Archive for the ‘Rescued Chimps’ Category
Hi all! Just wanted to give you some update of Jac, our little friend I started blogging with…
Introduced into the main group last February, Jac received protection of the eldest female, Shasa.
SHASA taking care of Jac
Today, Jac has found his place in the main group and gets on well with all his mates.
Jac has made a lot of progress and his appearance has changed completely: compare both pictures below - you can hardly say it is the same baby chimpanzee… BEFORE (september 2007)
AFTER (June 2008)
Rescuing him has been a tough and stressful experience, but it was worth doing it! Jac has recovered all that pain he suffered from and now seems to be happy among the other chimps of our group… Dear Friends, although now each of you can see the donations on the blog, I do thank you again for your help and support. Donations are very important for the development of our Refuge. Thank you a lot! Roxane
Hi dear Readers! Fifteen chimpanzees are now staying at our Refuge Centre and Mwisho is the orphan we worry about most. Arrived last December, he still keeps himself isolated and selects the people he wants to have contacts with.
For the last weeks, Mwisho had a swollen thing, something like a “bubble” in the bend of his right arm.
As we thought it was a cyst, and because we wanted to have a medical check up made, a Congolese vet came to anaesthetize the young male . To our surprise, the little “bubble/cyst” turned out to be completely different than expected as we all discovered that it was a piece of metal that had settled in his arm.
Then, when looking closer, we realised the “thing” actually was the fragment of a bullet.
How could this have occured? Maybe, when the poachers attacked the group of chimpanzees to catch the youngsters, Misho might have been slightly hurt… or, maybe, this is a fragment of the bullet that killed Mwisho’s mum… A lot of theories can be given for this fragment and we will never know the truth. Though, one thing is sure: Mwisho is now rid of this ”thing” and has fully recovered.
We still don’t know when Mwisho will join the main group and remain certain the earlier the best. This traumatised chimp orphan has problems to deal with humans,sure , but the aim at JACK isn’t to domesticate chimpanzees . So, we are thinking of splitting the main group in two: (1) the group of the very young ones who still need contacts with the surrogate mothers and (2) the group of the elder ones, like Mwisho, who are already very independent and who no longer need to stay close to humans. But, doing so means JACK takes a new step forward and it won’t be an easy task to separate individuals who have been very close. Also, in order to organise these two groups, we need more space , extra fencing, advice, additional help and support …
We’ll keep you posted!
Roxane, Franck and the Chimps
Hi everyone! . Franck and I have been very busy recently as the Technical Advisor of JACK, Franck Chambon, who is also the animal keeper of the French zoo that helped us after the sabotage, came to work with us for a while.
Because we needed help and advice, our friend and advisor, Franck , decided to take three weeks off from the French zoo where he works, paid his own ticket and flew to DRC.
Franck Chambon
During his stay, he devoted all his time to the improvements of JACK’s facilities. I’ve told you already the orphans are now becoming stronger and taller and we absolutely must organize bigger and extra accomodation for them. Therefore, Franck drew the plans of the night facilities that we intend to build once we get the funds.
Thanks to Franck’s visit, two important improvements already have been carried out: (1) an extra outside enclosure has been finalized and this area full of trees will help the chimps for their future release in the wild
Chita and Wanza discovering the new enclosure . (2) Mwisho, the eldest chimp at JACK, has been given confidence. This chimp has been very aggressive to all of us since his arrival in December 2007. Seized in Kamina by Lubumbashi authorities in October 2007, the chimp couldn’t be transferred from one city to another because the seizure documents were said not to be legal… Mwisho, the eldest chimp at JACK
So, imagine, Mwisho who had been set in a small metallic cage, remained stuck in that same cage for about two long months with three big ropes around his neck. Stuck in a small enclosure for about two months
His owner had kept him with ropes and a wooden bar to control him as the chimp was known as very nervous and too active…
Mwisho at the place of his owner .
