LATEST RESCUE — 3 Monkeys in 1 Day

LATEST RESCUE — 3 Monkeys in 1 Day

The WFFT Rescue Team headed to Chumphon this week with a little trepidation. The last trip did not end well for the team or the vehicle as they fell victim to Thailand’s notorious traffic. However when animals are in need of help we always try to respond. Three primates needed our help after falling victim to the illegal pet trade in wild animals.

The first location was a small farm 30 minutes south of the city of Chumphon in a very rural location. There the team found a family of traditional farmers with a variety of caged and chained animals. Their target was a female Dusky Langur. About 3 years of age she had been kept as a pet since she was a baby. Living beside several Northern pig-tailed macaques (Macaca leonina) who were kept to harvest coconuts she was kept on a small leash. Unable to climb or mix with her own species she had become very nervous and was clearly exhibiting stereotypical behaviours. The team wasted no time placing her in a transport cage to remove her from this living hell.

Her owners clearly loved her but had neither the facilities nor knowledge to provide her with the specialist care she needed. What probably started as good intentions had resulted in years of torture for Tung-Nguen as she was named. As the team drove off with her they couldn’t help but feel pity for the poor creatures they had to leave behind. Songbirds in tiny cages and macaques chained to motorbikes waiting to continue their lives of enslavement with sadness in their eyes. The team then drove 45 minutes to the next destination.

Two macaques were living in a temple just north of Chumphon. A local human rescue team had captured a male and female Northern pig-tailed macaque after they came into conflict with local villages. These two were fairly tame and had clearly been kept as pets before escaping or being dumped. With no natural instinct to find food they had sought out humans as their only known provider.

As they can inflict severe injury and major damage to property they were captured and placed in a cage at the temple. However as they were not a natural pair the smaller female was constantly being intimidated by the presence of the male and this caused her severe stress. The small cage offered no enrichment for the two and was somewhat dilapidated and dangerous. It also could not be cleaned so was becoming more of a heath risk the longer they spent there.

The WFFT Vet Team quickly sedated the pair and removed them from their prison into transport cages to begin a new chapter in their lives. Fortunately the journey back was without incident. The three new residents were placed in quarantine. They will receive full health checks in the coming days but are already enjoying a healthy diet, enrichment and space to exhibit normal behaviour. A normal day for the WFFT rescue team but we never forget the difference this day will make to these animals lives.