Officially established in 1998, Animals Asia campaigns for improved conditions and rights for various species across Asia. It operates award-winning sanctuaries in Vietnam and China (and is the only organization with a bear sanctuary in the latter).

These sanctuaries are home to hundreds of bears who were rescued from the bile trade.

What is bile farming?

In order to extract bile from their gallbladders, bears are subject to invasive, painful procedures. The bile, thought to have healing properties, is used in traditional Chinese medicine. It also appears in some household products like shampoo and toothpaste.

Demand for bile products comes predominantly from Asia, but such items are also found in Australia, Canada, and the US.

According to Animals Asia, the “cruel” trade is a source of “extreme suffering” for thousands of bears across the world’s largest and most populous continent.

One of the most “humane” bile extraction methods involves creating a permanent open passage in the animals’ gallbladder via their abdomen. The surgery – rarely performed by a veterinarian – often results in infections, many of which become fatal.

The way the animals are housed is similarly disturbing, the charity says. Bears are permanently kept in metal cages; many are so small that bears are left unable to turn around or stand on all fours.

Some bears are caged as cubs, and held captive for up to 30 years.

Rescuing bears from bile farms

Animals Asia has rescued 640 bears from the trade to date. With its bear rescue center in Tam Dao, Vietnam, approaching capacity, the nonprofit has announced a new sanctuary that will take in all of the remaining farmed bears in Vietnam.

The 12-hectare sanctuary, situated in the mountainous surroundings of the Bach Ma National Park, will be unveiled tomorrow (May 27). And when all farmed bears in Vietnam are freed and released into the sanctuary, the country’s bear bile trade will officially be history.

“This is a proud moment for humanity, Animals Asia, Vietnam, and our supporters around the
world”, commented Animals Asia founder and CEO Jill Robinson. “Together, in collaboration with the Vietnam government, we bring about this milestone in protecting wildlife across the country.”

In 2017, Animals Asia signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Vietnamese government, committing to the closure of all bear farms in Vietnam.

The MOU outlined an agreement between the two parties, which would see them working together to free the then-1,000 animals who were still in the industry.

Speaking on the new sanctuary, Robinson added: “Today we show that courage, empathy, tenacity, and determination have brought about significant change, as we step up and demonstrate the way forward in helping to save the world’s vulnerable species.”

Celebrity support

A wealth of high-profile names have thrown their support behind Animals Asia and its efforts, including Dame Judi Dench, Alan Cumming, Stephen Fry, James Cromwell, Slash, Kesha, and Peter Egan.

Actors Tara Buck (True Blood), Torrey DeVitto (The Vampire Diaries, Chicago Med), and Marina Squerciati (Chicago P.D) are all in Vietnam to celebrate the unveiling of the sanctuary. They’re joined by television personality Josh Packham (Love Island), photographer Katarina
Benzova, and actor Tang Thanh Ha (Mỹ Nhân Kế).

In a video seen by Plant Based News, Ricky Gervais (who just donated £142,414.47 to Animals Asia), asked the public to “stand by them in this mission” and “raise their paw for the moon bear.”

Dr. Jane Goodall offered her “warm congratulations” to the nonprofit. “Animals Asia is ending bear bile farming in Vietnam,” she said. “To protect these beautiful moon bears, please help Animals Asia build this last bear sanctuary and make sure that in Vietnam, there will be no bear left behind.”

The post Vietnam’s Bile Trade Will Soon Be History As Last 310 Bears Are Rescued appeared first on Plant Based News.

SeaWorld has been offered $250,000 – if it agrees to release all the orcas, other dolphins it’s holding and lets them move to sanctuaries.

The offer was made by vegan charity PETA, which wrote to the marine amusement park, saying it is currently facing a number of problems.

SeaWorld

Among them are SeaWorld’s CEO Sergio Rivera resigning – the company’s fourth CEO to do so in the last five years – the park’s closure due to the coronavirus outbreak, and 90 percent of its staff being on furlough.

In addition, the park has seen profits and visitor numbers fall since the 2013 release of documentary Blackfish, which lifted the lid on some of the suffering experienced by animals held at SeaWorld’s facilities.

View this post on Instagram

Your CEO just resigned. Your parks are closed due to #COVID19. 90% of your employees are furloughed. #SEAWORLD: We’ll give you a quarter of a million dollars toward building a seaside sanctuary—if you agree to retire all dolphins and whales. Tap the link in our profile to learn more: http://peta.vg/2rxk

A post shared by PETA (@peta) on Apr 6, 2020 at 6:48pm PDT

Sanctuary

Now PETA has written to interim CEO Marc Swanson offering a quarter of a million dollars toward building a seaside sanctuary ‘in exchange for a binding agreement stipulating that you will release the orcas, other dolphins, and whales SeaWorld is now denying any semblance of happiness or a natural life’.

