Investigating Health Impact of Bear-Bile Farming

More than 17,000 Asiatic black bears currently are farmed for bile in Asia with little data on how this practice impacts their health and well-being. Bile-farmed Asiatic black bears have shown a high incidence of aortic aneurysms, a condition not known in any other bear species. Researchers will evaluate if other health problems noted in bile-farmed bears, such as kidney disease and systemic hypertension, are associated with this high incidence of aortic aneurysms. Improving our understanding of the presence, severity and potential causes of aortic aneurysms in bile-extracted bears will help the growing numbers of animals being rescued from bile farms. It also will raise public awareness about the health consequences of bear-bile farming.