Brad Petrovich, age 12, of Eugene, Ore., for his question:

WOULD A SUN BEAR MAKE A GOOD PET?

Andy's faithful readers know that he is rather fussy on the subject of suitable pets. Most animals belong in the wild, where Mother Nature tends them better than we can. It seems only fair to leave them there. Besides, many wild types make life miserable for members of the family  and a few are downright dangerous.

The sun bear, alias the honey bear, is the smallest member of the bear family. When fully grown he measures 4 feet long, plus a stubby 2 inch tail. Unlike most of his shaggy cousins, his neat fur is short and silky. His coat is jet black, fading to brownish gray on his rather stubby nose.

Almost always his chest is marked with a creamy colored crescent moon. However, he is called a sun bear rather than a moon bear because in his Malayan homeland the crescent is a sign of the rising sun. By nature he is a tree dweller with long strong claws.

Expert animal lovers claim that a young sun bear may be a very attractive pet. One was adopted at the age of 2 weeks, when the baby cub was still blind. This did not stop the frisky fellow from stumbling around, bumping into the furniture. He took kindly to bottle feeding, with suitable gurgling. His favorite food was bread and honey, and he sat for hours sucking his paw.

This particular baby sun bear was lucky because he was adopted by experts who knew how to tend to his. special needs. Besides, the family lived in his homeland, where he was used to the climate. However, he grew quite fast and, though devoted to his human friends, obviously needed and longed for a free life in the treetops.

At the age of 6 months, it seemed only fair to send him to a large zoo, where he could be protected while he developed his natural climbing skills. Soon he was ready to venture into the forest where he naturally belonged. However, he never forgot his human friends and often returned to visit them.

A fully grown sun bear may weigh 200 pounds, which is rather bulky for a house pet.  He needs treetops where he can build his own bed from twigs and find insects in rotting logs. Obviously this pretty little bear is not a homebody and does not belong on the list of suitable pets for the human family.