At the beginning, Mwisho stayed all hunched up in a corner refusing people to come close Thanks to Franck Chambon’s experience and knowledge in Great Apes, Mwisho has made a great step forward and now accepts to be touched and groomed. .
Coco, the latest newcomer, has been his neighbour for the last weeks, but you can still feel Mwisho remains on the defensive.
Coco Mwisho is doing a lot better today, and still needs more of attention and care. Our friend Franck has done such wonderful job and we are really grateful to him to have come so far, to have spent time, patience and determination into the Refuge Centre. THANK YOU, Franck! Dear Readers, here comes the last chapter of my weekly update: your donations! We couldn’t believe our eyes when we received the Wildlife donation report this afternoon!! Really, we cried for joy because all the money you’ve sent will enable JACK to buy the machine we need to build the facilities… Here are the donation details:(1) one time donations: Lucia C (100$), Dana J (50$), Ashley H (134$), Christine C (50$), Kevin C (10$), Pirjo L (50$), Susan A (200$), Oliver T (100$),Cathy R (150$), Wanda H (25$+25$), Sheryl B (25$), Anonymous (2000$) and (2) monthly donations : Anonymous (30$). Again, JACK thanks all of You ! this is just a dream…..
Dear All, Great news for this week: SEKI, the chimp that was so humanized and had to learn to become a chimp again, has finally been introduced! Recent blood samples had showed the baby chimp was very healthy and ready to join the group.
Our little friend was really happy to explore the main enclosure and, of course, so excited to run in the open air. He explored nearly every place of his new environment !
Seki exploring his new environment
But, the young chimp was worried. He knew there were other chimps and had seen them. What was going to happen next?
What next? Seki had met the eldest female, Shasa, before and that’s the reason why Shasa has been introduced firstly.
Anxious, the newcomer saw Shasa running towards him and, not knowing exactly what to do, opened his arms and welcomed the female with a big hug. This was magic, as both started playing, rolling and running around as if they had known each other for years !!
Shasa on top followed by Seki Then, it was Chita’s turn to come in. He’s a very pacific leader and actually didn’t pay attention at all to the newcomer. Chita just wanted to pass by with his blanket; nothing else.
Chita with his blanket
Slowly by slowly, the other members of the group were allowed to meet the new chimp. All went fine and one young male, named Kala, always stayed behind Seki as if he were protecting him like a big brother. Kala has become Seki’s best friend.
Kala protecting Seki
Seki grooming Kala
Although no signs of fight nor of aggressivity were shown towards him, Seki remained on the defensive mainly when all the chimps of the group were outside. . As you can see, SEKI has been successfuly introduced. Because of his past in the expatriate family, Franck and I were worried to know how SEKI would manage all this and we now can say “Well done, SEKI “
. Dear All, you know that I usually end my posts with the “Thank Yous”. Although I haven’t recieved last week’s PAYPAL report related to the donations for the purchase of that particular machine JACK needs, I already thank most of you as I know many of you have made donations. Once I get the PAYPAL report, a post will be written on donations only . Sorry about this…. Roxane
Welcome to JACK’s weekly post: today, I’ll speak about COCO, the latest chimpanzee orphan that arrived at JACK on April 10th.
Just like most of the seized orphan chimps of JACK, Coco was seen for the first time by authorities here in Lubumbashi. Hardly fed, very sick, the baby had a long rope around his neck and was sucking his finger as if he were seeking relief and confidence. It was in Lubumbashi on the 7th of November 2006; Coco was in the back yard of a General of the Congolese Army.
Inspectors of Environment couldn’t seize him: Coco was illegally detained by a “high ranking” soldier: each time the inspectors approached the house, they were threatened and intimidated.
A few days later, on the 28th of November, Coco was found in another house: he had been moved, still belonged to the same owner and was for sale: 600 USD. Seeing all these terrible pictures of Coco and knowing that there might be enormous risks in meeting the owner, Franck decided to go to this new place: he absolutely wanted to save that baby . On arrival, Franck found a poor Coco staying outside in the rain, with his long rope and several dogs surrounding him.
