Orangutan experiences freedom for first time in 2 years
<p>For the past two years, Kotap, a four-year-old orangutan from an isolated village in Borneo, had been trapped inside a dark, wooden box with just a straw and an empty bottle to occupy himself. Today, however, Kotap is free once again.</p>
<p>After a visit from International Animal Rescue, a villager who found Kotap as a baby and decided to keep him – albeit locked away so as to not disturb neighbours – finally agreed to release him. A couple of weeks ago, volunteers from International Animal Rescue gave Kotap his first taste of freedom in years.</p>
<p><img width="499" height="750" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/36215/image__499x750.jpg" alt="kotap" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"/></p>
<p>The rescue couldn’t have come soon enough, with the group condemning the orangutan’s treatment, saying his lack of social interaction could have driven him mad.</p>
<p>“He was kept alone, in the dark, deprived of everything that an orangutan needs to survive in the wild,” International Animal Rescue said. “At four years old, he should still be with his mother. Instead, he lived a sad and solitary existence, unable to behave in any way like a wild orangutan.”</p>
<p>Although Kotap showed signs of aggression upon being coaxed out of his tiny, dark home, his future appears to be much brighter. “Thankfully now he will join other rescued orangutans at our centre and be given a chance of returning to the forest where he belongs,” the group’s Chief Executive, Alan Knight, said.</p>
<p><em>Credit: International Animal Rescue via Storyful.</em></p>
