As a new initiative in our Healing without Harm campaign, Susan had done an incredible job of convincing 33 Chinese medicine shops to throw away their entire stock of bear bile products and pledge that they would never again prescribe or sell anything to do with bears.
Coinciding with the death of our beautiful Andrew on 9th February 2006, there was no doubt who our poster boy should be – his image shining out from the pharmacy windows on posters and stickers that carried slogans in Chinese making the owners’ feelings clear:
"We don't sell bear bile products."
"More than 10,000 bears are suffering because of bile extraction. Many have chronic gall bladder disease and liver cancer."
"You don't need bear bile products. And, they threaten your health."
"Please don't buy any bear bile products!"
Launching this initiative at Dahua Pharmacy, our staff made themselves busy from early morning putting up the posters and a huge backdrop, and placing stickers on the shop doors and on the counters selling the drugs.
Shop owner, Mdm Cui kindly let us place two large jars containing livers from the bears we have loved and lost - one "normal" and one diseased so that people could clearly see that bear farming was killing the bears – and potentially killing consumers of bear bile too. The media crowded around and took notes as Rainbow and I asked who in their right mind would take a such a substance from animals dying in agony with their organs rotting away?
Students from Chengdu Traditional Chinese Medicine University and Chengdu 9th Middle School, and volunteers from a local dog and cat shelter "Loving Homes" chanted and held slogans and placards high in front of the local media, and the crowd of interested onlookers grew.
At one point, it seemed as if we were going to be told by the police to leave. Apparently the Mayor of Chengdu was due to do his rounds of the city in preparation for Chinese New Year and it was felt that a demonstration would be seen in a negative light. Incredibly, they relented (as we had permission to be in the street) and with smiling faces told us "we know what you do" and gave us the thumbs up!
The finale came as the shop owners and Animals Asia staff piled the bear bile products high in a round metal container – and set the whole lot alight. The flames billowed up into the Chengdu sky as the media filmed and took photographs, and the products turned to dust. One elderly lady was heard to say it was exactly what should happen to bear bile and the atmosphere was electric as everyone clapped and cheered.
Our own life-size bear, Moonie (once again superbly played by Jacky in a moon bear suit) enchanted the public and had his picture taken in front of Franzi tiny cage, which had Caesar's full-metal jacket balanced on top.
The students proudly held high more placards, including one that featured a famous Chinese cartoonist Heibei and which announced:
Cow gallstones banned – we're still alive!
Tiger bone banned – we're still alive!
If bear bile was banned – we'd still be alive!
Mdm Cui faced the cameras and showed the intelligence and compassion of her peers when she said: "As traditional Chinese medicine practitioners and entrepreneurs, we should all do our part and stop selling bear bile products. I hope that more and more drug stores join us and help to end bear farming."
And then it was on to the next location – Chengdu Super Pharmacy – for a repeat of all the above. The walk there was memorable too – a group of dedicated, determined people with one pure motive and all shouting out slogans as we walked. The traffic stopped, people took photographs with their cell phones and I just wanted to burst with pride.
At the pharmacy, one final addition in memory of Andrew was added to the event. During the burning of the bile products we threw in a symbolic cardboard bear cage made last night by Rainbow's wife Hong Chuan and repeated our promise, together, never to give up until bear farming ends. This final act saw Andrew's beautiful face looking down at us from the posters and reminded us of the lines of our poem, Spirit of Hope:
"Please look upon the others and give them promise of hope soon, and
tell them to be patient, and proudly wear the moon."
And our dream for China 2010 – that more bears will have sanctuary where they truly belong – in the wild.
For more on our launch, and some great photos, please see here.
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The internet keeps us in touch with the world of the present and that of the past. Just recently, Mary Alice in the UK sent me the link to a website called Earth Protect, that brought back the memories of smiles and tears for the life of Andrew and so many bears we have loved and lost.
On the anniversary of Andrew's death in 2006, this beautiful song and words by Maria Daines shows that our bears are gone, but never forgotten. Andrew’s grave by the river overlooks the grassy mounds of bears, dogs and cats, who have enriched our lives. The immortal words written on his stone – “We are not weaker without you, but stronger because of you” – remind us all of why we are here.
His death touched staff and supporters around the world – and on this day of his anniversary, we’re launching an exciting new campaign in his memory. As part of our Healing without Harm campaign, we are joining together with traditional Chinese medicine doctors and pharmacists in China who have pledged never to use or sell bear bile or products.
More about that in the next blog in a day or so – but, for now, Maria’s song "Andrew", and the message I sent to the team on that unforgettable day we said goodbye to our beautiful Anderloo:
9th February 2006
Dear everyone,
I’m so sorry to pass on such sad news.........but we said goodbye to Andrew this afternoon. Early this morning he had a health check and ultrasound, which revealed that something was horribly wrong, and Kati and Phil then began abdominal surgery.
I won’t go into it now as it’s late and everyone’s so shocked and exhausted, but surgery was abandoned very early on as it became obvious that there was nothing we could do. It was the most aggressive and ugly cancer I have ever seen in my life and I don’t think anyone can quite believe it now.
The tumour removed surpassed anything we have seen before and, because the liver was so terribly affected (with approximately 5 per cent of its normal function remaining), Andrew’s blood wasn’t able to clot and he had been slowly bleeding to death.
