WILD LINKS VIETNAM

From Saigon I travelled with old pals from Free the Bears Fund to stay at the new Forest Floor Lodge on the banks of the Dong Nai river in Cat Tien National Park. Our friend Matt Hunt (CEO) gave a guided tour of the new sanctuary for rescued bears from Vietnam's bear bile trade.
The Cat Tien Sixteen were the forgotten bears of Vietnam. In a country that has for years turned a blind eye to the illegal trade in bears, these sixteen animals represented a remarkable case purely on the basis of their having been confiscated at all. Their rescue however did not result in major changes in their lives, the only benefit was being saved from the torture of being milked for their bile for profit.
Free the Bears Fund Inc, along with Wildlife at Risk (WAR), were approached by Tran Van Thanh, the Director of Cat Tien National Park to help care for the bears. A two acre area of beautiful lush forest has been developed as a new home for the bears. This is the first semi-wild naturalistic sanctuary for bears of its kind in Vietnam that allow visitors to the park to see bears in their natural environment, helping to shape attitudes in Vietnam away from viewing bears as wild animals incapable of feeling pain or suffering.

Moon Bear


Mitza, a Sunbear at Cat Tien


Forest Floor Lodge with Evan, Mai Bateman & Nick Winstone

Inside view from lodge of amazing rapids plus beautiful rain

Monkey Island across the river

You get involved with the daily routine of caring for the bears, assisting with preparation of food and helping to hide feeds out in the forest enclosures. Other exciting activities is night spotting for wildlife in Cat Tien National Park, an overnight trip to the stunning Crocodile Lake and a visit to the Endangered Primate Species Centre on Dao Tien island where I met Alison Cronin, the Director of Monkey World Ape Rescue Centre, Marina the manager of Endangered Asian Species Trust and Wendy who lives on the island to care for all the species.
On our drive back to Ho Chi Minh City we stopped at the Chi Chi Wildlife Rescue Station to meet Simon & Matt from Wildlife at Risk (WAR) which is dedicated to protecting the biodiversity of Vietnam by combating the illegal wildlife trade, raising environmental awareness and promoting the conservation of endangered species and their habitats. We found a pretty & peaceful sanctuary that housed bears, friendly sea otters, gibbons, reptiles and exotic birds.

Chi Chi Wildlife Rescue Station


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