Not sure if this has been posted before. Disgusting story.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/10/20/wbear20.xml


Bear 'hunted' by King of Spain was drunk on vodka
By Adrian Blomfield in Moscow
Last Updated: 8:23am BST 20/10/2006


King Juan Carlos of Spain was at the centre of an embarrassing scandal yesterday after it emerged he shot a domestic bear that had been fed honey-laced vodka to slow its reactions during a recent hunting trip in Russia.

The governor of Vologda, a region in northern Russia, ordered an investigation after a letter recounting the death of Mitrofan the bear was leaked to the Russian press.

In a letter to governor Vyacheslav Pozgalev, the deputy head of the region's hunting grounds conservation department deplored Mitrofan's shooting in late August as "abominable".

"The party sacrificed a good-humoured and jolly bear who had been kept at a farm in the village of Novlenskoye," Sergey Starostin wrote.

"The bear was put into a cage and … the party made him drunk with vodka mixed with honey and pushed him into the field. Quite naturally, the massive drunken animal became an easy target. His Majesty Juan Carlos killed Mitrofan with one shot."

Despite accusations in Russian newspapers, there was no evidence that the king was aware that Mitrofan was inebriated. The Spanish embassy in Moscow declined to comment. It is understood that the governor was reluctant to order an investigation, but was forced to after failing to gag Mr Starostin who alleged there had been similar cases in the region. Yesterday, he said: "I've been hunting for many years and I think that a situation when an animal is given no chance is immoral."

There were fears yesterday for the future of Maya, a female bear who shared Mitrofan's cage at the Woodgrouse hunting estate. Activists believe she is being prepared as an easy target for the next dignitary who wants to hunt in the region.

It is unclear whether the king committed an illegal act – shooting a wild bear with a license is permitted, but killing tame bears could contravene the law. Giving a bear vodka in Russia is not illegal.

" Giving a bear vodka in Russia is not illegal" Well he died happy ! ..Sadly we hear of more and more 'canned' hunts and it certainly hurts us hunters as a group .

King Juan Carlos just released a statement saying that he didn't shoot a bear on his trip to Russia.

As I recall, Jim Corbett recounted a similar story involving a certain trophy tiger, a small waterhole, and a bottle of opium used to keep said tiger in the vicinity of said waterhole. It was the same situation where a visiting potentate was expected to bag an exceptional trophy; word came down from on high that the local forester had better put the visitor on an exceptional tiger. The forester, being no fool, did what he had to do.

There's a moral about vanity in here somewhere.

It may offend some of you but I recall a story to the effect that Jimmy Carter offended the Japanese when he declined to fish for stocked trout. I gave him a gold star for that one...

Brent

quote:

Originally posted by Fjold:
King Juan Carlos just released a statement saying that he didn't shoot a bear on his trip to Russia.

I think BBBrucie on the political forum claimed he didn't shoot a bear either, at his trial for poaching a bear....

At least I am sure the bear Brucie shot with no license was at least Sober...although Brucie may not have been...

Carter may not have been one of our better Presidents, but I think he will be remembered as one of the better men to ever have been president.

I will give the King of Spain the benefit of a doubt, for now. Like some hunters from the U.S. that get scammed on canned lion hunts in the RSA, he may have been set-up as well. People like to ingratiate themselves to celebrities. What better way than to set-up an avid hunter with a "trophy" of a lifetime.