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JoJo

Male , 22 years old

Adopt JoJo today

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About JoJo

JoJo is a handsome adult and a very active individual in his enclosure, swinging around and spinning on the ropes. He is a highly intelligent orangutan and enjoys every enrichment he is provided. He loves problem solving and is very skilled at getting food out of the various puzzles the staff have prepared for him. He has a wide range of activities available to ensure he never gets bored and continues to impress the staff with his level of intelligence; he showed the team a small wound that he had on his finger so they were able to treat it. This amazing behaviour reminds us all of how similar orangutans are to our own species.

A much larger enclosure is being built for JoJo, which will enable him to enjoy the forest outside of his current environment. He will be able to swing around with one of his friends, allowing him to experience a whole new level of freedom at the sanctuary. Thanks to our amazing supporters, we are able to provide JoJo with the love and expert care he needs to keep him happy and healthy. We are all excited at the prospect of JoJo’s new enclosure and being able to see him climb high amongst the trees.

Adopt JoJo today to receive regular exclusive updates and join him on his development and journey.

JoJo's Story

JoJo was the very first orangutan our team encountered back in 2009, so holds a very special place in our hearts. It was his plight that prompted us to start helping orangutans being kept illegally as pets and countless others left stranded by the destruction of their home in the forest. 

When we first found JoJo, his condition moved our team in Indonesia to tears. He was found chained up on a pallet, living over an open sewer choked with human waste. Fed on scraps by his owners, he was just skin and bone, his body bent and weak from a lifetime in captivity. He was a fully grown adult orangutan when he was discovered in the city of Pontianak. He was clearly emaciated and in pain from the shackle on his arm.

At first, all our team could do was treat the wounds from the cruel chain on JoJo’s arm and the sores on his body from years crouching on the pallet. Our Veterinary Director Karmele wept as she treated him, knowing that she could not free him from his misery that day. She had been called in to treat his wound, but was devastated at having to leave the animal in such shocking conditions.

JoJo found in a sewer
JoJo's chain being cut

Once an agreement with the govenment had been made, JoJo could finally be rescued. At this time, there was no adequate rehabilitation facility for rescued orangutans in the area and the priority was to set up a temporary centre where he could be given appropriate care and veterinary treatment. It was then when we took over a small centre in Ketapang which already housed a number of orangutans. However, the facilities were extremely poor and we immediately set about building new enclosures which could house JoJo.

After an arduous 15-hour ferry journey, JoJo eventually arrived at the rescue and rehabilitation centre in Ketapang.

Poor JoJo began to show signs of ill health. His life in captivity before his rescue had taken a toll and left him vulnerable to germs and diseases. He began to be treated with antibiotics for lung problems and a cough but his condition continued to give the vets cause for concern. JoJo needed to be moved to the quarantine building where he could receive round the clock monitoring and care. He was fed soft fruits and liquids as it was more comfortable for his throat but it was not easy to repair the damage that years of deprivation had caused to his health.

His health continued to decline and he was listless and showed no interest in his food. Thankfully, the vets came up with an antibiotic treatment that got him back on his feet again and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

After many months in the quarantine building being treated for lung and throat problems, JoJo was able to move into the outdoor socialization enclosure. He went straight to his old friends Jingo, Monti and Jimbo and enjoyed the fresh air and his view of the ladies! Before he was moved the medical team took an x-ray of him, which showed how badly his lower leg bones were bowed. This was due to his horrendous start in life, where he was fed a very poor diet resulting in malnutrition. He now has very little strength in his legs so he always uses his arms to pull himself up and get about. He was still on medication for his serious lung infection, but he continued to improve. Over the next six months he grew a lot, gaining 15kg and a long coat of hair. His face began to fill out and his cheek pads, ‘flanges’, started to grow.

JoJo in a quarantine enclosure

As JoJo’s health started to improve, he and younger, smaller Jingo were great roommates and had lots of fun together. They could often be seen playing and doing somersaults together inside their enclosure with incredible speed and agility. It was so heartwarming to see JoJo have so much fun after suffering so much hardship during the early years of his life. He loved to play a regular game of tug of war with Jingo and John–perhaps because he never loses–he’s far too strong and smart for that!

Most of the animals’ different stereotypical behaviours show discomfort or anxiety as a result of living in a confined environment. In the case of JoJo, his spitting may also mean that he was trying to make the keepers and vets understand that he was the leader in the centre and that he was not going to tolerate too much attention being paid to the other orangutans! JoJo enjoyed living opposite an area where there were often people busy working with the other animals, but if he didn’t think he was getting enough attention, he would demand it by spitting bits of fruit and greenery at you. The facilities in the new centre, which were being built as he arrived, would hopefully provide him with a more suitable home and a style of life that is much closer to their wild environment, resulting in JoJo reducing these stereotypical behaviours.

JoJo in enclosure
JoJo having a medical

As JoJo’s rehabilitation continued, he remained one of the strongest male orangutans, but also one of the most gentle and sensitive. He liked interacting with the staff, and could even be a bit cheeky and flirtatious with some of the human females! JoJo, along with many of the adults, started some positive reinforcement training to allow better medical examination and treatment without anesthesia. He was one of the star pupils, and was very agreeable and relaxed when they requested things from him. JoJo was enthusiastic to trade good behaviours for snacks, even when it was not asked of him - the interaction was enriching and enjoyable for him. As a result of JoJo being taught to physically show vets if he has an injury or wants the vets to check something for him, he recently had to show his bottom as he had developed a small wound. They quickly checked the area, treated the wound and sent him on his way!

Handsome JoJo was moved away from the centre’s biggest males as their proximity was causing aggression. He was housed in a smart, newly built cage which was spacious and lush–although he was not too impressed that his view of the staff is now somewhat restricted!

The team soon realized that JoJo was depressed and not his normal self–perhaps exacerbated by the holiday absence of vets Ayu and Christine with whom he has a close and very trusting relationship. Normally very gentle, JoJo was grumpy and regularly stole his drink bottle from the vets and sulked. He still however was a very inquisitive and nosey orangutan, spending his time avidly watching the other orangutans, keepers and team medics passing to and fro. He slowly began to relax into his new enclosure and the reappearance of Ayu from her holiday was the icing on the cake for big JoJo whose face was a picture when he saw her!

As he became more dominate, he became more aggressive and picky about which keepers he did and didn’t like. The team planned to move JoJo to an even bigger enclosure as he officially became the biggest orangutan in the sanctuary, weighing in at a whopping 80kg! They needed to ensure that the new enclosure would be strong enough to hold him as he was incredibly strong and powerful. His favourite foods were watermelon, corn and cassava, grabbing as much as he could carry to head up to his hammock to eat.

JoJo in his enclosure
JoJo close up

What you get?

Adopt JoJo today and you will receive:

  • A personalised certificate in recognition of your adoption
  • A high quality picture of JoJo to frame
  • An animal fact sheet with information on JoJo and orangutans as a whole
  • Exclusive news, photos and videos of your adopted animal sent via email and avaliable online
  • A soft plush orangutan toy (optional)
JoJo adoption pack