Five Asiatic black bear cubs were rescued from a remote stretch of northern Laos and are being nursed back to health at a sanctuary, NGO Free the Bears said Monday, calling the one-day rescue the largest in its 24-year history.
Across Asia thousands of the animals, classified as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of endangered species, are kept in cages as pets and used to extract bile from their gall bladders for traditional medicine.
Working with Laos
police, the team swept in on three different locations in Luang Namtha province near the Chinese border last week.