Clawing through the pandemic at Bearadise in Myakka City

Carol dropped her paw, claws and all, ever so gently into the hand of Bearadise owner Monica Welde.

It was as if Carol, a European brown bear, was saying, "May I have this dance?"

The answer, of course, was yes.

For almost 40 years, Welde has worked with bears, including the last 22 years at her ranch in Myakka City. She said it has been one, long, wonderful dance.

She gave Carol a big hug, or perhaps it was the other way around.

"Do you know that bears purr?" Welde asked. "It's a happy sound."

The emotions shown by Bearadise's nine bears —  six European brown bears, two Syrian Brown bears and one grizzly bear — work both ways.

It was three years ago, on Jan. 25, 2017, that Bearadise patriarch Johnny Welde died at 60. Monica was devastated, and so were the bears.

She would wear her husband's clothes at times when she was caring for the bears, who knew his scent.

"The animals mourned when he passed," she said. "They were sad ... depressed. It took a year and a half to come around. They would look for him."

Monica immediately vowed to carry on the family's tradition of raising, and loving, bears. She has done so with the help of her adult children, Anjelica Welde, Johnny Jr. Welde and Jenny Welde-Thomas.

At 25, Carol is part of that tradition. She is another generation of European browns that the Welde family began working with 94 years ago in Europe. In 1946, Johnny Johnson Welde moved to the U.S. and a year later was performing with the Ringling Bros. and Barnum Bailey Circus. His bears appeared in almost 20 Walt Disney films and TV productions, such as the Beverly Hillbillies, Lassie, the Lucy Show and Petticoat Junction.

His son, the late Johnny Welde, took over the business and eventually built the Myakka City ranch on 15 acres. It was been open to tours for 20 years.

Carol is a resident celebrity herself, having performed in a Toyota RAV television commercial. On this particular, sunny, cool day in Myakka City, she watched Welde's every move, following her around the habitat with the hope of one more kiss or hug.

Paradise in Bearadise? It certainly seemed so.

But paradise has been threatened by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Welde has lived up to her word, keeping Bearadise afloat in the worst of economic times, even after all her bears' summer performance contracts had been cancelled in 2020. It costs about $2,000 a month to feed the bears, so Welde has survived out of her reserves and with the kindness of the community. During the summer, Detwiler’s Farm Market sent boxes of produce and Big Cat Habitat and Gulf Coast Sanctuary shared a surplus of carrots, berries and oranges, as a couple of examples.

Fortunately, Welde said, starting this June, she has contracts back in place for the summer. She hopes for the best.

Meanwhile, she has planned a special event Feb. 13 — Bear Hugs and Kisses. It will include educational presentations about the bears, music from a DJ, dancing, a catered dinner, an auction and more.

The more part is the most fun, and involves Welde's interactions with the bears.  

"When people see the bears up close, and how they interact with me, they gain interest and appreciation," she said. "We also have a lot of bear fans, and people love helping bears."

The bears like it, too.

"They look forward to the physical attachment and touch," she said.

It'a all part of a job Welde began at 22 years old in 1983 when she married her husband, Johnny.

"I feel fortunate to have spent my life with the bears," she said. "Every bear is different and they all have their own personality."

She admits it has been tough without her husband.

We want to make him proud," she said of Johnny Welde. "This (family business) shouldn't close after 92 years. 

"And when you love what you are doing, you don't consider it a job."

Was there ever a point after her husband's death that she felt different?

"I don't quit," she said, giving Carol another hug, along with some honey.