{"id":569634,"date":"2026-03-30T00:06:16","date_gmt":"2026-03-30T00:06:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/569634\/"},"modified":"2026-03-30T00:06:16","modified_gmt":"2026-03-30T00:06:16","slug":"its-the-stories-behind-these-bears-vancouver-teddy-bear-doctor-restores-old-stuffies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/569634\/","title":{"rendered":"‘It\u2019s the stories behind these bears’: Vancouver ‘teddy bear doctor’ restores old stuffies"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Text<\/p>\n

Listen to this article<\/p>\n

Estimated 3 minutes<\/p>\n

The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.<\/p>\n

From pet attacks, to missing parts, to just too much loving, there\u2019s almost no teddy bear Ruth Hasman can\u2019t fix.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She is a seamstress who has dedicated her retirement to repairing old and broken stuffed animals.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Over almost two decades, she imagines she has repaired thousands of stuffed toys from across North America.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI never know what\u2019s going to be coming through the door,\u201d Hasman said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Stuffed toy parts, buttons, eyes and fur line the surfaces and walls of her Vancouver, B.C., home.\u00a0<\/p>\n

WATCH | Vancouver seamstress runs stuffie hospital:\"\"<\/p>\n

Vancouver ‘teddy bear doctor’ restores old stuffies <\/p>\n

From pet attacks, to missing parts, to just too much loving, there\u2019s almost no teddy bear Ruth Hasman can\u2019t fix. She runs a hospital and spa for stuffed toys out of her Vancouver home.<\/p>\n

Fur grafts, eyeball replacements, stuffing replenishments and spa treatments are just some of the services she offers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

And she goes above and beyond for her clients, sometimes scouring dozens of thrift stores to find the right fabric.\u00a0<\/p>\n

If she isn\u2019t satisfied with how a bear has come together? She will take it apart and re-do it.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Hasman says no bear is the same, so each toy is a new challenge. <\/p>\n

\u201cI learn something new almost every time I fix one,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"AHasman holds up a note she received from a happy client. (CBC News)<\/p>\n

But her favourite part is learning the stories behind the toys, noting that some are very sentimental.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a pleasure talking to the people, finding out the history of the bears,\u201d said Hasman.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of poignant stories.\u201d<\/p>\n

The oldest bear she has repaired was 115 years old, passed on through five generations in a family.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Vedrana Petrovic, a recent client of Hasman’s, says her plush golden retriever from IKEA, Sylvester, looks almost like the day she got him a decade ago.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought he was irreparable\u2026 I\u2019m honestly shocked,\u201d said Petrovic.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Petrovic said she got Sylvester during university when she was in need of emotional support. <\/p>\n

\"Sylvester is shown before and after his visit to the teddy bear hospital. (Ruth Hasman)<\/p>\n

Petrovic described him as looking like a piece of spaghetti prior to his visit to the teddy bear hospital.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was completely deflated, half his body was flopped over,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She said he has been a great cuddle buddy, and hopes he will continue to be for decades to come.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s been a near and dear companion to me,\u201d said Petrovic.<\/p>\n

\"FiveA table holding animals that are ready to be picked up sits in Ruth Hasman’s foyer. (CBC News)<\/p>\n

Hasman says she has a counterpart in Maple Ridge that she is currently training, and hopes can take over her business when she is too old to continue. <\/p>\n

But she says until then, she will continue fixing bears as long as possible. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the stories behind these bears… it just pulls my heart.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Listen to this article Estimated 3 minutes The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":569635,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194298],"tags":[49,48,55],"class_list":["post-569634","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-vancouver","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-vancouver"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/569634","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=569634"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/569634\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/569635"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=569634"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=569634"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=569634"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}