Happy new bears!

It’s the first week of 2023, Animals Asia’s 25th Anniversary year, and our bear rescue team is already back in action, bringing two more bears home to our sanctuary in Vietnam.

Since 2017, Animals Asia has been helping care for the two female moon bears, Molly and Jess, who have been living in a government-run wildlife centre at Pu Mat National Park since they were rescued from illegal wildlife traders as cubs in 2012.

We’ve worked closely with the keepers at the facility, providing veterinary assistance, giving dietary advice, and improving the living conditions for the bears by enhancing and expanding their enclosures and providing enrichment to keep them active and stimulated.

Thanks to the relationship and trust we’ve built with the team at Pu Mat over this time, we’re delighted that they’ve entrusted us with Molly and Jess’ full-time care.

Although their lives have significantly improved over the years, at our specialist sanctuary we can give them so much more: we’ll be able to better monitor their health, give them a greater range of enrichment and access to far larger outdoor enclosures and of course give them the opportunity to widen their circle of friends.

The rescue team were up early on January 3 to make the 10-hour trip from Tam Dao to Pu Mat National Park, ready to start the transfer the next day. Early on Wednesday 4 January, they were able to safely and consciously transfer Jess and Molly into their transport cages, ready for the long trip back to their new forever home at Tam Dao. 

This rescue was carried out by an all Vietnamese staff team, who will be heading up the running of our new sanctuary currently being constructed in Bach Ma National Park.

Molly and Jess will now spend 30 days in quarantine before starting the integration process to introduce them to the enclosures and other bears at the sanctuary.

This year is only going to get busier for our rescue team. With the construction of our second Vietnam sanctuary at Bach Ma National Park underway, it won’t be long before we can start rescuing the hundreds of bears still languishing in cages on bile farms across the country. And our team is ready to go, at a moment’s notice, to ensure there is no bear left behind.

Read more:
Marmalade is rescued from years on a bile farm
Animals Asia rescues five bears from bile industry and wildlife trafficking

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