NEED TO KNOW
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Charlie the orangutan was surrendered to The Orangutan Project in Indonesia after being kept as a pet
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He arrived malnourished and injured, but is now recovering and showing a curious, expressive personality
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Charlie will spend years learning survival skills in hopes of releasing him into a protected rainforest
Charlie the orangutan is on the first page of his next chapter.
For most of his young life, Charlie was kept as a pet in Indonesia. It is unclear exactly how this wild animal ended up in a cage without his parents, but The Orangutan Project knows the broad strokes of the little ape’s early life.
“At just 7-9 months old, Charlie has already suffered so much. Stolen from his mum and the only home he knew, sold into the illegal pet trade, and locked in a cage,” the nonprofit shared in a release.
According to Ellen Tirant, The Orangutan Project’s fundraising communications officer, Charlie ended up in the conservation organization’s care after a villager in Indonesia surrendered the orangutan to the group’s East Borneo facility, the Bornean Orangutan Rescue Alliance (BORA) rescue center, in March.
Charlie shortly after his surrender
Credit: The Orangutan Project
“He was in very poor condition, weak, malnourished, and had nasty wounds on his hands and feet,” Tirant tells PEOPLE, noting that many of the baby orangutans at the BORA center are animals saved from the illegal pet trade.
Charlie’s care started as soon as staff at The Orangutan Project picked up the little primate, who “was given milk in the car and drank the whole bottle as he was so malnourished from not being fed properly.”
For days, Charlie was too weak to move much, but now that he is receiving the care and nutrition he needs at the center, a cheeky personality is starting to emerge.
Charlie the orangutan
Credit: The Orangutan Project
“He is not afraid of humans and shows a great deal of curiosity in his carers and the world around him. He is still very small, but is very expressive for his age,” Tirant shares.
Charlie is almost fully recovered from the malnutrition he experienced, and the wounds that were covering his body are healed, but the orangutan’s journey is just getting started. Charlie will soon shift his focus to learning the natural behaviors he needs in the wild, a process that can be lengthy.
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Charlie the orangutan being held
Credit: The Orangutan Project
“It can take 7 years for an orangutan like Charlie to learn all of the skills necessary to survive in the wild, skills that his mother would have taught him. He will learn all of these during his rehabilitation journey, and once he has shown he is competent, he will be moved to a pre-release island where he will spend 6-12 months,” Tirant explains.
On the pre-release island, Charlie will be closely monitored to ensure he can forage for food and find shelter on his own. Once the orangutan demonstrates those skills, he will be moved to his final release destination in the wild, a protected rainforest.
To learn more about Charlie and support his road to release, visit The Orangutan Project’s website.
Read the original article on People