Orphaned Orangutans Appeal
Breaking - Urgent Rescue
Only two years old, Randy was rescued from a tiny cage in an illegal gold mining area in West Kalimantan, Indonesia.
When a joint team from BKSDA West Kalimantan and our partners YIARI reached him, they found him weak, undernourished, and living in heartbreaking conditions. His cage was barely big enough to turn around, and he was being fed scraps of banana and bread. On closer inspection, the vets also discovered a healed leg fracture - evidence of an earlier trauma.
Randy’s suffering is the result of illegal mining and forest destruction pushing deeper into orangutan habitat. When a baby is found alone, it inevitably means his mother has been killed.
Randy will be taken back to YIARI’s rehabilitation centre and assessed further, with any luck he will be paired up with a surrogate mother in the near future. We urgently need funds to help Randy and others like him and right now, your gift will be DOUBLED until the end of December.
Orphaned Orangutans
Zeno, Xavier and Mawa didn’t choose to lose their mothers. They didn’t choose the fear, hunger and loneliness that followed. But with your help this Christmas, we can choose their future.
We are raising £90,000/$112,000 to get them back into the wild where they belong! That includes rehabilitaiton, release and post-release monitoring and thanks to a generous supporter, every single donation is doubled for a limited time!
Each of these poor little orangutans has been paired with an older surrogate mother; Temon with Mawa, Bianca with Xavier, and Senandung with Zeno. These female orangutans know loss themselves, all having been rescued as infants themselves! They are now passing on the motherly care they were once denied. Through these bonds, the infants learn to climb, forage, build nests and, in time, live freely again in the forest.
The Orphaned Orangutans
Mawa
No mother in sight. No safety. Just a baby orangutan, barely a year old, clinging to life at the edge of a destroyed forest. He was discovered near a logging site in North Kayong, West Kalimantan. A local fisherman took him home, unsure what else to do. Thankfully, the Ministry of Forestry was alerted, and Mawa was brought into the care of our partners YIARI.
He was dehydrated, malnourished, and weak and one thing was heartbreakingly clear - if his mother had been alive, she never would have left him.
Mawa has been paired with Temon, an older female orangutan who was rescued herself, after being kept as a pet. Now she is giving Mawa what he lost. A sense of comfort. A guide. And the chance to grow up with the skills he needs to live free in the wild.
Xavier
When little Xavier was found alone on the riverbank near Sungai Mata Mata Village, he was clinging to life. His mother was nowhere to be seen. Villagers who had gone fishing heard his cries and, realising the tiny orangutan was in desperate need, gently carried him to safety and called for help.
The rescue team rushed to the scene. Xavier, only around ten months old, was weak and feverish. He was suffering from malnutrition and dehydration. Without his mother’s milk and warmth, survival in the wild would be impossible.
Little Xavier has been paired up with Bianca, to help him through his rehabilitation. Our surrogate orangutan mothers – all of whom have been rescued themselves – take on the extraordinary role of caring for orphaned babies, teaching them everything their lost mothers would have shown them. How to climb. How to forage. How to survive. Every orphaned orangutan we rescue has a story like Xavier’s, each one a tragedy of loss. Please donate, with your support Xavier and Bianca can get the chance to live a life back in the wild.
Zeno
When our team found Zeno, he was being kept illegally as a pet: trapped in a chicken cage outside a house, exposed to the harsh rain and scorching sun. He had almost no shelter and lived in filth. Although he didn’t have any visible wounds, Zeno’s fur was dull, his skin dry, and he was weak. He barely had the energy to eat.
When he arrived in our care, our team knew that he needed more than just medical treatment. He needed love, guidance and security. Zeno has been paired with Senandung, who herself was rescued from life as a pet. She was kept in a small crate for four years, fed on only rice and fruits. She has been in our care since 2019 and now, she’s giving Zeno the motherly care he’s been missing.
Your gift today will help him to grow strong, healthy and confident, ready to return to the wild where he truly belongs.
You’ll be giving Zeno the chance to grow strong after being found trapped in a chicken cage. You’ll help Xavier continue his recovery from a riverbank where he lay starving and alone. You’ll help Mawa, who depends on Temon’s gentle guidance after losing her own mother far too soon. With your help, they can grow up with the comfort, confidence and skills they need to thrive in the wild.
Please donate to our Orphaned Orangutans Appeal today, and help give Mawa, Xavier and Zeno the future their mothers would have wanted for them.
All gifts will be matched by generous donors until 11:59 PM on the 31st December 2025 or until the match total is met. Gifts received after that point will not be matched but will be used wherever the need is greatest.
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