Sloth bears are found across South Asia and face welfare threats from habitat loss, poaching, and the declining but persistent dancing bear trade.
Sloth bear welfare in the wild is threatened by habitat fragmentation forcing encounters with humans, retaliatory killing, and illegal capture for traditional practices. The near-eradication of the dancing bear practice in India through Wildlife SOS rehabilitation programs represents a major welfare achievement for this species. Rescued dancing bears require years of rehabilitation to overcome trauma from nose piercing, tooth extraction, and performance coercion. Wild population welfare requires both habitat protection and human coexistence programs reducing conflict-driven mortality.