Even yesterday, he ate more than he’d eaten the whole week before; those soft gentle lips pursing for another slice of tomato, a second tub of yogurt and a blueberry muffin, causing us to wonder for a second whether we were right to bring his surgery forward. So many variables are involved – and in the past we have felt surgery essential, only to find nothing medically wrong as the bears have entered a “normal” pattern of lethargic, inappetant behaviour associated with hibernation of the species in the wild.
Yet today, it was the killer we know so well... liver cancer; possibly originating from a tumour factor connected with the massive infection from damage caused on the farms, the demon that lurked silently in Andrew’s body, waiting for the chance to strike.
No words can ever explain the grief everyone here is feeling – we cremated and buried our mighty Andrew at 6pm with local TV cameras and the San Francisco Chronicle recording another chapter in bear farming history – an outpouring of anger and sadness which is difficult to describe even now, but which united everyone here with the conviction and determination that Andrew will never die in vain.
I know too that this will be a horrible day for you as well – Andrew was so much more than our ambassador, our friend.... he was the bear who began it all; our noble, forgiving, gentle giant who will live in our hearts forever.
RIP Anderloo, we love you.
Jillx
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Their eyes shone, their mouths grinned and their cheeks glowed pink with shyness as they walked up on to the stage to collect their prizes. Chosen out of 15,000 children across China, these were the 22 talented prizewinners who had run with the theme "Saving the Moon Bears" and rose magnificently to the challenge.
They painted, they drew, they wrote – all from the heart – describing in their own unique way how much bears suffer on the farms and what everyone can do to help set them free. The pictures were absolutely glorious – an honest interpretation of how a caged or free bear feels, all coming from the hearts of children who care.
Organised and funded by the Standard Chartered Bank, the competition was a runaway success, with the children and their parents from five cities of China competing for the "golden prizes" of plaque, certificate and a huge plush moon bear. Here are six gold medal winners’ fabulous artworks.
Over one hundred people came to our sanctuary for the prize-giving ceremony in front of the Chinese media – with speeches, a tour of the bear enclosures, a chance to see a gently sleeping Nina bear having a health-check on the surgery table, a cuddle with some of our devoted animal therapy Dr Dogs, and a delicious vegetarian lunch.
Bear Team Supervisor Rocky told everyone the story of our newly rescued cub, Jingle, who now has a Chinese name of “Tian Jiao” (favoured one) and the children’s eyes grew wide as they learned about her lucky escape from a farm.
Then there was Moonie (actually Senior Education Officer Jacky inside a moon bear costume), playing the fool and making all the children laugh. Our brilliant Education team of Rainbow, Sailing, Suki, Linda and Jacky had thought up a clever idea of showing the audience what a rescued bear needs the most. Their brightly painted props included vegetables, medicine, fruity shakes and bear food – and even a needle and syringe which Moonie spent minutes avoiding, before presenting his chubby bottom for that essential antibiotic and painkiller!
The audience loved it – and a perfect day with a perfect message was thoroughly enjoyed by all. With the final question: “Will you help us to end bear farming?” seeing an explosive and positive “YES!” – we were one more step closer to our goal.
Our heartfelt thanks to our friends at the Shanghai Standard Chartered Bank - especially General Manager retail Banking Products, Amy Liu, and her wonderful team; Sabrina, Roger, Bear and Jessica! The Standard Chartered Bank has many projects of social awareness across the world and we are proud to be working with them on something that has such an impact on the individual and the species as a whole.
As I said to the audience, if we can end just one wrong, just one example of torture in our lives, then we are giving children everywhere the inspiration that they can do more. As Jane Goodall says, there is always reason for hope – and one day, with children like these leading the change, we might heal this sick and suffocating world.
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A quick, but very heartfelt thank you, to all of you who've already signed up to send the bears a bunch of browse for Valentine's Day. They will absolutely love this bear version of a dozen red roses!
And for those of you who still need a last-minute gift idea, there's still time to send some browse on behalf of your special someone. It's as easy as a just few clicks - and makes a perfect "green" gift from the heart.
Please see here for more.
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Just back from Vietnam where, as ever, I've been so overwhelmingly impressed with the sheer tenacity and professionalism of our entire team.
Led by our fearless leader in Vietnam, Tuan Bendixsen, everyone, but everyone, kicked in to make sure that the bears were safely delivered to our sanctuary, then prioritised for health-checks, before being settled into roomy recovery cages. Here's Tuan, far left, with some of the team and below, our head vet, Heather.
Now waiting for the final hurdle of surgeries before being released into dens and grassy enclosures, our new family members are eagerly scoffing good food and treats never before enjoyed.
Working over the weekend, our teams in Hong Kong and country offices made sure that the updates were sent out quickly to the media and supporters across the world - keeping everyone informed.
The highs have included bears whose characters are quickly shining through their trauma. Bears that like to make "pillows" of their straw. Others who have only been used to watery rice gruel, yet spitting out pieces of watermelon with all the distaste of a 5 star Michelin chef.
Bears like Simon (yes, named after Simon Cowell) who make us smile with a character that seems he is used to getting his own way, but a teddy bear underneath, and Nicole who, bless her lovely big heart, is the the pudgiest female we've ever seen in the history of rescuing bears.
The lows are coming in thick and fast too - poor Noodle who has a terrible injury on his tongue, John who's blind and missing a limb, and of course our beautiful Raspberry who was euthanised on the surgery table on Sunday after we found the most hideous infection ravaging his poor battered body.
Thanks to YOU for your messages of support and encouragement as the rescue goes on. You are everything to these bears as they prepare for the weeks of surgery and recovery ahead.
See here to read about these brave souls and celebrate their new lives, because you cared.
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