Friday, February 4, 2011

The Bare Minimum Isn't Enough




So one of the causes I have joined while I am in Seoul, South Korea is an organization called The Bear Truth. I had heard a lot about this organization because my friends here are involved in it and I would see their awareness campaigns that exposed the mistreatment of these bears in South Korea. The Moon Bears are held in captivity and are "farmed" for their bile so that they can make medicine from it. Now, I am all for using natural methods of curing illnesses and disease alike, but extracting bile from a bear's gallbladder should not be on the list. After doing some research on this issue, I found this information (from Wikipedia):

To facilitate the bile milking process, the bears are commonly kept in extraction cages, also known as crush cages, that measure around 2.6 feet x 4.4 feet x 6.5 feet (79 cm x 130 cm x 200 cm) for an animal that weighs between 110 to 260 pounds (50 to 120 kg).[2] While this allows for easier access to the abdomen, it also prevents the bears from being able to stand upright, or in some cases move at all. Living for 10–12 years under such circumstances results in severe mental stress and muscle atrophy.[3] In two model Chinese bile farms, the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) reports that the bears are moved to the crush cages for milking, but the rest of the time live in a cage large enough to stand and turn around.[2]
The World Society for the Protection of Animals sent researchers to 11 bile farms.[2] They reported seeing bears moaning, banging their heads against their cages, and chewing their own paws. The mortality rate is high. Bile bears suffer from a variety of physical problems which include loss of hair, malnutrition, stunted growth, muscle mass loss, and often have their teeth and claws extracted.[4] When the bears stop producing bile after a few years, they are usually killed for their meat, fur, paws and gall bladders. Bear paws are considered a delicacy, and have been seen priced at $250.[2]




So The Bear Truth, amongst other organizations, stand for stopping this process. Wiki even goes on to saying that, "Bear bile is not always needed to make traditional Chinese medicine or other products. Many herbs, such as coptis or rhubarb, can be used as alternatives for bear bile." But like many things, money seems to be a driving force. In order to save the bears, the farmers have to be paid off--and then there are the sanctuaries where the bears would live out their days. In South Korea alone, there are 1,140 bears that are in these bear farms. And the upkeep costs for the bears in these sanctuaries are steep.

Currently, The Bear Truth's mission is to get the Korean Parliament to pass a bill that will make bear farming an illegal practice; but like many causes, they cannot do it alone. For this, they have created a 5 step action plan:

The 5 Action Plan!

*Register on TheBearTruth
*Donate/Buy a bear (Help us fundraise to continue our campaigns)
*Join Our Events
*Spread awareness with friends www.thebeartruth.org.
*Join our cause on Facebook and Twitter page.


The Bear Truth will be hosting another awareness campaign soon in Itaewon. Now, Dear Readers, I know that most of you don't live in South Korea. But the more you know, the more you can tell someone else about it. So do what you can. Buy a bear through the website (it's legit, I promise) and lend your voice to the cause, and the bears. The Bare minimum simply isn't enough.

xox
c