At her recent concert in Chengdu, her special 'guest' was an Asian Black Bear, or rather, a crew member dressed in a bear costume. Karen then revealed that 13 years ago, she had adopted an Asian Black Bear (also known as moon bears), which she nicknamed Bao Bei. Sadly, the bear passed away last year and she went on to express how distraught she was when she heard the news. Karen, who was clearly still very emotional talking about Bao Bei, then urged her fans to pay attention to animal protection.

Though she became the official ambassador and patron for the Animals Asia Foundation in 2010, she was already involved with the group since 2004 after learning the horrifying conditions suffered by bears on bile farms.
“I came across this article on the moon bears, bear bile and this whole business,” she said then in an interview. “I had no idea that in order to get this bear bile, you have to make these animals suffer so much. I mean, imagine, they're being kept in these cages for years on end and I was just so shocked. Unless consumers stop buying bear bile products, this brutal industry will never die. So, please, please think before you buy.”

Karen, who is a vocal advocate for animal cruelty laws, hopes that one day those moon bears in captivity will be set free. “We must remember to have empathy, and my greatest wish is that all wild animals will be able to live their lives freely forever,” she said.

Karen filming a documentary about the rescue of honey bears in 2007. 

Back in 2007, it was also reported that the singer had donated her earnings from her China concerts to the foundation.