It’s a profitable business for farmers, and while scientists are working to develop synthetic alternatives, many consumers prefer the real thing. “They’ve got massive hair loss, they’ve often got broken teeth from (biting the bars of their cages) in frustration and pain.”īut eliminating bile farming has proved difficult. They haven’t even seen the sunshine,” she said.
#DST VIEWER FOR PHOTOSHOP FREE#
“They have no free access to food or water. In recent years, the organization has rescued nearly 680 bears from bile farms across Vietnam and China, many showing signs of extreme trauma. Jill Robinson has seen many cases like Sunset’s since she founded Animals Asia in the 1990s. Sunset receives a health check under anesthesia. But international experts say it remains a lucrative industry in China, where domestic sales of bear bile remain legal. The trade of these products is forbidden in most Asian countries, and activists are trying to end what they see as a cruel and unsustainable practice. This is the condition of many bears after years of captivity, kept alive so their bile – a gold-colored liquid secreted by the liver – can be extracted and used in traditional medicines, from topical lotions to eye drops and injections. The bear, named Sunset, was caged in a dark and dingy room, the narrow metal bars rusted through, her paws covered with pus, her fur missing clumps and her claws so overgrown they dug into her flesh. The team found a familiar scene when they arrived at the farm, early on a recent morning. A bear in Vietnam’s northeastern Haiphong region had been kept captive for years, her bile harvested in painful and invasive ways – and the farmer was finally giving her up. When the call came in, the staff at Animals Asia jumped into action.
0 kommentar(er)
