Approximately 14,000 Asiatic, Brown and Sun bears across south Asia are being tortured for the purpose of extracting their bile. In Chinese traditional medicine, a bear's bile, extracted from the gallbladder, is thought to have healing powers. "Bear farmers" keep these animals in tiny cages where they are literally crushed as they grow larger and larger. Meanwhile, a small permanent hole is cut in their abdomens where the bile can be drained from their gallbladders. The bears can remain in this horrific state for periods of up to twenty years. Bears on these "farms" have been observed to engage in disturbing behavior such as gnawing off their paws and/or beating their head and chest against their cage in attempts to kill themselves. This barbaric practice must be stopped.