Our Work

We operate bear sanctuaries in China and Vietnam where bears are rehabilitated and cared for and where our bear teams gather vital evidence of the effects of bile extraction.Our world-class bear rescue centres in Chengdu, China and Tam Dao, Vietnam provide the bears with comfortable dens and semi-natural enclosures where they are able to recover in safety and spend the remaining years of their lives in the company of other bears. To date, we have rescued nearly 600 bears.

More than 10,000 bears are kept on bile farms in China, and official figures put the number suffering the same fate in Vietnam at over 400. The bears have their bile extracted on a regular basis, which is not only used in traditional medicine but also in many ordinary household products.

Bile is extracted using various painful, invasive techniques, all of which cause massive infection in the bears. This cruel practice continues despite the availability of a large number of effective and affordable herbal and synthetic alternatives.

Cats and dogs in China are often abandoned and left to subsist on the streets, with many dying due to illness or accidents. Government authorities organise brutal dog-killing campaigns to try to reduce stray dog populations. Stray dogs and cats are also snatched from the streets and pets are stolen and taken to horrific meat markets, where they are sold for human consumption and often suffer a slow, violent death.

Animals in China’s zoos and safari parks suffer a range of abuses. Captive wild animals are often cruelly mutilated with their teeth and claws cut back. They may also be chained and used as photographic props or forced to entertain the crowds with unnatural, degrading and stressful circus-style performances.