9 bears who spent their lives in cages have been rescued from bile farms in Vietnam.
Bear bile farming is unlawful in Vietnam, nonetheless it's nonetheless practiced in a number of areas. Greater than half of Vietnam's remaining 308 bears are saved on farms, in accordance with conservation group Training for Nature Vietnam (ENV), which took half in the rescue.
Groups from animal welfare group 4 Paws and ENV visited three bear bile farms in Binh Duong province the place the 9 bears had been trapped in cages for years.
The rescue mission took years of preparation and was delayed a number of instances due to the COVID pandemic.
A 4 Paws spokesperson advised Newsweek that the rescue mission went very easily.
The groups discovered a number of of the bears had been emaciated, solely weighing about 110 kilos. A wholesome feminine Asiatic bear ought to weigh about 200 to 250 kilos, whereas males can weigh up 400 kilos. One of many bears was additionally discovered to be lacking a leg.
Photos of the bears earlier than their rescue present them trapped in small, concrete cages.
On Thursday, groups rescued the primary two bears referred to as Danh and Thi and checked their well being on website. In a Fb put up, Bear Sanctuary in Ninh Binh—the place the bears can be transported—mentioned their well being check confirmed "many issues" that can have to be monitored and handled.
On the second farm visited on Thursday, 4 bears referred to as Teo, Tai, Tin and Khoi had been rescued. The 4 male bears had spent a minimum of 17 years trapped in cages. On the third and ultimate farm on Friday, three bears referred to as Nui, Vui, and An, had been rescued.
In one other Fb put up, which will be discovered right here, the Bear Sanctuary confirmed that every one 9 bears are actually on their option to the 4 Paws Bear Sanctuary in Ninh Binh, and as a result of arrive on Sunday.
Bear bile is scientifically confirmed to assist dissolve gallstones and deal with liver illness. Nevertheless, it's also bought commercially and marketed as a remedy for most cancers, colds, and hangovers, although there is no such thing as a scientific proof supporting this use.
Bile is extracted by pushing a metal or perspex catheter via the bear's stomach and into the gallbladder, which will be painful. The animals are sometimes sedated with ketamine or restrained with ropes throughout the course of. It might trigger infections, hunger, dehydration and different illnesses. 1000's of bears are nonetheless saved on bile farms throughout China, Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar, regardless of there being medical cruelty-free alternate options.
In a press launch, founder and government Director of ENV, Quyen Vu, mentioned the rescue marks one other step in Binh Duong's journey "from one among Vietnam's greatest bear bile-farming hotspots," to 1 exhibiting "distinctive dedication within the battle to finish bear farming."
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