Voices of the Wild

Hmm...now typing this entry at K's rented place.

Went with the girls today to an 'event'...as I termed it...at Rendezvous Hotel...

The event was hosted by ACRES, a non-profit organization advocating for the stamp-down on smuggling and abuse of wildlife animals, and animals in captivity. What especially got to me was a clip of the black bears in captivity in China, caged in cages only about as big as the bears themselves, with no room to sit, turn, roll or lie down. The first bear I saw in his cage don't even have the space to raise his head!! The only position they could assume was the one they held all along: stand in that single, stationary position. The bears kept in such apalling conditions eventually turned crazy, and they banged their heads repeatedly against the metal bars of the cage, developing permanent scars on their heads. The bears were caged for their gall bladder; the farmers stabbed the bears with metal rods to drain them of their gall bladder, and the wounds were never allowed to heal. The only time the bears were let out of their cage was to be slaughtered.

From the speech given by the founder of ACRES, it seems that their campaign to stop bear-farming in China was near to impossible, as most of the bear-farms in China were owned by the government. Sad to say, countless more bears will undoubtedly face the same tragic fate, for the bear farmers do not actually think it is wrong to keep the bears in such way, nor do they feel that the bears are suffering.

Louis, the main founder of ACRES, went on to recount many more stories of rescue of animals. We heard stories of how smugglers would stuff primates and birds into pipes and store them in their cabin luggages. Upon arrival, more often than not, the poor animals would die.

Dear friends, if you are reading this, do whatever you can to contribute in part to the rescue of the animals; be it donation, or volunteering your time and energy.

Visit them @ www.acres.org.sg to find out more.