IWMC.org - 2nd Symposium - Issues of Relevance

Bear Farming - An Important Approach to Satisfy Human Beings’ Medical Requirements and Safeguard Wild Population of Bears Shaorong Zhu Senior Pharmacist and Deputy Director, Deer Farm of Sichuan Provincial Chinese Medicinal Material Company (DFC)

Quiet a lot of scientific data have been accumulated through years of production practice and concerning research activities. The data not only accelerated production within deer farms, but also provide essential reference experiences for other farms at nation level, in particular provided reliable data to establish national criteria of bear gall powder. Temporary criteria promulgated in 1989 and Ministerial (public health) Standard that enacted in 1996 both had taken the use of vast amount of basic data. In some degrees, the data are not only capable to demonstrate the quality of the powder efficiently, but also provide important reference to assess a farm whether or not hold well-rounded production technology. Official document issued by the Ministry of Public Health in 1996 to enact the national standards of the powder, the deer farm was assigned as both production and research unit. The enactment of the standard ended the history of medicinal administration on gall powder can only by nature but by quantity.

Pivotal technology in captive breeding is the foundation of the development of artificial breeding industry and sustainable use of precious natural resources. The deer farm selected the simple and practical applied technology breached the barrier of large scale artificial captive breeding of bears, all achievements come from broad and deep understanding on requirements of bear’s reproduction and its physiological needs. At present, all adults female bears, as part of parental stock, can mate and reproduce cub in every year. Totally about 43 female adults may reproduce about 60 cubs.

For quiet a long period of time, some experts insisted that bears which suffered operation for bile collection can not reproduce. The practice in the deer farm ended such kind of view of point, most individuals of the parental stock are gathered from bears used for bile collection for a period of time, almost all present bears as parental stock are those have make contribution to human-beings’ healthy. Alternation between groups of bears for reproduction and for bile collection can help to avoid the risk of inbreeding, as well as benefit to maintain the healthy of bears.

The development of bear farming in the deer farm are achieved under energetically instruction and assistance from competent department of forestry, medical administration and public health, and from relevant experts. It also consist of accumulated knowledge and experiences by the deer farm’s scientific research staff which were highly inspired by urgency of times and with precisely objective attitude. It should be deserved to mention here, several awards for scientific progress involve with bear farming technology have been granted to the deer farm, i.e. Second-class science and technology progress of Sichuan Province award granted to the deer farm in 1989, research on infection prevention after operation for bile collection were granted a Third-class science and technology progress award of Sichuan Province, and the research on bile collection and bile powder’s quality control were granted as a Second-class science and technology progress award of Chengdu City. There still quiet a number of other science and technology progress have been achieved which have not apply for any kind of awards as they are core secret of enterprise.

Bear farming is a rising wild animal husbandry cause started in the 1980’s, the contents involved with protection and sustainable use or development are very rich, by the time of present, acquired achievements still keep in very superficial. To shape up traditional Chinese medicine and to protect rare and precious wildlife resources, there is still long way to go and hard work to be fulfilled. In afterwards, we will continue as always to go deep into concerning production and scientific research, and the assistance from relevant wildlife protection experts and medical treatment colleague can still be desired. Your comments and creative opinions will be incorporated into our developing plan and help us to better balance the needs from medical treatment and wildlife protection. Further, I am sure your comment will benefit to the health of human beings, in the meantime, bear as a global common rare and precious animal resources can be better protect in particular to its welfare. Ť

IWMC World Conservation Trust