Baloo was born at Tote-em-in Zoo in Wilmington, North Carolina, along with his brother Teddy. They were the offspring of Luna Bear, a Himalayan black bear who lived at Tote-em-in Zoo.
A couple frequented the zoo to visit with Luna Bear and over time got to know the owners of the small roadside zoo. After Luna Bear gave birth to Teddy and Baloo, the couple helped care for the two cubs. When the cubs turned two months old, the owners of the zoo decided to send Teddy and Baloo to an auction house in Ohio, where they faced an unknown destiny. To spare the bears from being separated, they were bought by this well-meaning couple and donated to a zoo in a nearby town.
Unfortunately, after a few months at that zoo, the zoo owners decided they did not want the cubs anymore. They gave the couple an ultimatum: take them or leave them and they will be sent to auction, so the couple decided to adopt the bears and provide them with a home.
A few years later, the couple also took in two more bears, Albert and Cherry Bomb. Around 2011, unforeseen circumstances arose. The couple struggled to provide adequate care for the bears, but when it came to a point that the couple was no longer able to provide a proper home for the bears, they reached out to Bobbi for help.
Through a generous grant and an outpouring of support from Lions Tigers & Bears' members and supporters, Bobbi and the Lions Tigers & Bears Rescue Team was able to travel to North Carolina to rescue Albert, Cherry Bomb, Teddy and Baloo in late May 2014.
The bear family of four now call Lions Tigers & Bears home and they never have to face an uncertain future again.