No agreement could be reached: if Franck wanted to get Coco, he had to pay… and you know, we can’t do that. To buy a chimp would mean that JACK keeps the illegal chimpanzee trade going and would be guilty of the slaughter of a whole chimpanzee family. Therefore, with plenty of regrets and pain, Franck left Coco to his sad fate. . The place he was in was full of urine and dirt; Coco still kept his fingers in his mouth and was apparently living hard times .
Coco indeed was being trained to attack any person approaching the owner’s truck. It sometimes happen to have your petrol stolen here and therefore the little chimp was attached to the truck and ready to bite you as soon as you came too close to the petrol tank.
Coco was easy to recognise: he had a black spot on his right cheek and very often had his fingers in his mouth. Each time you tried to take his hand from his mouth, he became aggressive and nearly bit you !
Later on, in early 2007, when the inspectors went again to the owner’s place, we were told Coco had died. In a former post, I sent you Coco’s picture mentionning he had passed away
November 2007, someone had seen a baby chimpanzee at a friend’s place: an expatriate who had bought the chimp on the street because the baby was in a horrible condition.
Many times, Franck tried to be in touch with the new owner to see what was going on. But, feeling that the expatriate guy had very few interest in the matter, Franck took the decision to visit the man at his office. The new owner spoke about “his” baby called Coco and, immediately, when looking at the pictures, Franck recognised the black spot on the right cheek… Coco was still ALIVE !!!
But, unfortunately, things didn’t turn up so easily. For reasons that are still unexplained, the expatriate man had doubts about our action of saving chimpanzee orphans and handed over Coco to a person of the presidential entourage. This person apparently promised that Coco would be released in a sanctuary in Kinshasa - a sanctuary that of course doesn’t exist !!!
People started calling the Refuge saying there was a chimp in the residence of the President. Unfortunately, despite the intervention of the local authorities, nothing could be done…
Then, on April 6th, for the second time, the DRC President visited JACK. As a result of this, in a few days time, Coco, who was in the house of the Head of State without the President’s knowing, was brought at the Refuge Centre. This act was very symbolic and JACK thanks Mister Joseph KABILA KABANGE, President of the DRC, of having given Coco the opportunity to join his species…
To us, these moments were magic especially because it was Coco and also because this baby had been tracked for so long by authorities…
Coco arriving at JACK
Today, Coco is doing well. He is a gentle little boy recovering from all that trauma he had been through for the last years.
He’s very strong, eats everything and is very independent.
With the latest newcomer, it means the Centre now takes care of 15 young ones. We have to provide extra accomodation and to improve facilities as the babies are getting stronger. These days have been very very busy. Things must be fixed as well and this time we need your support: to continue our improvements in order to give the best to the orphans of the Centre, we must buy a particular machine that combines (1) generator AND (2) melding machine. JACK currently can’t afford buying such equipment and can’t continue renting one; it costs a fortune !!! Therefore, I do ask you, dear readers, if you could help the Refuge: such machine costs about 2600 USD….
Pro Forma Invoice .
Fixing the night enclosure
Thanks already beforehand to all of you who can help ! Thanks also for the readers below for their latest donations: - (1) monthly donations : Birgitta S (10$), “Anonymous” (10$) - (2) one time donations : Oliver T (25), “Anonymous” (50), Wanda (35$)
One more thing before ending: JACK really appreciated the gesture of the President of DRC and wants to thank Mister Joseph KABILA KABANGE, the President of the Democratic Republic of Congo, for his interest : his act should be an example to all the ones detaining and mistreating Great Apes !
Roxane
. I feel so bad because there were picture problems with the latest post, and to apologize, I’ve posted extra pictures of JAC’s introduction. It is true, Sheryl, JAC now looks happy and this is a real victory. Who knows were JAC would have been today if a friend hadn’t seen him for sale on that local market?
