ALPINE, Calif.— For an animal whose primary goals in life were simply getting something to eat and maybe taking a snooze up a tree, a black bear now known as Meatball has shown an uncanny ability to influence his world and the people in it.
When he started boldly roaming the hilly neighborhoods of Glendale, La Crescenta and Montrose, homeowners were initially charmed but then increasingly alarmed.
When wildlife officials hit him with tranquilizer darts and relocated him deeper into the woods, he thwarted their efforts by finding his way back to suburbia.
And now that he is a guest of an animal sanctuary in this mountainous hamlet 40 miles east of San Diego, he once again is shaping his environment — this time in a way that has engendered approval, not alarm.
Bobbi Brink, founder of the Lions Tigers & Bears sanctuary, explained the Meatball phenomenon in a letter to supporters. "I never dreamed we would take in a 'celebrity,'" she wrote, only half in jest.
With the arrival of Meatball in August, Brink and her decade-old sanctuary suddenly received a level of attention that reached beyond San Diego County and outside the tight-knit network of animal sanctuaries in the U.S.
After all, not many other exotic animals can claim coverage from "The Rachel Maddow Show" on MSNBC, Britain's Sky News and the San Diego Jewish World, among other outlets. Fewer still can lay claim to their own Twitter account.
Fundraising, special events and paying visitors at Lions Tigers & Bears have increased. Christmas ornaments showing Meatball with a Santa cap were particularly popular.
Even a small flap over a plan to raise funds through the sale of clippings from Meatball's fur did little to slow the boom. "I should get in trouble more often," Brink said.
When the California Department of Fish and Game first called Brink about housing Meatball, the residency was supposed to be temporary, while negotiations were underway for a permanent den in a 720-acre bear sanctuary near Denver.
But that plan has apparently been halted by a Colorado rule that prohibits keeping wild-caught bears in sanctuaries. Unless things change, Meatball has found his permanent home.
Meatball has gained weight and is now about 600 pounds. He isn't bothered by the honking goose (Juanita) and quacking duck (Daffy, naturally) outside his enclosure. Still, he has not taken kindly to his nearest neighbor: Sugar Bear, another recent arrival. Bear-to-bear adjustment can take years, Brink said.
Like several other males at Lions Tigers & Bears, Meatball has been neutered to make him more manageable. His gonads were sent to the San Diego Zoo for dissection and research.
Brink, who grew up in eastern San Diego County, got the idea of an animal sanctuary in 1990 when she and her husband were living in Texas and thinking of opening a restaurant. Scanning newspaper classified ads, Brink saw numerous listings from people looking to sell or buy exotic animals.
"My jaw dropped," she said.
The couple scuttled the restaurant idea, and Brink's life's work began. Lions Tigers & Bears dates from Sept. 2, 2002, when Brink returned to Alpine with Raja and Natasha, Bengal tigers whose owners were eager to find them better lodging than the concrete-floored pen where they had been kept.
A decade later, the population consists of 55 animals from 17 species, including four Bengal tigers, one leopard, three bobcats, three African lions (Bakari and his sisters Suri and Jillian), one African serval (a slender, spotted, medium-size cat), a mountain lion and a Presa Canario canine named Hobie. There are also horses, a pot-bellied pig, two llamas and various fowl.
Standing by the enclosure where Bakari is sitting majestically and occasionally roaring to display his male dominance, Brink explains the philosophy of Lions Tigers & Bears.
"We don't buy, breed, sell or trade animals," she said. ''We strictly rescue and provide a lifetime home."
California has some of the tightest regulations of any state about private ownership of exotic animals. Lions Tigers & Bears is regularly visited by state inspectors looking at the enclosures, the safety precautions and the health of the animals.
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