Bear guardianship
Be the Guardian of a rescued moon bear
A once-in-a-lifetime chance to give a rescued bear a future – and their forever name.
Be their light after darkness
Imagine spending decades in a cage so small you couldn’t turn around. A life of fear, pain, and solitude. This is the reality for bears trapped in the bile industry.
Now, imagine being the reason that changes for one bear.
For US$15,000 you can give a rescued moon bear the ultimate gift: a second chance. A future filled with safety, sunshine and sanctuary. And a name – chosen by you – that will stay with them for the rest of their life.
What it means to be a Bear Guardian
This is no ordinary sponsorship. Being a Bear Guardian is an intimate, high-impact commitment that transforms a bear’s life and deeply connects you to their journey of healing.
As a Bear Guardian, you will:
- Name your bear, creating a lifelong bond with them
- Receive exclusive updates, photos and videos from the sanctuary
- Enjoy personal, ‘behind-the-scenes’ insights from our expert bear care team
- Be recognised with a framed Bear Guardian certificate
- Know that every day, your love is bringing a bear closer to healing
'Becoming a Bear Guardian wasn’t just about giving a bear a future – it gave me a sense of peace, knowing I’ve helped heal the past.'
A healing journey you’ll take together
The bears we rescue have endured years – often decades – of unimaginable suffering. Trapped in metal cages. Starved. Subjected to painful bile extraction. Many arrive physically broken and emotionally shut down.
But thanks to exceptional people like you, they find safety at our sanctuaries in China and Vietnam. Here, they experience grass under their paws, enrichment for their curious minds, and the gentle companionship of other rescued bears.
It costs a minimum of US$15,000 a year to provide the bespoke diet, rehabilitation, enrichment, and medical care each rescued bear needs. Bear Guardians provide this in their first year of caring for their bear and thereafter can contribute from US$2,500 a year towards their essential ongoing care.
Meet some of the lucky bears who have their very own Guardian
Celeste Cheeky, friendly, playful
Ban Smart, fun-loving, pretty
Hertford Bear Confident, friendly, foodie
A rare and personal opportunity
Bear Guardianship is one of the most exclusive ways to support our work. It’s also one of the most life-changing and profound — for you and your bear.
Only a handful of bears each year are matched with a Guardian. Your role is unique – and your impact, transformational.
Whether you name your bear in honour of a loved one, or create a legacy of your own, your kindness will live on in the life of a bear who’s been through the unimaginable.
What our Guardians say
Jeremy Higgs 'You never forget the moment you see a photo of "your" bear playing, climbing, resting in the sun. It’s a feeling like no other.'
Theodora Capaldo 'Being a Bear Guardian has deepened my connection to Animals Asia. I feel part of something truly extraordinary.'
Maryann Bredin 'I named my bear after my late husband. Knowing his name lives on in this gentle soul means the world to me.'
Become a Bear Guardian
This is your moment to make a lasting difference.
Very few people will ever experience the deep, personal connection of Bear Guardianship. Will you be one of them?
Find out more about this exclusive opportunity
Please complete the form below and we’ll be in touch soon! It would be really helpful if you could provide a phone number so that we can talk more about your potential Bear Guardianship.
Bear Guardianship FAQs
With a gift of US$15,000 – you can become the bear guardian of one of our rescued bears and help us provide them with their basic needs: vet and medical care, shelter in our secure and semi-natural bear enclosures, and healthy food and enrichment.
After a year of being a guardian, you may wish to continue caring for your bear with an annual gift from US$2,500. By continuing your special guardianship, you’ll be helping to ensure your bear receives the best of care for the rest of their life.
Your sponsorship contributions provide invaluable support, helping us ensure that we can care for these bears for the rest of their lives and that they can leave their horrific pasts behind them.
To make sure that all of our deserving bears benefit equally from your generosity, your contributions are combined with those from other bear guardians and used to pay for medical care, food and enrichment such as toys and healthy snacks. The funds also go towards maintaining the bear housing and enclosures – thereby not only benefiting the bears located in the same sanctuary as your bear, but also the other bears in our sanctuaries.
