The “world’s saddest polar bear” could be leaving his aquarium tank inside a shopping mall in China in favor of a better life.
The Yorkshire Wildlife Park in Doncaster, England, has made a public offer to give the polar bear, named Pizza, a new home, the animal welfare group Animals Asia announced on Monday.
Pizza made headlines in recent months when tragic images surfaced showing the living conditions at the polar bear’s current home, the Grandview Aquarium, located inside a mall in Guangzhou, China.
Pizza’s new home would be in Yorkshire Wildlife Park’s “Project Polar,” a habitat specifically created for polar bears that includes 10 acres to roam and two lakes.
In March, Animals Asia shared this video about “The tragic bear that suffers for selfies” recorded at the zoo in China.
A petition launched by Animals Asia calling for the zoo to close has garnered more than 270,000 signatures. The organization also says that no payment is being offered for custody of the polar bear.
“The good news now for Grandview is that they now have the chance to put their mistake right,” Animals Asia’s Animal Welfare Director Dave Neale said in a statement.
Mall officials have yet to respond to the offer, the BBC reported.
