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Joyce

Female , 11 years old

About Joyce

When Joyce is not swinging around and eating everything sweet she can get her hands on, she can be found at the top of the tallest tree, gazing at the orangutan antics below her. She inhabits the biggest forested island along with 16 other orangutans as they practice the skills they will need in the wild. She is a very smart orangutan and is perfectly capable of finding her own food and making a nest. She has a very sweet tooth, only wanting to eat delicious things like sweet potatoes and corn. She still enjoys her own company, rarely socializing with the other orangutans which shows her natural, wild behaviour.

Adopt Joyce today to receive regular exclusive updates and join her on her journey back to the wild.

Joyce's Story

On 13th January 2013, Joyce was rescued. She had been kept as a pet for about a year before we freed her from her unnatural life as a human companion. She was likely to have been taken from her mother in the wild at just a few months old and forced to live closely with humans. Her caretakers originally obtained her from a man who was trying to trade her for some petrol for his motorbike. She must have been only a few months old at the time which unfortunately means that her mother orangutan died or, more likely, was killed.

Whilst living with a family she was dressed in baby clothes and slept in a human bed at night. She was fed on an unsuitable diet of mostly rice and milk. Eventually, the family agreed to surrender her into our care with the assistance of the Forestry Department of Ketapang (BKSDA). She completed the journey from Kendawangan to Ketapang dressed in the baby clothes she had been used to wearing, and still clean from her daily baths.

As Joyce had been living closely with humans in the comfort of air conditioning and a bed to sleep in at night, she had some big adjustments to make. She appeared to be in good health, but her previous diet was unsuitable so she began the transition to a more complete and nutritious diet straight away

Joyce at rescue
A very small Joyce

Joyce had lots of energy and was keeping the staff busy as she loved to be on the move! Once she passed her health screening tests and her quarantine period was up, she was moved to the new rehabilitation centre where she could learn about forest life from the other orangutans and the spacious natural environment.

Joyce’s medical procedures went well and the results looked great. She soon finished her isolation period and was moved to the new centre in the village of Sungai Awan with her other baby school classmates! She handled the 25-minute drive very well and spent the rest of the day and night getting used to the sights and sounds of her new surroundings in the habituation cage. She needed to be weaned off her close contact with humans as she was still very dependent after living with a family for a year. She began gaining confidence whilst climbing trees and loved being outside. When the wind blew, she opened her mouth wide and let her tongue taste the breeze.

Joyce covered in sawdust
Joyce swinging through trees

Joyce was a high achiever in Baby School and one of the best climbers of the group, she often had her uninvited friend Gunung in tow but this did not deter her from being adventurous in the trees.

Unfortunately, just as she was making great progress, she was suddenly noticed to be carrying her right leg by her babysitter who immediately bought her to the veterinary clinic. Amazingly calm, Joyce let the veterinary team examine her whilst she chewed on some peanuts, but an x-ray examination revealed that she had a fracture of her right tibia bone below the knee. Luckily the bone was still intact and the team decided that rest and restriction of movement might be all that was needed, together with pain relief.

Joyce had mixed emotions about being kept away from her Baby School friends. She liked the extra attention she got when she shouted for more enrichment, however she was not enjoying being restricted in the clinic as she could not climb. With time, Joyce recovered well from her fractured leg. Her cast was removed and the x-ray revealed that the bone had healed well. It was not an easy task keeping an orangutan’s limb in a plaster cast, the cast does not hold up that well due to the humidity, so it needed a lot of repairs and upkeep! Overall, Joyce was a good patient during treatment, but she did act a bit spoilt and would scream for attention whenever she spotted staff go by.

Joyce relaxing at baby school
Joyce in baby school

Due to spending quite a few weeks in confinement, and not being able to climb, Joyce’s arms and legs had lost some of their strength and she needed to build up her muscles again. The medical team gave her lots of physical therapy to help with her recovery. She was then reunited with her friends in Baby School and was so happy to be able to swing through the trees again.

She started to grow in independence and tried to build her own nests, this is a great sign although she found it difficult so joined her friends in their nests during the day. She became very picky with her food and almost exclusively ate fruits and had a dislike for vegetables. Her favourite foods were corn, sweet potato and bengkoang. As a result, she was provided with multivitamins to make sure she received a balanced diet. Despite this, she was a very active and clever girl. She soon gained confidence and observed what the other orangutans were doing to improve her skills.

The time had come for Joyce to graduate to Forest School! She fit the criteria to move up and we hoped she would flourish with the extra independence from the babysitters.

This is exactly what happened and she became one of the most independent orangutans. She loved the freedom that Forest School gave her and could be found venturing off round the forest on her own. This is very normal orangutan behavior, as they are solitary animals in the wild. She began staying out in the trees day and night which meant her nest making skills improved greatly. She was making a new nest almost every night–but sometimes was a bit lazy and instead would be found just reusing the old one by adding a few extra leaves.

Joyce really begun to find her place amongst her peers and became good friends with another adoptable orangutan, Rickina. Joyce found it difficult to make friends in Baby School and would often play alone, so it was great to see she felt comfortable enough to socialise with Rickina.

Joyce Adopter Video - November 2018

Joyce was one of the lucky orangutans who moved into a new island at the centre named Pulau Besar, or ‘Big Island’, where she could enjoy 64 acres of untouched forest! She really began to thrive on the island and enjoyed the amount of space it gave her. Her natural intelligence meant that she was excelling through Forest School, and quickly gained some of the essential survival skills needed for life in the forest.

Soon enough, Joyce was moved onto Setrum Island with her friend Rickina as the keepers felt it was the next best step for her, as the new environment would help her hone her skills even further. The new area has a mixed age group of orangutans but this did not deter her. Her ability in the forest was unmatched by many of her peers. She was very clever and was often seen passing her skills down to other orangutans. She would sometimes follow Gunung, to explore the secrets of the island.

What you get?

Adopt Joyce today and you will receive:

  • A personalised certificate in recognition of your adoption
  • A high quality picture of Joyce to frame
  • An animal fact sheet with information on Joyce 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)
Joyce adoption pack