Each orangutan on the soft-release programme has had an unfortunate start to life, losing their mother and becoming orphaned at a vulnerable age. Luckily, thanks to your support, these particular individuals were able to be rescued from the resulting situation and given a second chance at life as an independent orangutan.

Boy, now ten years-old, was rescued from life as an illegal pet in a local village, a fate that many orphaned infants meet. Fortunately, with increasing awareness and education, locals such as the one in Boy’s case are beginning to understand the importance of orangutan conservation. In what we call a ‘handover’, Boy was surrendered to BKSDA, the local governmental conseration agency.

On April 4th 2017, Boy joined the soft-release programme at Camp JL, Lamandau Wildlife  Reserve, at three years-old. He immediately began exploring his surroundings daily, developing his understanding and forest skills alongside fellow soft-release orangutans at the camp.

After some time, it became clear that Boy’s journey back into the wild was not going to be a seamless one. In June 2023, Boy suffered from hair loss due to an iron deficiency. This affected his thermoregulatory capacity, leading him to develop a ‘cold-like’ illness.

With treatment and relocation Boy’s health was restored, but not long after Boy reached his second hurdle. After refusing to return to camp post-training in the forest, Boy evenutally came back with multiple injuries and a severed finger. The finger injury, likley the result of conflict with another male, required surgery and several months to heal.

Boy finally fully recovered with all reports indicating he was ready for his full-release into the wild. On November 14th 2024, Boy was released in Lamandau Wildlife Reserve. Sometimes orangutans are never seen again once independent, but we will keep an eye out for his familiar face and wish him luck on his next chapter.

Thank you for your dedicated support of the soft-release programme, enabling Boy and many others to have another chance at being a wild orangutan.