VMF: Past, present, and future and my volunteer experience.

I am back from my volunteer experience at the Vervet Monkey Foundation (VMF) in the Limpopo province of South Africa and am thinking about how to wrap it up into words. There were so many different facets involved that I wondered what best to write about. My blog was certainly on the lighter side (as opposed to the scientific/analytical side) and geared to a particular special audience: my family and friends, most of which have limited or no experience with monkeys. I wanted to keep it fun, yet informative and not subject my audience to too much personal right and wrong views or delve hardcore into animal rights issues, etc. Afterall, I am "young" in this field and am still learning from what I have been absorbing and experiencing over the last two and a half years.

What I have learned is that there always seems to be some level of debatable compromise when it comes to rescuing wild animals. Do humans really KNOW the best method to do this, or even if it should be taken on by us Homo Sapiens? Experts, scientists, and caretakers will always disagree to some degree or another.

So, back to the VMF. It all started with Arthur Hunt, one of the three original founding members, taking in an orphaned vervet monkey infant whose mother was shot and killed by a human. He became "absorbed in this little creature" so much so that it changed the direction of his life. Researching the wildlife laws of South Africa, he was appalled to discover that the vervet monkey was branded a 'vermin,' therefore humans were legally permitted to indiscriminately kill them. Further research would prove to him that citizens were doing just that. These monkey killers (how is that for drama?!) were justifying their murderous rampages (more drama-but not exaggeration!) by stating that they are pests and are ruining crops, etc. Monkeys inhabit and establish a territory in an area that supplies a good food source. Farms have encroached on these monkey's natural habitats as well as other human ventures such as campsites, restaurants, hotels, etc. Thus the territory conflicts begin, leading to the need for monkey sanctuaries.

Each year, after the birthing season of the vervet monkey occurs, the foundation takes in newly orphaned babies due to mainly the killing of the mother. Causes of death and injury to monkeys include being hit by motor vehicles. Currently there are approximately 600 vervets at the foundation, many of which roam freely around the property as the "bandit group." Some monkeys taken in were formerly pets and are imprinted on humans, while others are straight up wild animals with a fear of humans. The rescued infants must be reared by a member of the staff otherwise they would die.

With VMF's persistence and hard work, they were able to convince the government to remove the vermin status and now it is illegal to kill vervet monkeys. What an accomplishment! However, many residents still despise these fascinating animals thereby leaving VMF with much work to be done via means of education, awareness, and assistance to those residents that are having conflicts with vervet troops. More enclosures are being erected (as I witnessed) so as recently rescued monkeys will not have to stay in the small cages. Intregrating to form new troops is a daily undertaking for the "long termers" and is a rewarding task when there is success. The "Vervet Forest" ( http://www.vervetforest.org/ ) is their future project that will give these rescued monkeys a chance to go back into the wild in a protected large natural habitat.

- MY VIEWS OF VMF AND THE VOLUNTEER EXPERIENCE:

So, now then, what are my thoughts and views of the Vervet Monkey Foundation and the volunteer program, some may be wondering? You can gather from the previous paragraphs that they are doing wonderful things for the plight of survival of the vervet monkey. Apparently the species' official status is 'threatened.' Arthur Hunt writes that CITES (International Convention for Endangered Species) lists the vervet under 'schedule II,' the second highest category of endangerment, accompanying the African elephant and rhino. Because of all the former murderous rampages (I couldn't resist), their population numbers have dropped dramatically. I believe that VMF overall is doing a wonderful, ground-breaking job. They are only one of a few vervet sanctuaries located in the natural habitat of this species and possibly the only one that has gotten so far with the government and surrounding communities. The staff's passion and dedication were evident to me. They love this beautiful, clever (often cheeky!), and endearing monkey, as do I.

As you can imagine, it is not easy raising enough money to support some 600 monkeys (the bandits do find some of their diet naturally within the grounds of the property, but food leftovers are put out for them as a supplement). As I witnessed, there is a LOT of work to be done to keep it all running smoothly. The volunteer program, as I gathered, is likely the most beneficial source of income for VMF. For one month a volunteer contributes approximately $1,000 USD. This fee includes your meals and (tent) accommodations, and of course the unique learning experience.

