April 2023 Newsletter
Lots of changes with animals and people, some happy, others sad…. It is all what is to be expected working with so many rescue animals. We might wish from time to time that life would get a bit more boring…. but in this line of work, you can count on it never happening😃.
Animals
A happy monkey this month: Darwin (male adult howler monkey), could get some bigger surroundings thanks to the moving of some other residents (see Construction below). He quickly made ´La Sapa´ his own and his howling can be enjoyed now from all angles at Esperanza Verde.
Newcomer Maiko (juvenile male large headed capuchin) had done his time at quarantine and is now enjoying Darwin´s old quarters. Soon he will join the bunch of capuchins outside.
Eros (chestnut eared aracari) was ready to join the love of his life, Amora. He was ready to fly into her wings! A very cute sight to see them play or enjoy a bath together in the big Elmo aviary.
With so many animals under our daily care we know that losing one of them is to be expected sometimes. It will never be easy. We are so very sad to bring the news of the passing of our very first monkey; Mica (adult female large headed capuchin). Her death was so sudden and unexpected, and with her we lost her, yet to be born, baby too. Mica was raised by the family and the first group of volunteers at EV, she was 12,5 years old. She has left us all with many memories, anecdotes, and stories. She also left us a beautiful daughter Milana, who is fully integrated in the outside capuchin group and recently gave birth to Mica´s grandchild, Miqui. She will be in our hearts forever!
Remember the baby birds that came to Esperanza Verde last year and were hand raised at the family house? Tonga, the trumpeter and the two Spix guans Lino and Mancha are no babies anymore! Still young and unexperienced but ready to roam outside now for some time during the day.
Susy Utzinger Orphan Animal Hospital
Thanks to the pronto reaction of our team, a well-equipped clinic and Philipp as operating veterinarian present, we could help an animal in need very efficiently and quickly!
Payco (released adult male crab eating raccoon), not seen for months, decided for a visit! But not without reason: his tail seemed to have been bitten of with bone sticking out! All went smoothly and he is now recovering nicely in his old outside enclosure ´Pepe´.
One of our sub adult male woolly monkeys, Panchin, was admitted in the clinic, another case of the well-known parasite Prosthenorchis Elegans. We are helping him to fight a heavy infestation and giving him strength so he can join his companions outside as soon as possible again.
Zuna, one of our resident yellow crowned Amazons, looked a bit fluffy so it was time for a check-up. At the clinic we can do this best, and Zuna already seems to thrive with all this extra attention.
Quarantine
UPA (Unidos Por Animales) is an Peruvian Animal Charity, who often helps the government to relocating rescued animals. In a team of three persons they flew in from Lima (thanks to the generous aid of LATAM airlines) with the following newcomers to the EV-family:
- Noa, a young female Black spider monkey. Rescued some months ago she was in very bad health, but thanks to the intensive care UPA, she survived and soon she can join the outside monkey group here.
- Juanita, a juvenile woolly monkey, was first received by Magali at the Amazon Shelter, a rescue centre in Tambopata, Peru (www.amazonshelter.squarespace.com/). She was transferred with the help of UPA to us. Her history, as of so many, is that she was held as a pet, most likely her mother killed in front of her eyes. She now has a second chance and given time she will adapt and can become part of a monkey family again, with the woollies at EV.
- Three yellow footed tortoises, named Galapagos (he is really huge!), Merlot and Pinot. Galapagos being big and dominant had to be separated from the others, as sharing food is apparently not his thing!
- Lo, a white winged parakeet, kept as a pet for many years, is showing us a NO-fear attitude any time you come close. Cute though!
- Fifteen young yellow-spotted river turtles, found their place in the pond of our reptile quarantine, Aguatena. Hopefully soon we can release them together with the local government.
Construction
We don´t know what Douwe and his construction team ate for breakfast this month, but they did an amazing job on cage building, cleaning and redecorations. Two big projects were finished in a very short amount of time, which resulted in a lot of happy animals…
The new enclosure ´Loki´ was finished and the interior decorated. Moyo (adult male woolly monkey), Yanamayo (adult male large headed capuchin) and Selda (adult female large headed capuchin) moved in from La Sapa. They directly explored the new surroundings and quickly all the interior design was happily inspected. Thank you, Kai and Jonas from Datasnipper for your donation that made so many so happy!
Several parrots, including our well known Daenarys (mealy parrot), and scarlet macaws Onanti and Aleesa, found their way into the new addition to the Elmo Enclosure.
Word on the street is that there is a plan in the works for an upgrade for the cabin to welcome the next long-term veterinarian…
Volunteer life
Our long-term staff had some changes too… For Nick, after being with us for one year, it was time to go on some new adventures in life. Ligia, our Peruvian veterinarian, finished her stay with us and is off getting more experiences in the world. Thank you Ligia and Nick for all the hard work and passion you brought to the animals every day!
And then after two years of dedication and hard work we had to say goodbye to Alex!
Our trusted assistant, who would make sure everything got done, orderly written and organized…., parties, talks…, well basically too much to mention. It is not really a goodbye as she will continue to help us from wherever she will be, being part of our always growing EVI-family. Thank you Alex, for being you and being there for all of us (animals and humans included!) day and night. Of course, we did not let her go without a big bang party at the family house!
Arthur, from France, has the tough responsibility to step in her shoes… Luckily he seems more than capable and has literally taken her crocs. Alex has been teaching him well and we are sure he will be capable of managing EV with lots of dedication and fun too! Lucky for him, Puck (our earlier assistant during Covid times) came back to lend him a hand!
And as if this month was not busy enough with the whirlpool of changes, we had such a great time with the visit of Philipp (president of EVI) and Bigna (ex long-term volunteer from the early days). Philipp took the volunteers on many night walks and got to help on many occasions with his huge veterinarian and organizational knowledge too. Payco was lucky to have him on his side as you have read above!
Kayla and Olivia visited Ecuador, where Douwe and Olivia started their travels and both Kayla and Marlon were born. They caught up with friends in Quito, Merazonia (https://www.merazonia.org/) and amaZOOnico (https://www.amazoonicorescue.org/).
It is great to work together with so many dedicated people and share knowledge and expertise that can help us all to do a better job at saving more lives!
Hasta luego amigos!
