The youngest of Matang's new arrivals, Simanggang, is developing very well. Presently, he spends most of his days in the vet clinic, with Juan's wife, Sangang, as his primary carer. We are being careful to keep the number of humans around him down to a minimum to reduce the risk of him picking up any of our diseases, which could be fatal for him.



Since arriving at Matang, Simanggang has required 24 hour care, which has meant the vet clinic has become a (less than comfortable!) home for some members of staff. He is, by all accounts, extremely healthy and has doubled in weight in the short time he has been here. His strength is quite remarkable for one so small - it is apparent that almost from birth, orangutan are superbly developed for a life of climbing and arboreal living.



Occasionally, this young orangutan has been taken to the trees to see how he may fare in the branches. This was partly inspired by watching Chiam and Ghanti's boys, who look to be similar in age. They are at a stage where the mums are giving them a small amount of independence to climb, around a cage or in Chiam's case, in the trees. There seems no better role model for guidance on baby orangutan than these two. Follow this link to see a short video of Simanggang's efforts in a tree.

Click here for the video





In a few months, Simanggang will join Ali and Ting San on their daily excursions to the jungle for more routinised training. For now though, until he is older, he remains at the vet clinic to continue to gain weight and strength.

Labels: baby orangutan, borneo orangutan, matang, Orangutans and Rehabilitation