Polar bears face some of the most severe welfare challenges of any zoo species, with their cold-climate specialisation, vast natural ranges, and complex predatory behaviours fundamentally incompatible with most zoo environments.
Polar bears represent perhaps the clearest welfare case for questioning whether a species should be kept in zoos at all. Their combination of enormous natural range, cold-climate specialisation, complex predatory ecology, and near-universal stereotypic pacing in captivity creates a welfare situation that honest assessment suggests cannot be resolved through exhibit improvement. Some zoos have reached this conclusion themselves and rehomed their polar bears to sanctuaries or larger specialised facilities rather than continue providing inadequate welfare. The conservation argument for polar bears in zoos is also weak: their survival depends on sea ice, which captive breeding cannot preserve. The most honest welfare position is that polar bear welfare in typical zoo facilities is fundamentally compromised, and that conservation resources would be better directed toward climate action than captive polar bear management.