After what the zookeeper's thought was a cute photo shoot, two keepers are now being charged under the wildlife act of Canada. "What we got charged for under the act was that we failed to notify them that we were going to do those things," Doug Bos told CTV. "We were busy. We made a mistake, and we didn't email them and tell them."
The wildlife center posted this notice on their Facebook:
We would like everyone to know the results of the investigation undertaken by Alberta Fish & Wildlife in relation to our taking Berkley the bear through the drive through at DQ.
The conclusion of the investigation has resulted in us being charged under section 12(3) of the Wildlife Act. What we failed to do under this section was to notify Fish & Wildlife ahead of time that we were taking Berkley off-site.
We have been in operation for over 28 years and this is the first time that we have failed to notify Fish & Wildlife before taking an animal off-site. The Alberta Zoo Standards fall under the Wildlife Act and are very strict and regulated. We appreciate that Fish & Wildlife follow these high standards to ensure the best care and well-being of the animals in our care.
We will pay our fine and have already instituted changes to our protocols and put them into practice to ensure that these notifications are done every time without fail.
We would like to thank everyone so much for their overwhelming support throughout this investigation and we look forward to seeing everyone this summer!