Just like most of the others, JAC has miraculously survived and it is JACK’s duty to give these orphans a second chance. You see, although life can be very tough and sometimes dangerous here in Congo, well, I dare say I’m privileged and it’s a honor to me to help this species…
Okay, let’s come back to JAC: have a look at the following pictures!
JAC wasn’t used to that prickly grass, so when running, he lifted his legs and feet up! He had a funny way to run and the others strangely looked at him
Playing of course with his friend, WIMBI.
Searching for WIMBI!
After all that running and playing, JAC wanted to sit and rest for a while…
… but the others simply wanted to continue the game…
From th early beginning, JAC has enjoyed his new environment. Franck and I knew he was ready to face something completely different and, today, we are still surprisingly amazed to see how fast JAC has got on well with all the members of the group ! Well done, JAC !
Before ending, J.A.C.K. wishes to thank Birgitta S. (10$) and Theresa S. (10$) for their monthly donations. Your support is important to help J.A.C.K. in providing the best conditions to the chimp orphans.
Hope you enjoyed the extra pics and that they came out all right.
Roxane, Franck & the Chimps
This month is full of emotions: we had the arrival of SEKI about two weeks ago and, last weekend, we decided to finally introduce JAC into the main group. Remember, JAC was that poor little one found on a market last September, and, beaten up, terribly sick, he nearly died…
September 2007 - JAC for sale on the market October 2007- JAC dying
Today, JAC has done a great step forward. For the last months, he’s done a lot of progress sociably and his health has considerably improved. His quarantine period took a bit longer than usual, but we had to be careful: the group wouldn’t have accepted a newcomer still traumatised or mentally weak.
JAC ….. BEFORE
JAC ….. NOW!
So, how did JAC deal with the group? At first, JAC didn’t want to come into the main enclosure. Only a few chimps were outside that day to facilitate the first approach and all went perfectly well.
JAC hesitated: a new life was offered to him and he only had to do just ONE step forward
Franck and I were particularly anxious about JAC’s attitude, but in a few minutes, JAC already felt home as one of the chimps, WIMBI, which had been his quarantine neighbour for a while, immediately recognised him and invited him to play and to run around the enclosure.
JAC followed by WIMBI: they had met before in the quarantine area
The other chimp babies of course were very curious and inspected the newcomer from top to toe…
JAC wasn’t used to such playing and running; he got rapidly exhausted. Very often, he wanted to get some shade and wished to lie down for a while, but WIMBI and the others didn’t let him rest a second.
JAC exhausted
Later on, the remaining chimps of the group were one by one allowed to meet JAC. As all went fine, it seemed they had known JAC for years: JAC met new friends, played all the time and we were very happy (and extremely proud!) to see him doing so well.
WIMBI, JAC’s best friend
On his arival in September 2007, lost and sick, JAC had decided not to live anymore. But today, I’m sure he feels more than happy to have been saved as he really appreciates the company of his new mates. Immediately, WIMBI came to fetch JAC
JAC also now has got a new mum: her name is SHASA; she is the eldest female. Very independent, SHASA usually looks after herself only. But today, things have changed: SHASA is protecting JAC and takes very good care of him. When a chimp teases JAC, he runs into SHASA’s arms and she just disuades any other chimp from coming closer. At night, SHASA and JAC share the same nest; we’re very surprised to see SHASA behaving like this….
SHASA, JAC’s new mum
As you can see, the introduction of JAC has been a great success. It took some time, we agree, but we wanted JAC to be completely ready to face other chimps. Today, the group is made of 12 babies and it gets harder and harder to insert a new one; especially if it is a male. Next to be introduced will be SEKI. His quarantine period won’t take long and we’ll keep you posted!
JAC
Roxane, Franck and the Chimps.
Let’s share that surprising news. A new young chimpanzee orphan has recently been seized by local authorities and brought at the Refuge Centre. SEKI is a young male of about 3 1/2 to 4 years old and is in an amazing condition: his fur is beautiful, his physical condition is great and SEKI doesn’t show any sign of malnutrition nor mistreatment.
