Bears Tortured In Bizarre Practice In Asia
Warning: This article contains content that some readers may find upsetting
Animal rights activists are desperately trying to save the lives of thousands of animals who are tortured in the most brutal way every year.
You may never have heard of it before but bear bile farming is one of the most barbaric practices out there.
It's been around for thousands of years and is used in traditional Asian medicines to treat liver conditions in humans.
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And though there are dozens of herbal alternatives, moon bears and sun bears in particular are still being hunted and kept on farms, pushing them towards extinction.
Poachers steal cubs from the wild, killing their mothers in front of them, and lock them in tiny cages, where they are kept for up to 30 years.
Due to the size of the cages, the animals bodies become contorted, and they often lose teeth trying to gnaw their way out.
Jill Robinson is the founder Animals Asia, which rescues bears from farms and is working to put an end to the practice in Vietnam, where it is still ongoing despite having been outlawed in 1992.
Speaking to UNILAD, she said: "The extraction of bear bile causes unimaginable physical and psychological suffering to the bears and long-term health problems.
"Various extraction techniques exist, all of which are invasive and traumatic.
"The techniques range from the 'free drip' method where the bear suffers a hole in their abdomen and gallbladder, which is continuously reopened, to the insertion of permanent catheters, to locating the gall bladder via ultrasound and extracting bile through a four-inch needle."
She added: "Most farmed bears are starved and dehydrated as this can encourage bile production.
"Because of the unnatural and unhygienic conditions, they are forced to live in, many also suffer from multiple diseases and health issues that eventually kill them."
The group is working with the Vietnamese government to crack down on farming and recently unveiled its latest sanctuary in Bach Ma, which will be home to around 300 bears.
The 12-hectare site includes a quarantine area, where newly rescue bears will stay for 45 days to help the charity understand their personalities and potential health problems, and to allow the animals to form bonds with staff.
There is also a veterinary hospital and an education centre, for school and university students, as well as government officials to learn more about the animals.
There are now around 310 bears still trapped on bile farms in Vietnam, though thousands elsewhere, most notably in China.
And Jill believes the new sanctuary is the next step in putting an end to the vile trade in the country once and for all.
She said: "We signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Vietnamese government in 2017, which aims to end bear bile farming in the country by closing the farms and saving the remaining bears. Since then, we have saved hundreds of bears from farms.
"The new sanctuary will eventually be home to all rescued bears. Once the last bear is saved, this trade will be history for Vietnam, and will set a precedent for other countries in the region to follow.
"And for us, it will be the achievement of one of our founding goals - to end bear bile farming in Vietnam."
If you want to find out more about Animals Asia or to donate to the cause, click here.
Topics: Animals, Animal Cruelty
Dominic Smithers