An animal rescue organization in Indonesia managed to rescue an adorable baby orangutan who was being kept as a pet while its neck was tied to a tree.

Concerned citizens alerted the International Animal Rescue about a female orangutan named Kenaya in Sungai District, Indonesia. When the rescue team reached the remote village, they saw the one-year-old in the home of someone called Yance. The orangutan was tethered to a tree with the other end wrapped around her neck.

Watch the video of the orangutan below.

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Video credit: Rumble

Kenaya was brought to the IAR’s orangutan rehabilitation center in Ketapang. According to veterinarians, she had skin disease and a respiratory infection.

Alan Knight OBE, IAR Chief Executive, said: “There are a terrible sadness and despair in the eyes of this poor baby.

“Now that she is safely in our care, I feel sure that in time she will recover from the trauma she has been through.

“But how much better her life would have been had she been left in peace in the forest, learning from her mother all the skills she needs to survive.

“The number of orangutans our team is rescuing has certainly dropped, but the death of one mother and the capture of her baby still has a serious impact on a population teetering on the brink of extinction.

“Thankfully, over the years ahead, we can repair the damage to Kenaya, but it’s tragically too late for her mother.”

According to Yance, he found her while cutting down some trees and took her in out of pity because he claimed her mother was dead.

Kenaya spent four months with Yance, tied to a tree near a pigsty.

Like a dog, he led her by the rope and fed her on a diet of rice and other human food.

It’s illegal to keep orangutans as pets but in remote areas such as in the Ketapang District, the practice is still common.

However, in almost all cases where a baby orangutan is being kept, the mother orangutan has been killed for her child.

Karmele L Sanchez, IAR Indonesia Programme Director, said: “We can see a very positive change in the Ketapang community.

“The number of orangutans being kept is getting smaller and the people in Ketapang are increasingly understanding the importance of orangutan protection.

“We value highly the role of the community in reporting the existence of orangutans that have been illegally trafficked and kept as pets.”

Kenaya will be kept in quarantine for eight weeks as IAR’s medical team conducts further examinations on her. They want to make sure she’s not carrying any dangerous diseases that can infect other orangutans being housed at the center.

 

 

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