Asiatic Black Bears

Asiatic black bears are also known as “moon bears”, and are the most common species farmed for their bile. Extraction of a bear’s bile is done in a process the farmers call “milking,” and is usually performed twice a day. A catheter in the form of a rubber or steel tube is implanted into the bear’s abdomen by the farmer. The bile is then drained from the catheter, collected, and sold for traditional Asian medicine.