The bear farm at the centre of an international animal cruelty row was finally closed yesterday as Animals Asia rescued the facility’s sole surviving bear.

Moon bear Song Sot was saved from the Cau Trang Bear Farm in Vietnam’s Halong Bay region – the country’s premier tourist spot – after Animals Asia’s seven-month Save the Halong Bay Bears campaign.

That campaign resulted in Animals Asia being given a remit to shut down every bear bile farm in Quang Ninh, by transferring every bear in the province to their Vietnam Bear Rescue Centre in nearby Tam Dao. The Cau Trang farm is the first to close following the campaign.

Tragically, Song Sot was the sole survivor of the farm’s 27 moon bears – a protected species in Vietnam – all of whom have died in questionable circumstances since November 2014.

Animals Asia’s Vietnam Director Tuan Bendixsen said:

“As expected Song Sot was in a terrible state. He was extremely weak, lethargic and desperate for food. Due to the bear’s poor health and the overt hostility from the farm owner, Nguyen Trong Bo, the veterinary team decided not to conduct a health check at the scene. Instead Song Sot was transferred directly back to our bear rescue centre in Tam Dao where he will receive medical care and be given every chance to make a full recovery.”

With Vietnam’s captive bears having been microchipped in 2005 as part of a programme instigated by World Animal Protection, it is now impossible for the farm owner to purchase new bears by legal means, signalling the end of his decade-long exploitation of the protected species.

The Veterinarian who visually inspected Song Sot during the rescue reported that Song Sot’s condition is among the worst he’s ever seen. 

Joost Philippa, Animals Asia Senior Veterinarian said:

“As feared, Song Sot is extremely weak and his condition is as bad as any I’ve ever come across. He is painfully thin, has wounds on his back and paws, and appears to have a respiratory infection which is thankfully something we can start to treat straight away.

“Most important now is for Sot Song to regain his strength through plenty of rest, a good diet, and close veterinary monitoring. In a few weeks, once he is physically stronger, then we’ll be able to perform a full health check.”

The rescue team arrived back at Animals Asia’s Vietnam Bear Rescue Centre in Tam Dao National Park at 2.30pm on Thursday.

Animals Asia founder and CEO, Jill Robinson MBE said:

“Clearly, the farmer, Nguyen Trong Bo, has failed utterly in his duty to care for the 27 moon bears which he kept in appalling conditions. His refusal to transfer the bears to our sanctuary has resulted in nothing less than a massacre. Just a single bear has survived the horror of Mr Bo’s farm, while 26 have been allowed to die. It is shameful that this was allowed to happen and the only solace we can take is to care for Song Sot, respect and love him, and know that this man will never be able to treat a single bear this way again.”

Animals Asia’s Save the Halong Bay Bears campaign was launched in January this year after a November 2014 inspection of three farms in the region revealed bears being kept in appalling conditions and in danger of starving to death.

As bears continued to die at alarming rates, the campaign drew the support of more than 100,000 people around the world, launched a tsunami of local media interest and received diplomatic backing from 12 ambassadors to Vietnam.

In April, the constant pressure led to a breakthrough as the Quang Ninh provincial authorities gave Animals Asia permission to rescue all 38 bears being held in captivity across the province – finally making it bear bile farm free.

Prior to today’s rescue, two bears have been rescued, while Animals Asia waits for the authorities to give the go-ahead to rescue missions in 16 locations around the province.

Local farmers have until the end of June to agree to the transfer with local government offering a “reward” for giving up the bears before the deadline. The authorities have made it clear that after this time, all the bears will be confiscated regardless of whether the farmer has agreed to the transfer.

Animals Asia has no involvement in the negotiations, which are entirely between the Quang Ninh provincial authorities and the bear farm owners, but the charity has stressed urgency to avoid any further bear deaths.

Since it was announced that Animals Asia would be able to rescue every bear in Quang Ninh, five bears have died while three have been rescued, leaving 30 bears in captivity across the province.

The epidemic of captive bear deaths in Quang Ninh mirrors a nationwide trend. Statistics from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development reveal 700 captive bears died between 2014 and March this year.

The statistics show that 1,245 bears remain in captivity in Vietnam.

Bear bile farming has been illegal in Vietnam since 1992, when Decree 18/HDBT made the trapping of endangered species from the wild illegal.

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