SEKI’s story is a long story. That young chimp has been known and tracked by Ministry of Environment since 2006. By a curious coincidence, a picture of him was given to Franck and handed over to the authorities. It was in October 2006.
October 2006 -You have seen that picture already in a previous post; SEKI is on the left. He’s being sold on a market in a remote city called Kongolo (The other little one hasn’t been found yet!)
SEKI is easy to recognise. If you have a deep look on his right hand, you’ll notice the malformation of the phalanx of his index finger. Probably caught in a snare, this latter has left its mark on him and has enabled J.A.C.K. to follow SEKI from one owner to another. The phalanx of SEKI’s right index finger is malformed and has probably been caught in a snare. November 2006, a friend of us called me saying she had seen someone selling two chimpanzee babies on the street. An inspector of Environment was sent to check the information and met the trader: a young man, starving, begging food for himself and for the chimps. These latter were sick, dehydrated and the youngest was raw boned. During day, the owner walked with them on the streets, while, at night, the two little ones were kept in a very small crate full of dirt. November 2007 - Lubumbashi, the trader holding SEKI (left of the picture) and his little mate that has never been found
The detained chimps were hardly fed, eating peanuts and mangoes only. Both were sick and had diarrhoeas. Look at the right index of SEKI!
At night, the babies were locked in a small and dirty crate It took a few days before the legal documents of seizure were signed by authorities, and, of course, meanwhile, the trader moved, hid, and remained nowhere to be found. The Ministry of Environment lost all traces of the two little ones and end of 2006 we were sure they had left the country.
April 2007, a young expatriate lady came to visit the Refuge Centre. She really was surprised to find such project here in DRC and also mentioned she had a chimpanzee at home that was hurt. As her husband had become jealous of the young animal and as the chimp didn’t want the husband to come too close to his wife, the baby chimpanzee had been pushed and thrown onto rocks thus breaking his thighbone in two pieces…. On visiting J.A.C.K., the lady realised she had made a mistake in buying the little one and that she had been part of the slaughter of “her baby’s” family. Remember, to get one chimp from the wild, about ten are sacrificed as the elders protect their youngsters.
April 2007 - Lubumbashi, SEKI is staying with an expatriate lady who believes “her baby” is already adult. Her vet also told her he wouldn’t become taller as he is a “pygmy” chimpanzee…. Imagine how people, even vets, aren’t informed !!!
SEKI trying to walk after his operation.
The thighbone was broken in two pieces and SEKI couldn’t bend his leg ‘ So, the lady invited us to pay her a visit at home in order to check the chimp’s leg. This meeting gave us a lot of details on that poor little one and both Franck and I agreed on the same facts: SEC (this is the name he had from the smuggler and which the lady kept) wasn’t no longer a chimp; he had become a human!!! Although the young animal was well treated and was in good condition, it was horrible to us to see that!
SEKI had become the child the expatriate lady had never had: he was free to run round the place and was raised up like a human
Still in April 2007, we managed to convince the lady to contact the authorities to organize seizure onceSEKI’s leg was healed. It took months and months. When we met the vet who had operated the leg and who went to see the chimp regularly, he said the baby was fine, that the leg was ok and that the chimpanzee could have joined J.A.C.K. already. Franck and I then clearly understood the lady didn’t want to bring the chimp orphan at J.A.C.K.
You see, that lady was among the ”high ranking people” of Lubumbashi I spoke about in a previous post. Knowing that no-one would come to bother her, the young expatriate selfishly kept the chimp at her place telling us “her baby” still hadn’t recovered from surgery.
Finally, in February 2008, the lady decided to call Franck. “Her baby” had become too unruly : he used to leave the house to go and disturb the neighbours and she was losing control on him. As we always insist on procedures to be done in the most legal way, Franck contacted the local authorities to organise the seizure.
Early March 2008, SEKI was seized by Ministry of Environment. It wasn’t an easy task, as the little (strong!) one had to be anaesthetized in a bit to be transported and brought to the quarantine area of the Refuge Centre. These moments were full of emotions.
