A mother’s love is a powerful thing, even for other species.
When animal rescuers brought a baby monkey to the Vervet Monkey Foundation (VMF) in Tzaneen, South Africa, they weren’t sure if she would make it or not. The baby, whom rescuers called “Jerry,” had suffered a terribly traumatic accident during which her mother was killed. Jerry survived with a broken foot and damaged tail, but as an orphan, she stood little chance of surviving in the wild.
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Thankfully the workers at VMF are well versed in treating injured and orphaned monkeys, and they quickly made a plan to rehabilitate the tiny baby monkey and get her into the loving arms of a foster mother as soon as possible.
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VMF is a sanctuary for orphaned, injured, and abused vervet monkeys. Each day they work to rehabilitate these monkeys into viable family units, or troops so that they can be reintroduced into the wild. “They shouldn’t be in homes, they shouldn’t be in cages. We want to get them back where they belong,” said one VMF worker.
When the VMF staff began caring for Jerry, they knew right away that she was emotionally traumatized. She was confused and in pain, and they went to work immediately to get her back on the road to wellness.
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The staff members nursed Jerry tenderly, setting her broken foot in a cast and giving her lots of hugs and snuggles to help her feel safe and secure. After just two and a half weeks, they were able to remove her bandages and introduce her to some other orphaned baby monkeys.
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Jerry loved meeting new friends, quickly becoming the “mother hen” to all of her playmates. For a little bitty monkey, she has a huge personality! Her carers said that if she could spend all her time playing or swaddled in blankets, eating mangoes, she would be one happy baby!
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“These animals, even though they’ve had a really rough start in life, we’re able to provide a second chance.”
Finally, just a few weeks after she had entered the rehab facility, Jerry was ready to meet her new mom. The staff selected a fully grown vervet monkey called Mrs. Gold to be Jerry’s mom. As soon as Mrs. Gold set eyes on Jerry, she knew exactly what to do. She reached for the baby and pulled her into a loving embrace!
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Mrs. Gold had fostered babies before, and her parenting style provides these sweet babies with the perfect mixture of nurture and discipline to get them ready to join their new family, called a troop.
After just three months with her new mother, Jerry and Mrs. Gold were ready to move into the wildlife area of the sanctuary.
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As soon as mother and daughter got outside, they leapt into the trees and began to play and frolic like the wild monkeys that they are. Watching them in their natural habitat is truly breathtaking! Jerry is now a member of a family, once again.
We just love a happy ending!
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Thank you to the animal volunteers who work tirelessly to help animals like Jerry get back to good health and into a loving family, where they belong.
Watch Jerry’s whole story below, and be sure to share with an animal lover you know!
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