When life gives you apples … roll on them and throw them in the bathtub. Meet Smudge, the cutest bear cub you’ll see this week (ok, maybe ever).
The four-month-old moon bear was rescued by conservation group Animals Asia from China's Nanning Bear Farm – an industrial bile farm.
In China alone, over ten thousand bears are being farmed for their bile – an ingredient used in traditional Chinese medicine. Farmed bears are often kept in cramped cages with little to no enrichment, but lucky for Smudge and the rest of the bears at Nanning, help is on the way.
"Smudge is the last bear that will ever be bred in captivity on the site," Animals Asia says.
The facility is being transformed as part of the 'Peace by Piece' campaign, the largest bear rescue ever undertaken. The project aims to help 130 bears at Nanning get from farm to freedom ... but it may not be quite that simple.
"Some of the 44 females may be pregnant … with up to four cubs."
The plans for the Nanning renovation are modelled after the organisation's award-winning bear sanctuaries in China and Vietnam. Plans include a pool, rehabilitation structures and a much-needed medical centre for the bears and their cubs.
"Not only will we turn the bile farm into a comfortable home for the bears, we will create a sanctuary AND education centre," they say. "By uniquely working with the Chinese government, we will also ensure that this new sanctuary will provide meaningful jobs to the nine existing farm workers. So, this isn't just a bear rescue, it's a landmark initiative to help change the hearts and minds of other farmers in the region."
You can follow along with Smudge's story by using the hashtag #MoonBearMonday.
