Happy Birthday to Bart the Bear

Bart was born in a US zoo on January 19, 1978. His destiny was not to live out his 23 1/2 years in the unchanging confinement of a zoo, but to see the world and become a beloved member of a human family.

He came to Doug and Lynne Seus as a 5 pound bundle and grew to 1,500 pounds, standing 9 1/2 feet tall. His long film career took he and his family from the Austrian/Italian Alps to the wilderness of Alaska, all over the US and Canada and finally to the stage of the 1998 Academy Awards. He loved to be in the spotlight and relished the applause and cheers of the film crew much more than he did his salmon and blueberries.

Bart the Bear¹s TM legacy went far beyond his film career. He is the "spokesbear" for the Animal Cancer Center at Colorado State University but his greatest role was as ambassador for the Vital Ground Foundation. Vital Ground has procured threatened wildlife habitat along the Rocky Mountain front and on Kodiak Island. Because of Bart¹s life in captivity many of his wild brothers are able to roam free.

Bart is survived by his human family Doug, Lynne, Clint, Jed and Sausha and his bear brother "Tank". His ol¹ swimming hole will still be filled with love and joy as the circle of life has just brought the Seus¹ 2 orphaned grizzly cubs. The cub¹s mother was shot 200 miles north of Anchorage. These babies miraculously survived alone for over 2 days when the Alaska Fish and Game rescued them. The little boy cub will carry on Bart¹s legacy and will be his namesake, although until he grows up he is being called "Little Bart". The little girl cub is called Honey. These cubs will follow in Bart¹s giant footsteps to bring the wondrous spirit of the bear into many lives and hearts.