Last September I returned to Borneo to revisit old friends at the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation Centre. This was to film a second series of Orangutan Diary for the BBC and Animal Planet, writes Steve Leonard.
There were 300 apes in captivity when I first visited the centre in 2006, and now there are over 600. The continuing destruction of forests in Borneo is happening at a phenomenal rate and the fall-out from this is more and more orangs coming into the centre.
One of the most disheartening issues facing orangutans is the killing of mothers and taking their babies into captivity as pets. These babies often die from inappropriate care and feeding. The charity finds these orphans through a carefully nurtured relationship with the local communities and confiscates them. Once in care at the centre they are put into the rehabilitation programme that takes up to seven years.
The infants are cared for by ‘baby sitters’ who look after their every need. Quite often they require careful veterinary attention as they carry a multitude of illnesses including malaria, hepatitis and even HIV.
I spent a great deal of time working with the veterinary staff trying to help wherever I could. Orangs are the most enigmatic, engaging creatures I have ever worked with. They are uncannily human in their responses to us. The infants are desperate for closeness in the exact same way as a human child. With around seven babies per human that means you can be soon wrapped in an orange furry coat when the temperature and humidity is already unbearable.
When they have settled into the centre and have gained a little more confidence, they are endlessly entertaining – playing, exploring, wrestling and tumbling like little clowns. They are capable of so many facial expressions that never fail to amaze.
“When you first arrive you think you could never tell them apart but they all look subtly different and have completely different personalities. They don’t make model patients because I am not used to animals with hands capable of removing bandages, picking at IV catheters or disappearing up trees when it’s time to take the medicine.
“The staff at the centre are the most dedicated, hard working people I have ever met. The babysitters care for their charges as well as their own children, showing the most unbelievable patience and compassion.
With less than 25,000 orangutans in the wild, each life is precious and these little orphans have had the worst possible start to their lives being ripped away from their mothers. They deserve all the best we can give them now.”
For anyone wanting to know more about the work the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation Centre does there will be a talk on Wednesday, May 6, at Whitchurch Rugby Club, at 7.30pm. The event will be an opportunity for people to hear more about these amazing animals and the efforts the centre’s staff go to protect and care for them. Tickets are available from Leonard Brothers Veterinary Centre which is between Iceland and Home Bargains on Brownlow Street in Whitchurch.
The orangutan sanctuary is such an emotive project that people very often want to donate or find out more: donate.wspa.org.uk/BOS
