Even though outlawed in 1998, nothing much has been done to help, and poachers still hurt, torment and cruelly treat Sloth Bears and their cubs.
Poachers search for mother sloth bears who have cubs under six months of age. They then kill the mother and abduct the cubs, which are sold to local villages. Once there, the bear cubs have their teeth knocked out and their claws cut off. Since it is impossible to tame these wild animals, the bear cubs are forced to wear muzzles.
But these muzzles are permanent. A red hot iron is used to drill a hole in the bear’s snout, and a rope is passed through the wound to create a harness. These wounds are intentionally kept raw in order to ensure that the bear obeys its master’s commands.
At street performances, the rope is tugged so the bear must stand on its hind legs—a cruel action that is supposedly equivalent to dancing. Due to the pain, the sloth bear cubs rarely survive more than a few months.
So please, sign this petition, and promote the S.O.S.~ http://www.wildlifesos.org/category/tags/sloth-bears -(their website)
(information from http://forcechange.com/16775/end-cruel-practice-of-indian-sloth-bear-dancing/)
