Fence our forest!

The fence construction is going on: 53 posts already up!

Goma’s group and the other chimps at the CRPL can’t wait to go to the new forested enclosure. There they will be able to learn chimpanzee natural skills like jumping from branch to branch or building nest in high trees to rest.

In the current facilities at the CRPL we try to provide them with natural elements like fresh branches so the chimps can play and start developing natural behaviours.

Please, help the CRPL chimps to fence their forest. Each donation makes a big difference for them! Thank you!

Kanshi in her comfortable nest
Bahene and Irangi in the back

Kamituga tasting some fresh branches

Felixta

Irangi

The Goma group

Irangi

The Goma group is a group of 16 young chimpanzees from about the age of 4 to 7 years. They are called the Goma group because the group initially was build around four new arrivals from Goma over two years ago, Gari, Youngesa, Kanabiro and Shege. Shege, beeing a lot older than the others soon moved over to what is now Kongo's group. The latest to join the group are of course three of the Aketi chimps, Bolungwa, Django and Kathe. Here is a little update on a few of the othes in the group and a few pictures.

Alsace is doing well, and is extremely confident within the goma group cage. She plays a lot with the other chimpanzees.

Muhungu broke his arm about 6 months ago. He spent some weeks recovering out of the juvenile group cage. He is doing wonderfully now, and the arm has healed well. There is a small lump at the break site but he is using the arm with no problem.

Muhungu

In my 5 months away from the sanctuary, Kanshi is one of the chimps who has changed the most. She resides in the Goma group cage, and is very confident now. She constantly plays and smiles and is dominant over some of the other chimpanzees.

Kanshi

Yonguesa

Gari

Gari

Andrea

Update on Kanshi

Kanshi has been in the Goma group cage for almost 3 months and is doing very well. She is eating well and plays with many of the individuals in the cage. For a time, she was sleeping separately from the other members of the group, but she is now fully integrated and spending the night in the Goma group dormitory.

June 1st to July 11th 2008

It has been a long time since the last update, but a lot has happened here at Lwiro. Seven new monkeys of various species have arrived, through confiscations. This brings Lwiro sanctuary to 80 residents in total!

After Kanshi finished her one month quarantine she was moved to the sanctuary. She has now settled in well to the Goma group, and is getting on with all of the individuals.

Kalume is doing wonderfully also, and spends his days in a cage next to the Goma group or going for a walk around the sanctuary. His mobility has improved incredibly in the last few weeks, and he has even been climbing trees with the babies!

The four babies which arrived a few months ago are all doing well. They are getting bigger by the day! We have had to move them to the quarantine cage at the house, as they were getting too big and boisterous for the small cages at the sanctuary (besides the fact that they are all now occupied by monkeys). Construction on a small dormitory attached to the quarantine cage has finished this will serve as the babies night den. Another cage is in construction in the yard also, this will serve as a new quarantine cage.

Maiko, one of the babies arriving a few months ago, had a bullet fragment lodged above her right eye from when her group was shot at by poachers. This bullet fragment came out of its own accord a few days ago.

Construction also continues on the new dormitory, next to the small forest. The foundations have been laid and the walls are almost finished.




There have been several more small earthquakes originating from the DRC-Rwandan border area; however, they didn’t seem to impact the animals as much as the previous earthquakes.

I am a new volunteer at Lwiro, my name is Andrea. I will be writing the blog updates when I get time! When I came to Lwiro I had some goods and services donated to me for the sanctuary. I would like to acknowledge these companies and individuals for being so generous.

Firstly, thank-you to Darren and David of DARCHE who made and donated over 30 new hammocks for the chimpanzees night dens. These hammocks will go into the new dormitory and ensure that everyone can have a bed to themselves!



A huge thank-you to Peptech Animal Health, in particular Tim Trigg and Katie Yeates, who donated contraceptive implants for the chimpanzees. These were needed greatly.

Thank-you to LYNX (a keeper driven conservation group) who donated funds to allow us to purchase medications and protein powders which were desperately needed. To Zoos Victoria, for donating worming medications, thank-you. And thanks very much to Dr Kate Bodley who worked very hard to organize all of the medications.

Thank you to RCR International, who donated 8 hot water bottles for use with very young babies when they come to the sanctuary.

Last but not least, I would like to thank Jetta Express enormously for donating the air freight to get the above items and more to Uganda, so we could get them to the sanctuary in Congo.

Julius and Kanshi

Julius is doing very well, he is finally completely healthy from his cold, he plays a lot and seems very happy. He had a few days where he was a bit down with a bit of fever because he was getting his canine teeth, so now he has a full set of tiny canines :) He sleeps in a cage next to my bed, and wake up for a bottle and nappy change a couple of times each night. During the day we play in the garden and he likes to say hello to Kanshi through the bars on the quarantine cage.

Kanshi is also doing well in the quarantine cage with Claud, she also had a bit of a cold for a while, but she's now playing a lot.

Kanshi

Today Kanshi came to Lwiro. She is a four year old chimpanzee, who we've heard about for some time now. She lived in Goma in a flat with a french UN worker. Then he left for france, leaving her with his roommates! They heard about Lwiro through some other UN workers and contacted us. They said she had her own bed and went to the fridge to get coke when she wanted.. But to us it seems like she has spent a lot of time on her own and probably locked up in a room or cage. She is setteling in and Claud, one of our chimp keepers, will spend his time in the cage with her during her one month quarantine.