As a Bear Guardian, you can be safe in the knowledge that your support directly helps the bears who need it most.
In return for your support, you will:
- Choose a forever name for your very own bear
- Give your bear all the care and support they need to thrive for a whole year
- Receive a welcome pack with your bear’s life story in a rescue diary
- Receive regular updates and photos of your bear
- Receive an exclusive Bear Guardian pin badge to mark your special support
- Be supporting community education projects that help to protect bears in the wild
- Become part of the historic journey to ending bear bile farming in Vietnam for good
Once you become a Bear Guardian, you will be the sole guardian of your bear for the rest of his life and your updates are just for you.
Caring for the rescued bears is a long-term commitment for Animals Asia. As our bears need sponsorship for the whole of their lives, we are hugely indebted to those of you who are able to continue caring for your bear after a year of being a guardian with an annual gift of USD2,500 to help care for your bear and support our work.
The funds will exclusively be going towards the bears across our sanctuaries.
Your donation will help to provide medical care, food and enrichment. It will also go towards maintaining the bear housing and enclosures to give the bears the best life we can.
You can see further information on previous years’ financial performances here.
Animals Asia’s privacy policy can be found here.
Once you fill in the form to get more information about the programme, the Bear Guardianship team will reach out to you to provide further information on the programme and the next steps. We will introduce you to several bears who are still waiting for their guardians – the final choice of which bear you would like to commit to is yours.
Once your payment is confirmed we will send you your Bear Guardian welcome pack.
Payments can be made by credit card, direct debit, bank transfer or by cheque.
Paying by credit card or direct debit helps keep our administration costs low and ensures that your contributions directly benefit the bears.
If you can’t donate the $15,000 to start the sponsorship at once, you can pay in two installments over 18 months. The first installment should be no less than $10,000 in order to reserve the bear you’d like to sponsor. You will receive your Welcome Pack and updates once the full payment has been completed.
Once you become a Bear Guardian, you are the sole guardian of your bear. By continuing your special guardianship, you’ll be helping to ensure your bear receives the best of care for the rest of their life. It costs roughly $15,000 a year to care for your bear – from the delicious and nutritious food they eat, the world-class veterinary team aiding your bear’s recovery, to the shelter and security of their special den, your bear will feel the warmth of your kindness every single day.
If you are unable to continue to support your bear with an annual gift of at least $2,500, your bear will retain the special name you gave them, but we will no longer send news and updates about your bear.
The bears are allocated on a first come first serve basis. If there’s a bear you’d really like to sponsor, we advise you to reach out as soon as possible to secure your bear guardianship.
There are currently 50 bears waiting for their guardian in our Vietnam sanctuary. Only bears in good health condition are available for Bear Guardianship.
The list of bears available for Bear Guardianship will be edited as we rescue Vietnam’s last bile bears.
Yes, you will be the one and only Bear Guardian of your bear.
Our sanctuaries in China and Vietnam are open to the public two days a month and by prior arrangement only.
We are not open to the public on a daily basis but do have designated Open Days every month. You can find full information on visiting our China and Vietnam sanctuaries here.
Due to limited resources and public safety, we cannot accept visitors at other times. These days are scheduled in advance so the veterinary team, bear managers and other staff involved can plan their schedules around them, thus causing minimal disruption to the sanctuary’s operation and to the bears.
Unfortunately it is not possible for us to accept personal gifts for our bears.
When the bears first arrive at our sanctuary they are given nicknames by our staff and by becoming a bear guardian, you can choose a forever name for your very own bear.
Once you become a guardian, we will send you regular updates on your bear’s well-being.
If your bear falls ill, your contributions will help cover the cost of the medical care required to keep him or her healthy.
If your bear passes away we will notify you.
If your bear passes away within the first year of being a guardian, you will be given the opportunity to become a bear guardian of another bear awaiting their forever name and their special guardian.