Baby Orangutan Sibu Junior Relocated to Specialist Sanctuary

Sibu Junior, a baby orangutan born on 31 July at Dublin Zoo, has been transferred to a specialist monkey sanctuary. Zoo staff provided continuous care for him because his mother was unable to feed him, leading to his vulnerability. This situation prompted staff to make the “difficult decision” to seek expert assistance. Sibu Junior has been admitted to the European creche at Monkey World, an ape rescue centre in Dorset. This facility specializes in the care of orphaned or vulnerable infant apes. The creche currently houses four other young orangutans, originating from zoos in Hungary and Germany. Sibu Junior will eventually join them and be raised by Oshine, a Bornean orangutan who serves as the creche’s foster mother. Oshine was rescued from the illegal pet trade in South Africa in 2010. Dublin Zoo issued a statement, explaining: “Despite his mother clearly loving him, she did not possess the skills to position him so he could feed, so the difficult decision was taken to remove Sibu Junior to be hand reared, to save the youngster.” Dr. Alison Cronin, director of Monkey World, commented on the situation, stating: “It is so important that orangutans grow up with others of their own kind.” She added that “Monkey World specialises in the care of these very vulnerable infants and has specialist facilities to aid in their development and integration into the nursery creche.” Sibu Junior, currently 12 weeks old, weighs 3kg (6.6lb) and requires formula around the clock. Dr. Cronin further explained: “He is not ready to join the others just yet, but it won’t be long before he is able to sit up and move around on his own.” She elaborated on Sibu Junior’s progression: “Then he can start spending days in the nursery and get to know some of the others that live there.” Dr. Cronin also noted the long-term plan for Sibu Junior: “Sibu’s future in the nursery creche is a long one as he will stay with us, growing up with other orangutans for the next 10 years, before having an adult group of his own someday.”