Dotty The Otty From Kho Samui is welcomed at the WFFT Centre!

This week another poor little soul has been rescued by the WFFT Wildlife Rescue Team.
Phil is a WFFT friend who runs a snake rescue programme on Kho Samui. He called us after someone dropped an otter off with one of his friends. The WFFT Wildlife Rescue Team then headed down to Koh Samui to pick up the small-clawed otter (Amblonyx cinereus) Dotty. The only information the initial owner gave before he abandoned Dotty is that she was kept as a pet !

Oriental small-clawed otters are currently listed as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. However, the remaining population is hard to estimate. Throughout South Asia, where they are found, the main threat to its continued survival is the destruction of its fresh water habitat, pollution, and the threat posed by poaching, for the fur trade and pet trade. Sadly, an increase in keeping these animals as pets has been seen throughout Thailand. We are hearing reports of otters ‘farms’ where many are being specifically bred for the pet trade.
So, let’s never forget the wild animals belong in the wild!

However, after a long car ride the WFFT Wildlife Rescue Team Finally arrived back at the centre the next day. To allow her stress levels from the trip to drop and to let the sweet baby get some comfy rest, a more comprehensive health check will be conducted later this week. She is in quarantine, in a temporary home that has been specially adapted to her needs.
She looks like she is settling in to her new life. After her period of quarantine we hope she can join with some of our other otter residents.
For the moment she enjoys naps, food, water games, and naps again, and food again, and… a real otter life.
Welcome Dotty!!!

We are receiving otters and other abused wild animals which have been kept as pets at an alarming rate and require to build more enclosures to house them all. This costs money. If you would like to help us create some new otter enclosures please see donation options here https://www.wfft.org/donate/