SEKI was anaesthetized to be brought at J.A.C.K. : he wouldn’t have accepted to enter the quarantine cage
“Before”, in his “former life” (with the expatriate lady), SEKI was free to run around the place. Also, he was treated like a human and raised up like a child. SEKI ate pizza, drank fanta and opened fridge and cupboards once feeling hungry…That young little one also watched tv, read books, and even weed on a pot or in the garden but never on the floor in the house…
Once awaken, SEKI decided not to stay behind the bars. Taught how to work with screwdrivers, nuts and bolts, the young chimp managed to unscrew a corner of his new dwelling and simply joined the team begging for a hug. As it was impossible to get him back, the vet injected a second (light) sedative to SEKI and we finally put him in a stronger quarantine place. Again SEKI was sedated
and put back in quarantine…
On his arrival, also, his name was changed: SEC has now become SEKI. Franck simply added the suffix “-ki” to make a link with the Swahili word “kilole” meaning finger (remember, his right index is malformed).
Today, the new comer is doing fine and has got accustomed to his new environment. We still stay with him, cuddle him and play. He’s got the toys of “before” as to enable him to make a better transition between the two different worlds. J.A.C.K.’s new challenge is to teach SEKI how to become a chimp again….
Dear All, you see, SEKI’s story is a long story but, unfortunately, he is the best example of human stupidity. People buy baby chimpanzees because they are cute and also because they feel pity in seeing a baby sometimes in a terrible condition. Smugglers know how to take profit of this pity and very often push people to buy young apes. But, then, the animals become uncontrollable and the owners get rid of them .
SO, PLEASE, NEVER BUY A BABY APE: THEY WERE BORN TO BE FREE IN THE FORREST AMONG INDIVIDUALS OF THE SAME SPECIES !!!
Thanks to all of you for reading and also, thanks a lot to Lucia C. and Theresa S. for their donations
Roxane, Franck and the Chimps
Hi everyone! Here is the story of little WANZA, the chimpanzee baby who is sick and about whom I spoke in my comment of January 12th.
Wanza Two weeks ago, visitors threw some food into the main enclosure. Although it is written and said not to feed the babies, people just do so and don’t understand that chimpanzees get the same diseases as humans.
Main enclosure WANZA got horrible flu as he ate contaminated food two weeks ago. He had a very bad cough, high fever and breathed with difficulty. But who is WANZA?
Wanza WANZA is a male of 2 year 1/2 and isn’t very tall.
Wanza in December 2006 WANZA was seized in September 2006, just after the fire. At that time, a French Zoo called Saint Martin la Plaine had sent us an animal keeper to fix the new enclosure for CHITA, SHASA and BACHI and, when the young orphan arrived at J.A.C.K., he was named after the French Zoo (’kiwanza‘ in Swahili means ‘the plain’).
Wanza on day of arrival (sept. 2006) In my next post I’ll speak about Saint Martin la Plaine: they helped us A LOT after the fire and today, they still support J.A.C.K.
The French Zoo supporting us Wanza was the smallest chimp we have ever had. Although he wasn’t in a very bad condition, authorities allowed us to keep him the first weeks at home (we didn’t have any quarantine area at that time).
Wanza having a shower But, to feed him was not easy. WANZA ate peanuts and bananas only. He didn’t know what an apple was and even refused milk!
The first apple! The owner of Wanza went all nights in different bars and gave him beers. So,imagine, the little ape got drunk every night and because the baby chimpanzee made funny things and tricks, people paid his owner… So, Wanza underwent something like a treatment for alcoholism once he arrived at J.A.C.K. and it took us about 54 days to make him appreciate milk. At the beginning, Wanza had water with some sugar or syrup and fruit juices. One day, while preparing the milk bottles of the other chimps, some milk powder fell on the floor. Wanza licked it and asked for more. He then got one bowl of water and one with some milk powder. As he went from one bowl to another, he thus started to prepare his own milk mixture which helped him in drinking a real milk bottle.
