Two bears which were illegally held in captivity in the southern province of An Giang have been sent to a rescue centre, making An Giang the next locality in Vietnam to officially put an end to bear farming.

  A bear which has just been rescued from a farm in An Giang Province

The bears weighing about 150-170kg each had been held captive in cages of only 10.5m2 in Long Xuyen City since 2006. However, the bears were lucky to not to suffer bile extraction.

The owner voluntarily handed over the animal to authorised agencies.

They are the last two captive Asian black bears in An Giang Province, officially ending the trade in the area.

Nguyen Thi Phuong Dung, director of the Operations Director of Education for Nature Vietnam, said that, within one week, three illegally-bred bears had been brought to rescue centres, including the one in Phuc Tho District, Hanoi.

"This is a good sign, showing the joint efforts being made to protect the species in Vietnam," Dung noted.

About 1,200 bears still remain in captivity across Vietnam.