Australian customs have seized close to 130 shipments of suspected bear bile products in the past five years (2012–2016) in contravention of Australian and international law. At least seven of these shipments originated in Vietnam where the horrific practice of bile extraction continues despite the sale and consumption of bear bile being outlawed in the country for over a decade.

International trade in bear bile products is prohibited by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), a convention to which Australia and Vietnam are both signatories.

Shocking new footage of ‘bile extraction’ on Vietnamese bear farms has sparked an international call on the Vietnamese government to bring an end to bear farms. International animal welfare organisation FOUR PAWS will support the government with stricter enforcement and is building a sanctuary where rescued bile bears will spend the rest of their lives in humane conditions.

Footage shows anaesthetised bears in tiny cages having bile extracted under horrific conditions. After locating the gallbladder with an ultrasound unit, a long needle is injected through the bear’s abdominal wall into the gallbladder and the bile is extracted through a catheter. FOUR PAWS has seen footage of bears who were inadequately anaesthetised and suffering and distressed during the painful 'milking' procedure.

Both the moon bears and sun bears used for extraction are on the brink of local extinction as a result of relentless illegal poaching, trading and demand for their parts and derivatives.

Often caught in the wild, the bears spend their days in a vegetative state, half-starved and dehydrated, suffering from infections caused by crude and unhygienic bile extraction processes and equipment. Regular bile extractions and lack of care and veterinary treatment result in diseases such as abscesses, sepsis and liver cancer. The extremely confined living conditions on bear farms cause chronic behavioural disorders that even lead to animals mutilating themselves in severe cases.

FOUR PAWS aims to cooperate with the Vietnamese government to achieve a sustainable and animal-friendly solution for the remaining captive bears and to protect wild bear populations.

Bear bile is used as an ingredient in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). Despite the existence of effective alternatives, bear bile is still used to treat ailments ranging from eye diseases to hematoma and digestive disorders.

People around the world can sign a petition to encourage the Vietnamese government to take the necessary measures to end bear farming: www.saddestbears.com/Vietnam

Professional photographs and rough cuts of footage of the extraction and sale of bile, as well as images of bears on Vietnamese bear farms, are available for publication upon request.

Stay up to date on this topic and follow all FOUR PAWS activities on our social media channels:

Facebook
Twitter
Instagram