As you know, the EPRC is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. In 1993, we started very small with only a few animals and very few cages. As the Center grew bigger, we received more primates and started to have more babies around. We have always struggled a bit with money to keep up the standard in captive care and have always done our best. Especially when infants arrived at the Center, we worked even harder!
Như bạn đã biết, EPRC đang kỷ niệm 25 năm thành lập. Vào năm 1993, chúng tôi bắt đầu chỉ với một vài cá thể và một vài chuồng trại. Khi Trung tâm phát triển dần, chúng tôi nhận được nhiều cá thể linh trưởng hơn và bắt đầu có nhiều em bé hơn. Chúng tôi luôn phải vật lộn về tiền bạc để đảm bảo tiêu chuẩn trong việc chăm sóc trong môi trường chuồng trại và luôn luôn làm hết sức mình. Đặc biệt là khi có cá thể nhỏ đến Trung tâm, chúng tôi càng làm việc chăm chỉ hơn!
August was a busy month for EPRC, because 3 cases of confiscations were made across the land of Vietnam. Until now, the rescued primates are still in good condition and under careful supervision in the Quarantine Area of Vietnam.
First confiscation was at the end of July – beginning of August. We received a call from Head Ranger Quarter in Nam Dinh province about a female gibbon. EPRC staff immediately go to the city which is 2 hours away from our center and picked up the gibbon.
Her health condition is not bad, but it seems that she was fed a lot of milk which is not good for such an adult gibbon. The cage from Head Ranger Quarter was too small for her, so we moved her to our special Transfer Box. After 5 hours (due to paperwork + transportation time), she arrived at EPRC safe and sound.
According to Viet Nam News, the central city has chosen the red-shanked douc langur (Pygathrix nemaeus) as the official mascot of Da Nang at the 2017 APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation) Summit.
» Red-shanked douc langurs photographed in the EPRC by Joel Sartore.
This morning we went to check on the weight of our lorises to keep track of our animals’ growth and took Beni, the Red-shanked douc langur, for a walk and play. Let’s take a look some of the most adorable primates living in EPRC.
Beni was confiscated in Hue and then arrived at our center in November 2015 when he was estimated to be 9 months old. To lose one’s family from such a young age usually imprints a certain degree of trauma on an animal’s memory. For this very reason, we knew straight away that Beni will be received special attention from us before he can live harmoniously with other langurs in a big enclosure.
It struck our heart to write the “What’s going on” this time, as the most adored douc langur in our center Butz passed away on December 27th. As gloomy as it is to tell you this story, we think that Butz deserves every condolences from his friends and fans he can have.
On the morning of 27/12, our hearts were scattered into pieces the moment we walked into the door and saw Butz lying motionless on his bed in the quarantine room. Although his death was foreseeable because of his old-age, the strange feeling when the most loved animal in our centre forever changed his residency to heaven struck us deeply. Farewell my old friend. We will take great care of your wife and your son.