PETA President, Ingrid Newkirk, said: “This is SeaWorld’s moment to win back all the families who won’t pay to see marine mammals being deprived of everything that’s natural and important to them and trapped in concrete cells.

“PETA will pay up to get the ball rolling on a seaside sanctuary where orcas, other dolphins, and whales could finally dive deep, feel the ocean currents, and enjoy a more natural life.”

Plant Based News has contacted SeaWorld for comment.

The post SeaWorld Offered $250,000 To Release Marine Animals To Sanctuaries appeared first on Plant Based News.

A new film tells the story of a Derbyshire farmer who gave his cows to a sanctuary because he could no longer justify killing sentient individuals.

Short film 73 Cows features cattle former farmer – and vegan – Jay Wilde, who discussed how ‘soul destroying’ his profession was, but how difficult it was to break out of his family farming tradition.

His – and wife Katja’s – story made headlines when he initially revealed that he’d given away the animals and turned to vegetable farming, supported by The Vegan Society.

A betrayal

In the film, Wilde opens up about how he became friends with the animals, then felt as though he was betraying them when he took them to slaughter – what he describes as a ‘terrifying’ experience for the animals.

He also talks about the pressure he – and other farmers experience – being ‘locked into’ the farming tradition, as well as the positive reactions from veggies and vegans when he gave up cattle farming.

He also experienced negativity from locals and other farmers – who branded his facility the ‘funny farm’ (an old-fashioned derogatory reference to a mental health hospital) as a consequence of relinquishing his livestock.

The film is available to watch on Vimeo

An amazing story

Speaking to Plant Based News about the documentary, filmmaker Alex Lockwood said: “I first came across Jay Wilde’s story when my wife showed me an article she’d read about him in the national news.

“The story instantly struck a chord with me. I thought it was such a great subject that I assumed it probably would have already been covered by another filmmaker and so I didn’t do anything about it at first.

“After a few weeks I was still drawn to the story and so contacted Jay and Katja on the off-chance. Luckily, it turned out that they hadn’t yet been approached by any filmmakers other than press and were happy to have me document their story.”

Sharing the story

Lockwood believes the Wildes were open with telling their story as a favor to him, rather than to bring attention to themselves. “Jay and Katja are both incredibly humble people and would never seek out the limelight,” he told PBN.

“In fact, Jay couldn’t even bring himself to watch the film until the Raindance premiere (to my relief, he enjoyed it).

“In my opinion, the more exposure Jay and Katja can get, the better, as they are in the process of transitioning to vegan farming and it’s not without its challenges. What they have done is incredibly brave, and it would be wonderful if they could get as much support as possible to start something amazing.”

Challenges

Making the film had its challenges: Lockwood had no budget, and financed it himself. There were also issues with bad weather and snow preventing filming, with shoots having to be canceled.

“Also, the cattle couldn’t be released for Spring until the adverse weather conditions we were experiencing had settled and were suitable for the cows and filming, and so our final shoot at the sanctuary was delayed by a few months,” says Lockwood.

“In addition, when the day arrived to release the cows, the truck drivers refused to be filmed due to the stigma attached with taking farm animals to sanctuaries and for fear of repercussions.”

Despite all this, the filmmaker adds that seeing Wilde with the cattle, knowing they were free because of a decision he had taken, made the wait worthwhile.

Vegan?

Lockwood himself says he is vegan ‘for the most part’ but not yet 100 percent there. “To me, being vegan is about taking ongoing steps and continually reminding and educating yourself about the things you consume,” he said.

“Making this film and talking with Jay and Katja about the process of dairy farming has opened my eyes to the reality of how dairy products end up on our shelves.

“If people watch the film and decide that they want to make a change in how they consume animal products then that would be amazing.”

Human conflict and compassion

Ultimately though, the filmmaker says he was initially drawn to the film as it is a ‘great story of human conflict and compassion’.

“Jay is a wonderful subject and ultimately the film has a very uplifting and inspiring message,” he said.

“I really feel that for some people, a tone of this nature is more powerful for inspiring change and questions.”

You can follow the Wildes and their story on Facebook

The post New Film Stars Cattle Farmer Who Gave Cows To Sanctuary And Turned Vegan appeared first on Plant Based News.