live out its days in comfort and good company.

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