Naked Bears Need To Be Rubbed Down

The mildly disturbing creature you see above may not immediately seem recognizable, but it is just your everyday spectacled bear --sans hair. According to the BBC, three bears in the Leipig Zoo, and other bears in zoos throughout Europe, have inexplicably lost their hair over the last few years. Many zoo employees are stumped as to the cause. One expert claims it could be the cool climate and the diet of the bears, who ordinarily come from South America.

Because the bears are also suffering from itchy skin, zoologists have also been rubbing them down with ointments to calm their skin. As pointed out on Ugly Overload, rubbing ointment on crabby, bald bear is probably not the most pleasant job in the world.

Image courtesy of Sebastian Niedlich's Flickr stream.