International Animal Rescue: Good news from the slow loris team

Good news from the Salak Mountain slow loris monitoring programme

By vet Wendi Prameswari

Arjuna has his tracking collar changed

On 30 March, Arjuna, a released male Javan slow loris, was caught by the monitoring team because his collar was due to be changed. Arjuna had survived seven months in the forests of Mount Salak, displaying extensive ranging and active behaviours. The medical team went too in order to give him a health check whilst the collar was being replaced. Arjuna was found to be in good condition with a body weight of 840 grams. His body weight had dropped slightly since he was first released, but this is always expected owing to the increase in foraging and travelling requirements once back in the wild. A new collar was fitted and monitoring will now continue for another six months until he has successfully survived across the two seasons (wet and dry).

Arjuna poses for the camera beautifully before his
release back into his jungle home

There are close to 100 slow lorises at our rescue centre in Ciapus, Java – all victims of the illegal wildlife trade which in recent years has been fuelled by YouTube videos depicting them as cute, cuddly pets. Eighty per cent of the rescued lorises have had their teeth cut out by the pet traders before they are sold – a cruel and painful practice which frequently leads to infection, septicaemia and death.

Our team in Ciapus continues to investigate whether slow lorises that have lost their teeth can still survive and fend for themselves in the wild.