‘Traumatised’ orphan baboon will soon get a surrogate mom

18 October 2021 - 11:14
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A baby chacma baboon is receiving care at the Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital after her mother was shot dead.
A baby chacma baboon is receiving care at the Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital after her mother was shot dead.
Image: Lauren Beckley via Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital

A baby chacma baboon (Papio ursinus) is receiving care at the Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital after her mother was shot and she was found clinging to her mother’s dead body.

The hospital said: “The devastating experience has left her understandably traumatised. Once she is stable, she will be transferred to a primate rehabilitation facility.”

At the primate facility the orphan will be paired with a surrogate mother who will teach her to be a baboon, and once she is ready will be reintegrated into a troop and later released.

“We cannot fathom this senseless behaviour and unfortunately this is happens all too often. There is very little tolerance for primates near human habitation and sadly the problem is often created by humans. We have destroyed their natural habitat and urbanisation is making this worse every day.

“There are, however, practical ways to mitigate this human-animal conflict. Please contact us for advice before harming these animals. Shooting them is not the answer and carries with it a possible conviction for killing indigenous wildlife without a permit, as well as charges under the Animal Protection Act.”

The organisation said the shooter would not be able to circumvent the law by saying the baboon was a problem animal because they left the baby alive.

“The laws are clear. We need stronger adherence and strong enforcement.”

The Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital treats indigenous animals free of charge, relying solely on donations and support from the community.

Meanwhile, the killing of Scarface the Baboon in Betty’s Bay in the Western Cape has reignited debate about the province’s baboon management policy.

The “problem animal” had been placed in a temporary hold in order for it to be transported to a wildlife sanctuary in Limpopo. CapeNature and Overstrand municipality agreed it was not humane to keep him sedated and caged for an undisclosed time and decided to euthanise him, the municipality said.

TimesLIVE reported the decision has been met with disbelief by those opposed to the province’s baboon management policy, among them the Betty’s Bay Baboon Action Group, whose members have been actively “shepherding” baboons in an attempt to reduce raiding behaviour.

Pete Oxford, a conservation photographer, said the group is calling for a softer approach towards baboons, particularly in Betty’s Bay, which falls inside a biosphere reserve.

“This is a human-caused problem,” Oxford said.

“A baboon is a baboon. It is an opportunistic feeder.”

TimesLIVE


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