Last month in Russia, a circus act involving a live bear went horribly wrong when the wild animal suddenly barked and attacked its trainer in the middle of the show, as spectators, including children, watched. But thankfully, neither the trainer nor the bear were seriously injured.
The incident occurred at a traveling circus near a shopping mall on August 23. In video circulating online, trainer Sergei Prichinich is seen riding a 500-pound female bear named “Donut” on a hoverboard when she suddenly charges at him and knocks him to the ground. The bear then climbs on top of Prichinich and tries to bite him, at one point violently shaking him.
Fortunately, Prichinich managed to fend off the bear's attacks with his baton until another circus employee standing outside the cage reportedly poked it with a stick until it stopped attacking. TMZPrichinich then continued on with his show as if nothing had happened, but he ended his show with Donut before things could get any worse.
View this post on Instagram
It is not yet known whether the bear will continue performing with the circus or what will happen to it after the attack.
Nikita Mikhailov, who runs the Moretti Circus, praised Prichinich for how calmly and professionally he handled the situation. “This is an animal, and they can behave differently, they may not like something, they can express their emotions in this way,” Mikhailov explained. “Every trainer understands this.”
Regardless, many circuses have stopped using live animals in their shows due to public outcry from animal rights activists. Even Ringling Brothers stopped using live animals when it returned last year after a six-year hiatus.