Mysterious ‘Bear’ Dog Wanders Out of Woods and Shocks Everyone When They See His Face

A stray dog is catching everyone’s attention for his uncanny resemblance to a bear. In fact, when the dog named “Potapich, was first spotted wandering out of the forest, locals thought he might just be a strange-looking bear. Or was he a dog? They weren’t sure.

The animal was seen in the woods in the city of Chelyabinsk in south-central Russia before being taken to Our House Shelter For Animals, Chelyabinsk (Приют для животных Наш Дом, г.Челябинск).

The shelter shared photos of the dog on their shelter’s page on VK.com, Russia’s popular social media platform with the caption “A bear or a dog? Here is a miracle of nature that came to our shelter…”

It’s thought that Potapich is around four years old and may be a chow chow mix, which would account for his “bear-like” appearance. The shelter is seeking out the animal’s owner (if he has one), but so far has been unsuccessful.

After posting the pictures, the shelter received a lot of calls about the dog’s welfare.

“So many people are interested in our Potapich,” the group writes. But it does not appear Potapich is ready for adoption as the shelter says he is not socialized and bites and fights. Whomever adopts him would need to spend a lot of time in training and rehabilitating him.

They are, however, in need of funds for feeding and vaccinating him, and for the 200 animals they currently care for.

For Our House shelter, food is always in short supply and what they always desperately need, especially over the winter and holidays. “We also need funds for the treatment of sick animals, sterilization,” Our Home writes on their website.