In July I travelled to Borneo, Indonesia to visit Dr. Birute' Galdikas's orangutan orphanage and learn about her efforts to rescue the great red ape from extinction.  It was blatently apparent that the palm oil plantations are invading the island as we drove for miles past row upon row of the oil palm trees. Indonesians are clear-cutting the rainforest to grow this lucritive oil and exporting it by the tons. 16.5 billion tons/year to be exact, valued at 16.4 billion dollars.  Orangutans live in the trees of the rainforest and fall victim to such de-forestation.  Adult orangutans are killed and sold for meat and their infants are sold as pets.  Fortunately, some are rescued and taken to Dr. Galdikas's orphanage where they are cared for until they have learned the skills to survive being released into a  protected portion of the rainforest.  

Dr. Birute' Mary Galdikas with released orphan and her newborn

There are 330+ orphans living at Dr. Galdikas's care center right now. Her organization - Orangutan Foundation International (OFI) - provides food, medical attention, daily exercise and much needed love for each orangutan under their care.  They are on a mission to purchase as many hectars of the rainforest as possible in order to protected  the land from being developed. This is no small task and as with all rescue groups, OFI is dependant on monetary donations.

Baby Luna with OFI Caregiver

I can tell you that the orphans are well-adjusted, playful little beings who have responded tremendously to everything offered by the OFI staff.  They are thriving at the care center and the individuals who have been released are surviving on their own, breeding and living the wild life they were born to live.

Orphaned Male Orangutan All Grown Up and Released Back into The Rainforest

Please share and crosspost my OFI CROWDRISE fundraising page, the more people that know about this the better AND...

PLEASE BOYCOTT PRODUCTS WITH PALM OIL! 

student with Claire and Walker

Three years ago, Claire Tillman started volunteering at the Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society and she has not stopped since!  At first she fostered kittens, helped out at adoption events, transported animals to rescue shelters and walked dogs for (the department of) Animal Control.   Every year 30,000+ dogs and cats end up in Philadelphia shelters and out of those approximately 12,000 are euthanized.  The joy Claire felt when finding a home for an unwanted pet was often times overshadowed by the devastating reality that many of the animals were euthanized.  The work was tough and heartbreaking, but it motivated Claire to figure out a way to stop the influx of animals into the shelter.  Claire decided to take action and she proceeded to help develop two community outreach programs for PAWS. 

1. The Humane Education Program (HEP),now in its second year, provides education to students on the proper treatment of animals.  The philosophy of the HEP program is that most incidents of animal abuse and neglect occur simply because of ignorance.  Claire teaches children ways to include all living beings into their circle of compassion in the hopes of changing the fate of abused and homeless animals.  HEP provides the children with information on which to base decisions for the proper care of animals.  Topics included such things as animal abuse, puppy mills and dog fighting.  With Claire's leadership, this successful pilot program has expanded to several schools throughout Philadelphia. 

2.PAWS Community Pet Days (CPDs) are days where PAWS veterinarians and volunteers travel throughout underserved Philadelphia neighborhoods providing low-cost vaccinations, microchips, and spay/neuter vouchers in an effort to support responsible pet ownership.  CPDs provide access and information about lifesaving veterinary care in a positive, non-judgmental setting.  In serving the dogs and cats most vulnerable to neglect and over-breeding, PAWS is promoting a lifetime of health, companionship, and responsible pet ownership.  CPDs result in reducing the number of unwanted animals living on the streets and dying in shelters.  Claire worked closely with community members and local organizations, securing their endorsement allowing PAWS to provide these services within their neighborhoods.  She recruits volunteers to publicize as well as help out at the event registering and educating pet owners.  To date, Claire has organized four PAWS CPDs where over 150+ animals have received either low cost vaccinations or microchips.

A transplant from Michigan, Claire happily calls Philadelphia her home where she lives with her husband, 8 cats and dog Jack. We are pleased she has teamed up with 22reasons as we know people will benefit from her knowledge and enjoy learning about dogs. Read more about Claire's seminars and please contact us if you would like to have her speak at your school!