A future for Jeni
This year, instead of giving customers Christmas presents, Werner & Mertz is making a donation to help little Jeni in the BOS Nyaru Menteng Orangutan Rescue Center.
The orphaned Jeni was freed from being kept illegally as a pet in summer 2020. At that time she was malnourished and in poor condition. While in the company of other young orangutans in the Rescue Center, Jeni began recovering from the trauma of losing her mother.
The Forest School
Now Jeni is in the BOS Forest School. There the orangutan orphans go through a training program for life in the wild. In normal situations, the young red apes are inseparable from their mothers for almost eight years. The mother teaches her offspring the skills needed to live independently in the rainforest. How do I build a nest for sleeping? Which plants are good for me? How do I climb the highest tree? At BOS the caregivers in the Forest School show the little apes everything their mothers would have taught them.
After years of learning the necessities of life in the Forest School, the orangutans move on to Orangutan University. On five pre-release islands they practice living almost on their own. From time to time, depending on the season, caregivers provide them with food on feeding platforms. If the protected apes get along there, they are ready for a life in freedom. Then we can finally give them back the life they were meant to lead and release them to the wild.
Jeni’s Life to Date
For Jeni that’s all a distant dream of the future. In the meantime, the active little ape obviously enjoys school life. In the morning when the pre-schoolers are picked up from the baby house, Jeni is always raring to go. With her friend Alexander, she eagerly climbs into the wheelbarrow the orangutan babysitters use to take their charges to the Forest School.
Of course she loves climbing trees most of all. Although she is only two years old, she has already mastered this very important skill. Her talents are clearly demonstrated way up high in the crowns of the rainforest trees. Jeni often sets the pace in the group as she climbs the tallest trees, completely without fear. She’s already capable of climbing five meters high. Without hesitating, Alexander always follows her lead and then the two of them roost like chickens on a perch in the treetops. That’s very unusual behavior for such young apes.
With the financial support from our company, Jeni gets the best possible chance to return home to freedom one day. Good luck to you, little orangutan!
