Bear on the loose? Not yet, but Little Ricki may soon be freed from her roadside cage

The bear is still caged.

A report began circulating late Wednesday night that Little Ricki, the captive bear at a roadside ice cream parlor in York County, is finally free. But Amanda Welling, a Lancaster woman involved in the suit to move Ricki to an animal sanctuary, said the report "is simply not true at all."

The false report apparently began with an announcement by In Defense of Animals, a nonprofit animal rights group that is not directly involved in the suit.

"Little Ricki the Bear is Finally Free!" according to the group's Facebook page.

"After spending sixteen years at a roadside menagerie in York County, Pennsylvania, Ricki the bear is finally scheduled for release to a sanctuary by court order," the message states. "Local activists, animal rights groups, and one mother-daughter team spent years fighting for Ricki's release."

"We don't have any idea where they got that information," Welling said Thursday. "We've already talked to our lawyers about that."

In fact, Welling said there is no mother-daughter team involved in the suit.

Ricki lives in a small, chain-link enclosure at Jim Mack's Ice Cream on Lincoln Highway, Hellam Township. The eatery is owned by James H. McDaniel Jr.

Veterinarians said the bear is "suffering immensely," according to a civil complaint filed by the Animal Legal Defense Fund, a national nonprofit animal-rights organization unrelated to In Defense of Animals.

The ALDF says Ricki suffers from stress, and is given an inadequate diet and inadequate housing. The bear's plight earned tens of thousands of signatures on at least two petitions asking for her release into a sanctuary and got the support of British actor Ricky Gervais.

Although Ricki's freedom isn't imminent, Welling said Thursday that good news could be coming soon.

"Our lawyers and his (McDaniel's) lawyers are having discussions," she said. "He has publicly stated that he is willing to release the bear to a sanctuary."

The divisive point that remains is where Ricki will go.

"He would like her to stay close by," Welling said. "But there are no bear sanctuaries in Pennsylvania, so she's probably not going to be staying around here. I can say that with almost 100 percent certainty."

The Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries is working to locate a suitable place for the bear, she said.

"Our lawyers will be contacting his lawyers next week and discussing the sanctuary options," she said. "But he is not going to be choosing the sanctuary."

They're looking at "some very good sanctuaries," Welling added. "We are hoping he agrees to it."

Once both parties reach an accord, Ricki will be moved to her new home fairly quickly, she said.

"If he agrees to one of the sanctuaries that we've picked out this could be wrapped up by the end of this month or early next month," she said. "They don't fool around on these types of things. All he has to do is say OK and we'll sign the papers."