Russian Circus Bear Attacks Trainer During Live Performance

A circus bear named Donut attacked her trainer, Sergei Prichinich, during a live performance in Russia, pinning him to the ground and snapping at him for about half a minute before a worker outside the cage prodded the bear and allowed the trainer to get back to his feet.

The incident occurred at the Moretti Circus in Russia, where a female brown bear named Donut, weighing around 490 pounds, was riding a hoverboard when she suddenly turned and jumped at her trainer, Sergei Prichinich.

Donut pinned Prichinich to the ground and snapped at him for about half a minute before a worker outside the cage prodded the bear and allowed the trainer to get back to his feet.

Russian Circus Bear Attacks Trainer During Live Performance

Mikhailov praised Prichinich for not losing his cool and allowing Donut to let out her aggression. "This is an animal, and they can behave differently, they may not like something, they can express their emotions this way," Mikhailov said. "Every trainer understands this."

Russian animal rights campaigner Yuri Koretskikh noted that while the incident ended safely, it could have gone awry, and he called for a ban on live animal performances.

Russian Circus Bear Attacks Trainer During Live Performance

Russia has struggled with animal rights as a high-profile issue in recent years, leading Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2018 to sign a bill banning all forms of animal cruelty, according to TASS.

However, the law did not cover animal performances, which have remained a focus for animal rights activists. The Russian governing body, the Duma, in 2023 proposed a bill that would ban the use of circus animals in the country, with the bill moving to the lower chamber in October, according to Russian outlet Vet and Life.

Russian Circus Bear Attacks Trainer During Live Performance

The Russian Prosecutor General’s Office in 2022 published a report that found 116 cases of illegal use and 48 cases of animal cruelty in a review of over 500 animal shelters.