Bearing up well

Happy chap: Zona’s adopted moon bear George at the Chengdu sanctuary.

CHINA was never on my list of “countries I must see” but in September this year, my daughter and I spent two weeks there and we loved it.

I was blown away by its culture, history, cuisine and although there were masses of people, we found the Chinese to be very gracious and helpful wherever we went. Both of us felt there would definitely be a return trip at some stage to explore more of this vast, fascinating country.

The catalyst for visiting China was very simple . . . I had airpoints that were about to expire and had to be used up or lost, and my daughter had holiday time owing to her so she decided to join me.

I saw the trip as my chance to visit a sanctuary in Chengdu which is home to moon bears rescued from bile farms. I wanted to meet George, the bear I adopted in 2010.

I first became aware of the plight of moon bears in 2010 when I learned about the work of Animals Asia, a charity that runs projects aimed at finding long-term solutions to problems of animal cruelty.

The charity was founded in 1998 by UK-born Jill Robinson, MBE, who, five years earlier, encountered a bear bile farm in China while working in animal welfare in Asia.

“It was a torture chamber, a hell-hole for animals,” says Jill.

“They literally couldn’t move, stand up or turn around,” she says.

As a result, the charity launched the Moon Bear Rescue project which involves saving suffering and endangered Asiatic black bears from bile farms in China and taking them to a sanctuary in Chengdu, in Sichuan Province.

The animals (known as moon bears because of the golden crescents on their chests) can spend up to 25 years in coffin-sized cages at bile farms where they are milked daily for their bile, often through crude, filthy catheters.

They are also milked through permanently open holes in their abdomen, the so-called “humane” free-dripping technique. It is the only method of bile extraction allowed under Chinese regulations, but still causes constant pain and the slow death of the bears.

The bile is used in traditional Chinese medicine, even though cheap and effective herbal and synthetic alternatives are readily available.

In July, 2000 after years of lobbying and negotiating Jill signed a landmark agreement with the Chinese authorities to rescue 500 moon bears and work towards ending the barbaric practice of bear bile farming. The farmers who relinquish their bears are compensated financially so they can either retire or set up in another business. Their licences are taken away permanently.

Working for a banAnimals Asia is working towards an eventual ban on bear farming throughout Asia.

My first impression on arrival at the sanctuary was “gosh, this has been a true labour of love by so many volunteers from abroad and locally”.

In comparison to the panda sanctuary where tens of thousands of government-funded dollars have been spent, it looked very much like the “poor cousin”.

However, while it lacked the “wow” factor in grounds and buildings, it possessed the most wonderful feeling of calmness and well-being.

As a supporter, I was in no doubt that every dollar donated was poured back into the sanctuary, which was very reassuring. There were no frills but it is an extremely well-oiled operation.

What was even more impressive was, due to careful spending, the cost of running the sanctuary was a fraction of what government-run facilities cost. This sanctuary and the one in Vietnam are the first to be accredited by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries declaring that “Both sanctuaries demonstrated excellence in areas of safety and security, veterinary care, governance and financial and organisational sustainability”.

When Animals Asia took over the grounds there were a few forestry buildings and it was completely overgrown with bamboo. A lot of the area had to be cleared to make way for the construction of the bear houses and enclosures. A recent wonderful structure was funded by Australian donations. It was built by the team of Chinese staff who take care of all the buildings and maintenance, led by one of the founding members of Animals Asia, Boris Chiao. Consulting engineers and other experts have donated free advice.

Visiting vetsThere is a constant stream of talented vets from around the world who visit and give their time to helping with the horrific wounds and injuries these bears have sustained during their incarceration in the cages.

Some bears have been born on the bile farms or captured as cubs and have never known anything but suffering and pain all their lives. When they arrive at the sanctuary they often have open wounds, missing limbs and are emaciated and starving.

Almost without exception the first operation is to remove the gall bladders which are diseased, have malignant tumours and are always badly damaged. There is also severe dental disease as teeth are often cut off (without anaesthetic) exposing the nerves so the bears are in constant pain from that as well.

Paw pads are dry and cracked as a result of dehydration and not walking on solid ground for years. Claws are often ripped out to make them “less dangerous”.

Visiting ophthalmologists have even restored sight to bears whose eyes have been injured while in captivity.

Like little children, the bears do not like taking their pills and medicine so they are bribed. The pills are hidden in marshmallows and after taking their medicine they can have some honey.

As part of ongoing care the bears are weighed every three months. For that the vets take “weigh cages” to the bear houses so they don’t need to be transported to the clinic to be weighed. Although they have spent years, sometimes decades, in tiny cages these bears trust their carers so much they will willingly step back into a cage — and of course there is a treat.

Despite being abused by humans for so much of their lives they have learned that not everyone is cruel. It never ceases to amaze me how animals are so forgiving. We could learn a lot from them.

Volunteers have made gardens, paths, built enclosures, platforms, swings, hammocks and generally created a haven for the bears. It is an amazing achievement. I was so impressed and inspired at what can be achieved by human beings who have very few resources but have vision, passion, a love of animals and a burning desire to somehow try to alleviate the suffering imposed on these defenceless bears and allow them to find a new life of freedom.

They have created a wonderful courtyard dedicated to the memory of all their departed bears and to the rescued bears they could not save and died before they “felt the grass”.

It is a serene setting with simple walls with recesses where the bear’s name is engraved on a plaque. I loved it and of course shed copious tears there.

We spent quite a long time there reading about the bears, sitting on the simple benches and thinking how sad that these sanctuaries have to be created at all. The truth is that as long as humans and animals are competing for the same space or there is human greed in this world, the animals are the losers.

Everything about the sanctuary touched my heart. It was so lovely to see my George and the other contented bears sleeping, playing, foraging for treats, swinging on tyres, climbing, splashing in the swimming pool or just relaxing and enjoying the open air with the feel of grass beneath their paws . . . and not to be behind bars.

• Zona and her daughters have also worked as volunteers at an elephant sanctuary in Chiang Mai, Thailand and an orangutan sanctuary in Kuching, Borneo.