Your questions about ending bear bile farming – answered
Ending bear bile farming in Vietnam is one of the most complex and inspiring animal protection missions in history. With your support, we’ve made extraordinary progress – but the final stage comes with new challenges and important questions.
Below, we answer some of the most common questions about where we are now, why this moment matters, and how we can finally bring the final bears home.
Bear bile extraction is illegal in Vietnam, but bears that were registered before the practice was outlawed can still legally be kept by their owners.
This means that while no new bears can be taken from the wild or farmed for bile, those kept at private homes can remain there – often in small cages – unless their owners voluntarily surrender them.
We cannot remove the bears by force. Instead, we work with the Vietnamese government to encourage bear owners to hand over their bears to our sanctuaries, where they will receive lifelong care.
The bears are legally owned and kept on private property. Entering a private home without consent is against the law.
Animals Asia always works with kindness and respect. Forcing the removal of bears would damage the trust we’ve built with local communities and governments across Asia. It could also close the doors to future collaboration, harming not just bears in Vietnam, but animals everywhere.
Our approach is painstaking – but it’s the only approach that works long term. We rely on patience, education, and partnership to create permanent change for animals.
Many of the remaining bear owners have had their bears for over 20 years – these bears were often brought into families as cubs. Some owners see them as part of the family, and they worry about what will happen to them if they surrender them to Animals Asia.
That’s why we focus on building trust. We invite bear owners to visit our sanctuaries, meet our staff and see for themselves how well the bears are cared for. Every time one family hands over their bear, others in the community are inspired to follow.
By the time our new Bach Ma sanctuary opened in 2023, we believed rescues would accelerate. But as we reached the final strongholds, we were met with resistance, which we hadn’t anticipated.
Communities where bear bile farming had been part of local life for generations began to close ranks. At the same time, changes within the Vietnamese government meant that some of our long-standing contacts and allies moved to new roles, requiring renewed engagement and advocacy.
In 2025, we helped fund a nationwide inspection of all remaining bear farms. It confirmed that 156 bears remain across 53 homes. This gave us a clear picture of where the final rescues must happen.
When bear bile farming was outlawed, there was nowhere for the bears to go. The government allowed registered bears to remain in private homes until suitable sanctuary spaces were available.
Now that our Bach Ma Bear Rescue Centre is built and ready to receive bears, we’re urging the government to help us move the final bears there, where they will be safe for the rest of their lives.
No. Paying people to hand over bears would create a dangerous incentive, fuelling illegal wildlife trade and encouraging others to capture bears for profit.
Instead, we focus on collaboration, not compensation – working with the government and communities to make the compassionate choice the easiest one.
The number of remaining bears has fallen from around 300 to 156. That earlier figure was an estimate, based on limited data. Sadly, many bears have died over the years from illness and old age before we could reach them.
This is why time is so critical. Every bear still in a cage has already endured decades of suffering, and we are doing everything possible to bring them to sanctuary while there’s still time.
Respect is at the heart of everything Animals Asia does. In Vietnam and across Southeast Asia, diplomacy and courtesy are essential in building lasting relationships with both government and local communities.
The Vietnamese government has done more than any other country in the world to end bear bile farming. Their leadership, compassion and willingness to work alongside us have brought this practice to the brink of extinction. It’s a brave and forward-thinking commitment – one that is creating a future where animals are free from harm.
Our polite and respectful tone reflects our belief that partnership achieves far more than confrontation. By recognising the government’s progress and encouraging continued collaboration, we strengthen our shared commitment to ending bear bile farming for good.
This approach has already helped save hundreds of bears – and it’s the same approach that will free the rest.
We believe so. Together with the Vietnamese government, we’ve addressed bear bile farming from every angle – from rescue and care to legal reform, education, and reducing demand for bile products.
Our school programs are helping to shape a generation that understands compassion and animal welfare like never before. Traditional medicine practitioners across the country now promote herbal alternatives, and public attitudes are changing fast.
We’ve come too far to stop now. With your continued support, bear bile farming in Vietnam will end – forever.
You can help by standing with us in this final phase:
- Share our mission to end bear bile farming with friends and family to raise awareness.
- Sign up to receive our newsletter.
- Donate to help us reach every last bear.
Together, we can finish what we started – and give every bear in Vietnam the freedom they deserve.
Find out more
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Bear bile farming
Bear-bile farming traps more than 10,000 bears in lifelong cruelty. We’re working to end it - and give bears a chance to heal.
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Ending bear bile farming Vietnam
We're ending bear bile farming in Vietnam through rescue, education and government partnership.
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Our impact
From humble beginnings to global change – how Animals Asia has transformed animal welfare in Asia.
Help us put an end to animal cruelty
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