Leaving Lwiro

I have now left Lwiro due to the increasing instability in DRC. However, the veterinarians are still in Lwiro and working hard at the sanctuary. The nursery group has been moved to an enclosure within the sanctuary grounds and the sanctuary security is being reinforced. Currently, there has been no direct threat in the area, and the local staff and community are still committed to the sanctuary. Below are photos of the women’s group who bought an enormous offering of bananas and tomatoes to the sanctuary for the animals. The photos show them singing and dancing, wearing their new t-shirts!

Andrea

Lwiro update

People may have heard about the unrest in DRC over the past week or two. I want everyone to know the animals and the staff and their families are all safe. Everything seems to have settled down for the time being and it is business as usual. The volunteers were housed at the UN camp near by for safety reasons during four days of the trouble. We returned on the 2nd of November to Lwiro to find the sanctuary and staff well.
Shumbi – the olive baboon - has been moved from his small quarantine cage into a larger cage which neighbors Kashusha (another male baboon) and a group of other baboons. As soon as he woke from the anesthetic he climbed up on the branches with no problems at all. The staff were originally concerned that he would not be able to move about properly (due to the fact that he has one arm missing and the other is injured from a gun wound). His wound has healed very well.

Muhungu - a young male chimpanzee broke his on the 2nd of November. He has been isolated from the group to allow recovery. He still has visual contact with the group however, and can touch them through the wire. He is recovering well.

Banro is now very happy in the cage with the other babies. She has bonded with both the keepers and all of the babies very well. Every night, Banro and Julius cuddle up in their tub to sleep together. Below are photo of all of the babies in the nursery group. They are all strong, healthy and happy.