Veronika Dichka has won over Instagram with her peaceful and beautiful photographs fishing in the middle of a lake in Novosibirsk in northern Siberia. Wherever she goes, she is accompanied by Archie, her pet bear.
In most Western countries, there are very clear regulations about which animals can and cannot be kept as pets. Generally, the limits are drawn around animals that not only wouldn’t be able to live a dignified life in a home with a small yard -or worse, an apartment- but also on the kind of animals that can become a danger to both their owners and other people.
@fishing_veronika
This all seems to function quite differently in Russia, where more than one story has emerged about the variety of animals that the country has been shown to allow as pets.
@fishing_veronika
It should be noted that in this case, as in previous ones, what happened didn’t precisely take place in the largest and most populated city but in a more remote place: Siberia. Both the distance from the capitals and the space available there may explain how people like Veronika Dichka, a woman from Novosibirsk in the north of Siberia, can spend her time in the company of very special pets.
@fishing_veronika
Here, we’re talking about Archie, a huge adult bear, with whom Veronika seems to go everywhere.
@fishing_veronika
The story of how Archie found his way into his owner’s arms is a rather unique one. The bear was just a cub when the local zoo that owned him went bankrupt. The impending closure of the place meant that Archie would have nowhere to stay. Veronika heard about this and asked if she could adopt the bear.
@fishing_veronika
Veronika told a bit about her relationship with Archie in an Instagram post:
“He sees me as a member of his family, we share food, he sleeps in my arms when afraid, and hides behind me. We rescued him from the safari park but can’t release him into the wild as he has lived in captivity his whole life. Archie spends every day with us and is madly in love with water. He loves it very much when I take him to new places, so this shooting was a pleasure for him!”
–Veronika Dichka on her Instagram–
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Because they are not endangered animals, brown bears can be kept as pets in Russia. In Archie’s case, his rescued status may allow his owner special permission, especially on the grounds that since he has been raised in captivity by his entire family, he wouldn’t be able to fend for himself in a forest.
@fishing_veronika
Still, a bear on top of a boat in the middle of a lake is always going to look strange. But, we’re not going to lie: Archie looks pretty happy in Veronika’s company.