NZ Vet Nurse to Talk About Her Role in the Worlds Largest Bear Rescue
AUCKLAND, Jan. 12 /MediaNet International-AsiaNet/ --
Auckland born vet nurse, Tracey Hampton 28, will be speaking about her experience working with bears rescued from
Chinese bile farms at a public talk this Saturday at Parnell Conference Centre.
Tracey spent 13 months working at the Sanctuary in Chengdu run by the Hong Kong based charity, Animals Asia Foundation,
who has undertaken to end the barbaric practice of bile farming and ultimately rescue 7,000 bears.
“Bear bile farming is a cruel and completely unnecessary practice and I saw first hand how these magnificent animals
suffered physically and mentally so their bile could be extracted and used in Traditional Chinese Medicine,” said
Tracey. “I hope that by talking to people about what these bears are forced to endure I can help Animals Asia rally
further support to end bear farming before the Beijing Olympics in 2008.”
Tracey will give the audience an insight into the day-to-day events at the Animals Asia Moon Bear Rescue Centre now
home to 163 rescued bears. She will also be answering questions about “Moon Bears” – a lesser-known species of bear also
identified as an Asiatic Black Bear. It is estimated that less than 25,000 Moon Bears remain in the wild.
Tracey gained invaluable experience working with bears that had a catalogue
of injuries as a result of being caged for more than 20 years. She will be returning to the Sanctuary for a final
six-week stint and then back to Auckland to pursue her career closer to friends and family.
The talk begins at 1pm and tickets are $30 each (which includes afternoon tea). Bookings can be made by calling Ursula
Bowald on +64 9 620 0926.
A raffle and silent auction will be held with all profits going to support the work of Animals Asia Foundation.
ENDS.