Leona Lewis has thrown herself into animal charity work to get over her split from her boyfriend.

The 'Bleeding Love' singer spent the weekend at a bear sanctuary in Romania for the World Society for the Protection of Animals after completing her debut UK tour in a bid to try and take her mind off her childhood sweetheart Lou Al-Chamaa.

She told The Sun newspaper: "It's amazing. The bears are magnificent. After a life of abuse they are finally happy."

Leona and Lou ' a former trainee electrician who was handed a job with record label Sony BMG as a talent scout after Leona became famous ' announced the end of their 10-year relationship last month.

While the split was said to be amicable and blamed on their busy work schedules, it has since turned nasty with Lou demanding a £1.5 million payout for helping her become famous.

Lou claims to have filled in the form for her to audition for UK TV talent show 'The X Factor', which she went on to win, making her a global superstar who is worth millions.

A friend of Lou's said: 'He believes he has played a huge role in Leona's success. They have been together for more than 10 years and he has encouraged her to fulfil her potential. He believes he has the rights of a common-law husband.'