Wanza eating milkpowder
The first milk bottle Introduction of Wanza into the group went fine: Wanza got on immediately with Chita, the alpha male.
Wanza in the group Because Wanza has taken in so much alcohol, his growth has been slowed down. Compared to the other babies, Wanza is still very short and hasn’t put on much weight. Alcohol can also have an influence on hormones, and, maybe, Wanza will never be able to have babies. Therefore, blood samples of Wanza will be taken and send to Europe in order to check his hormones. You can’t carry out such analysis here in….
Wanza Well, it seems you now know a bit more about Wanza. Today, we can say his flu is nearly over as he’s again playful and is doing a lot better. Fever was so high last week that I decided to keep him home for a few days. The vet came last weekend and made some injections (antibiotics + vitamins). Not an easy task! Wanza was very nervous and aggressive. Therefore, the vet decided to make him sleep for a while. Fortunately, everything went fine ! (I hate anesthesia!!)
Anesthesia last week
After anesthesia I was trying to send my post with Wanza waking up on my knees Since Wanza had his injections, his condition has improved. He’s now in quarantine at the Refuge Centre were most of the others are coughing, sneezing and having a running nose. Ten out of our 13 chimps have been contaminated by the visitor’s stupidity and 7 of them have had flu and some fever. These seven are now isolated for treatment and will stay in quarantine for at least one more week.
Wanza Dear Cathy, I hope I have answered your question. Franck and I are very busy as, in addition to the Refuge Center, we have our own jobs. I really wish I could write you more often about J.A.C.K. and I’ll do my best to send you posts more than once a week. Before ending , the chimps of J.A.C.K. want to thank Theresa for her monthly donation (30$) as well as Wanda (20$), Cathy R (50$), Pamela R (20$) and Antonio C (60$) for their single donations. As most of the group is sick and need medication, these donations will help us giving the orphans all the medical assistance they need. THANK YOU! Roxane, Franck & the chimps
Remember, on October 20th, you were told on Manioc Valley about a baby chimpanzee called “JAC” that had joined J.A.C.K. Refuge Center.
“Jac” Jac had been set for sale for several days on one of Lubumbashi markets. Hardly fed, put underneath a small three with a long rope tied to his right foot , Jac was just a smelly and dirty “makaka” (=which means ‘monkey’ in Swahili). People were passing him by, ignoring that Jac simply needed basic things such as water, some food and…love.
Jac for sale on the market When Jac arrived at our Refuge Center, he was too weak to stay in the quarantine area. He really required special attention and because our complex isn’t yet totally built, Jac had a place home with us.
Jac being groomed at home by Franck Unfortunately, things didn’t turn the way we wanted. JAC suddenly decided not to live anymore and refused to take in any food. For days he could lie down without moving. He didn’t eat nor drink any more and I really thought we were losing him. It was the first time we had an orphan with such deep psychological trauma. Chimpanzees are very close to humans and once they feel abandoned, they can let themselves die. But our little one was dying. As a last resort, the vet made him three injections (antibiotics, vitamins and vermifuge) not really knowing if Jac would recover.
Jac dying Then, one day, I still don’t understand what happened: Jac came into my arms. He stared at me as if he was looking for protection and since then we have become very good friends. He started eating again, playing and laughing.
Jac seeking for love Jac is now doing a lot better: he has put on weight and joined the quarantine area of J.A.C.K. early November. I could feel he was ready and strong enough to live this new experience. His place was at the centre as the shouts, noises and odors of the other chimpanzees were crucial to Jac’s recovery.
Jac ready for the quarantine Today, Jac looks happy. He plays, swings in his quarantine cage. He is no longer aggressive and, although I’m sure he hasn’t really forgotten all these dark days he went through, he now knows that we are there to give him the life he deserves.
Roxane feeding Jac To see Jac progressing every day is a real victory to us.
Jac swinging
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