When otter pup Angus was just one month old, he was found terrified, emaciated and alone on the side of the road in Limpopo, South Africa, desperately crying for his mother and snapping in fear at those trying to rescue him.
No one knows what happened to Angus’s mother, but it is likely she was struck by a car and left for dead, or cruelly killed by poachers.
Angus, found terrified and emaciated, is now safe in the care of our partner, but his road to recovery has only just begun. Credit: Umoya Khulula
Baby otter Angus is bereft without his mother. But with your help, we can give this precious orphaned pup a second chance.
Angus was rushed to our partner, the Umoya Khulula Wildlife Center, which specializes in the rescue and rehabilitation of sick, injured and orphaned wildlife. The infant weighed just two pounds (one kilogram) – the same as a small bag of rice.
In the wild, baby otters like Angus stay with their mothers for around a year, learning to swim, hunt and survive on their own. The animals form strong family bonds, and otter pups have even been seen holding hands with their mothers while floating or resting, just to make sure they stay close at all times.
Angus does not have this chance. He is alone, with no mother to guide him, and no paw to hold.
Just a few days into rehab, Angus was already splashing playfully in his pool. With continued support from animal lovers like you, he will have the future he deserves. Credit: Umoya Khulula
After losing his mother, baby Angus needs your help to survive. Can he count on you?
Umoya Khulula is doing everything it can to recreate the nurturing environment Angus would have had in the wild, feeding him a natural diet of fish, crabs and clams, and teaching him to swim in its dedicated baby enclosure. But our partner has so many injured and orphaned animals to care for, and to keep giving Angus everything he needs to develop and grow, we need your help.
If we can raise $3,500 (around £2,500), we can help provide specialized care, nutrition, shelter and treatment for this precious otter pup who has already lost so much in his short life. Will you help him today?
African clawless otters are under increasing threat. We must give baby Angus the best possible chance at survival.
Baby otters are poached from the wild and sold into the exotic pet trade. To capture the infants, their protective parents are often electrocuted or shot to death. Credit: EuroNews/Reuters
Around the world, otters face mounting threats to their survival. Urbanization, agricultural development and pollution are destroying their habitats, while in countries like South Africa, they are slaughtered for their skin and body parts, to be used in traditional ‘medicine’ and to make clothes, hats and even musical instruments.
Because so many people find them adorable, they are also increasingly snatched from the wild to feed the exotic pet trade.
Horrifically, protective parents may be shot or electrocuted just so poachers can easily snatch the babies. They are then bred in inhumane conditions, sold to the highest bidder, and forced to live life in captivity, ‘performing’ for likes on social media or being handled by streams of visitors in Asian ‘pet cafes.’
This is how Angus should be living – wild and free. With your help, we can get him there. Credit: Liaan Lategan
Angus is lucky to have survived – and to have escaped a fate of lifelong imprisonment. But the loss of his mother means his survival is in the hands of animal-lovers like you. Together, we can give him the expert care he needs to develop and grow, so he may one day have a family of his own.
Please, donate today, and help give Angus the happy future he deserves.
