Dozens of bears are being kept in cages as entertainment at restaurants and shops in Armenia
They are caught as cubs and forced to live in tiny spaces, often living off scraps thrown to them
British charity International Animal Rescue has launched a rescue mission to free the caged bears
With the support of the Armenian government, the Sussex charity hope to rescue up to 80 bears
Pleading: A brown bear climbs on its enclosure across the river from a restaurant, staring longingly at the diners
Oblivious: Seated with a view of the bear enclosure is a young family enjoying lunch at the restaurant in Armenia
Begging for scraps: A bear reaches out with its paw through the iron bars to get its claws on a piece of food left by a diner
Heartbreaking: Keeping bears in cages is not an uncommon way of attracting tourists or entertaining shoppers in Armenia
Longing for freedom: The bears at the restaurant are kept in a barren enclosure and forced to beg for food ok
Feed me: Many of the bears have lived their entire lives inside cages or small enclosures for the entertainment of diners, shoppers and bored commuters across Armenia
Efforts: British charity International Animal Rescue has launched a rescue mission to free the caged bears of Armenia
Caged: Another bear at a separate location in Armenia is sticking its head out of its cage
Mission: The International Animal Rescue hope to raise enough money to be able to rescue 80 bears
Working on it: The images were taken during a recent visit to Armenia by IAR Chief Executive Alan Knight who was appalled at what he saw
Cruel: Some of the bears are kept in small, barren cages, surviving only on scraps and filthy, stagnant water and standing on stinking mounds of their own faece
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