Wani Care Foundation

Emma Hankinson, Project Coordinator from Orangutan Health project visits us on Thursday 2-12. This after I received an email from Emma that se would like to visit us to share information with us about orangutans and the work OHP is doing. Emma heard about PPSC and Wanicare from one of their volunteers (Rosey Gurr) who was also a volunteer here in Cikananga last April 2010.

Orangutan Health Project is a long term research project. The primary focus is to understanding how wild orangutans combat parasitic infections. Parasite infections can and do affect everything from health to reproduction and fertility, and ultimately survival. Understanding preventive and curative methods in wild orangutans will aid rehabilitation programs in the future to teach possible reintroduced orangutans health practices similar to those of wild orangutan populations in surrounding areas, thus enabling a higher chance of survival once reintroduced orangutans are on their own in the forest.

Main research:
* Relationship of orangutans self medical behaviour of the elimination of parasites and illnesses
* Differentiation and specification of chosen parasites
* Seasonality of parasites
* Relationship between age, sex and parasite infection parameters
* Cross infection between humans and parasites

OHP do their study/research in Sumatra; Gunung Leuser national park, Bukit, Ketamble, Suaq and in Lawang where they having also their research station.

It was very interesting to meet Emma and her friend James who works as ecology in the UK.
We shared a lot of information and hopefully we can help each other in the near future. OHP is also hoping to use their data to improve the health of captive orangutans. In 2001 they did implemented a feeding trial at Singapore zoo. After 6 months, the parasites loads of the orangutans were greatly reduced, and the zoo has continued with the food stuff’s we suggested.

This we will do now also with our orang utans Noni and Dodo. Emma gave me some samples to collect the faces from Noni and Dodo in. OHP will do research on this and they will give us advise on the diet of Noni and Dodo. For us this means whey can improve their health and for OHP it will give more information about the research they do.

Would you like to have more information about Orangutan Health Project please look on their website: www.orangutan-health.org

Saturday 11-12 we moved our orang utans Noni and Dodo to their new cage.

As you could read in the last update on our website, PPSC received funding from Orangutan Outreach to prepare a new cage for Noni and Dodo. Last month we all worked very hard to finish the renovation as soon as possible, so we could move Noni and Dodo to their new cage.

Last Saturday it was the big day for Noni and Dodo (and for us)!

It was so great to see their reaction on their new area. Both where so happy with all the space they had and new enrichment. Also the pool they have in this cage is a big success; Noni who is normally not very interested in water is now playing inside the pool and has so much fun with the water. It’s amazing to see the fun they have and how happy they are now. I am so happy we could do this for Noni and Dodo. When Noni and Dodo came in to PPSC we gave them a cage that was a big improvement for them at that time; at the owner’s house they had a small concrete cage with no enrichment at all. But after 2 years in PPSC they absolutely grew out of this cage. That we where now able to give them these two big cages is amazing and feels so good. Until we can translocate them to a permanent home, this is a very good solution for them.

In this way I want to thank Orangutan Outreach for their help.

Nonong at the owner

In the story of the release of our two pythons (21-11-2010) you could read about the pig tail macaque (Macaca nemestrina) that we found sitting in a small cage next to the road.

That day the owner was not at home, we where only able to talk with some neighbors/family who told us the owner would not give it to us because they loved the macaque. After this we went to the local police who we ask to help us to convince the owner to hand over the macaque to PPSC so the macaque could have a good future again. Happily they where willing to help us and they tried a few times to talk with the owner, but without success! So we decided to go back. Last Monday 6-12-2010, whey went there together with the local police and with our vet (Sabrina) who told the owner how dangers it can be for them to keep a macaque as a pet because of all kind diseases they can have like TBC, Rabies, Hepatitis who are also dangers for human. After this the owner was finely willing to handing over Nonong to us.

Nonong in the transportbox

On the moment Nonong is sitting in the quarantine here in PPSC, se is doing very well and looks happy in her new cage where we give her a lot of toys to play with and enrichment. We did already an general body check, her body condition is good, se was a little dehydrated when se came in but also this is good again. We give here de-worming, collected blood to test her on diseases and we did a TBC test on her. When we have the results from the laboratory back and these are negative Nonong will be move to the macaque cages where Boss, Joko and princess also sitting. Hopefully soon we can translocate them to IAR in Bogor.

Nonong in the quarantine cage in PPSC