In the month I was there, there was about 40 volunteers on average at any given time. This high number is not unusual for what is the western world's summer break time (winter in South Africa). This number will start decreasing as September rolls in. I was put off a bit by the large number of people there when I arrived, however I did realize that it amounted to a much needed cash supply. This number of people also translates to a lot of work getting done, such as the building of enclosures and upkeep of the fire breaks (keeping the perimeter of the property clear of flammable brush in order to stop fires spreading to animal and human areas). This is all great for VMF, but is the consequences of large amounts of new people around, good for the monkeys? In my second posting I mentioned that I would write more about this situation and the issue of the volunteers having a hands-on experience with the monkeys as I experienced it first hand.

As I mentioned earlier, it is necessary that rescued infant monkeys to be hand reared, otherwise their fate is death. At VMF, once these infants are old enough to be on their own in their young group, they will slowly be weaned from humans. They then will start being introduced to an established troop. The near future plan is to bypass a stage of human handling at a point where it is safe to intregrate them with a surrogate vervet mother. It will be an adopted mother program! I think this is fantastic and wish it success! I saw this directly work at Stichting AAP (Foundation Ape) where I previously was employed. A baby vervet was introduced to surrogate parents (a male and female vervet couple) and they adopted him lovingly right away! (This was Cookie who is featured in the photo of my first blog posting).

One of the appeals to potential volunteers of this program at VMF is that they get to touch monkeys. I know this is a major "selling point" which leads to the income of the foundation. Here is one of those debatable compromises that I mentioned earlier. Is it right to have so many inexperienced people touching these baby monkeys? A personal issue I had is that with so many volunteers being there at one time, all wanting a chance to spend time in with the babies, it could cause tension and confusion in the baby group. These are very sensitive creatures and the subtlest of communications or situations can cause an altercation within the group or directed at the humans in the enclosure. This proved to be the case at one stage where it seemed every person who went in with them got bitten. Although these bites are certainly not dangerous, it is not pleasant to be bitten, especially when a few of them gang up on you (usually when they think you are at fault for upsetting one of the monkeys or simply to take out their frustration on you). I came home with several scratches and bruises from them- and I consider myself experienced and at ease around monkeys! However, indeed the cause was recognized as being due to too many people in and around the baby cage at one time and it was decided by the staff that a change was in order. The policy then changed to only two people in at a time with them and no more people hanging around outside of the enclosure. I (silently) applauded this decision and know many volunteers also agreed with it. One cannot deny, however, that being in contact with baby monkeys is a special experience. They are fun and affectionate. As I wrote in earlier postings, once you and them are comfortable with one other, it can be great fun playing with them. They love to be swung from your arm and "tossed" around. When they play they open their little mouths and make cute breathy noises as though they are smiling and laughing. When this tires them out, many of them like to cuddle with you and take a nap on you. Many times one would escape under my shirt to sneak in a quick nap. I found that sweet and special- I would be a lying girl if I said otherwise.

In some cases volunteers were also scheduled to go in with particular mature monkeys- ones which were imprinted on humans (former pets, for example) and have no aggressive tendencies toward them. These monkeys are currently caged alone as it is difficult to intregrate them with other monkeys as they were not raised as normal monkeys. They get lonely and desire attention from humans. One such case was Buttercup with whom I sat with a couple of times. The session mainly consisted of me grooming her and vice versa. How do I feel about this? Mixed feelings. My instincts and experience has persuaded me that a human should never feel safe with a wild adult monkey, especially those that have fangs! Even the labeled harmless, humanized ones can be unpredictable, just like humans. Aren't they entitled to a "bad hair day?" And how do they get weaned from humans if we are interacting physically with them daily? Or are these special cases just hopeless and will never be able to be intregrated with their own species? These questions are up in the air still for me and the decision of how to proceed is up to the experienced staff in charge to determine. Maybe there is no one answer. For an example, Skunkey is a male who was a pet. His "owner" had him castrated and his fangs removed- now I ask first, what kind of person can do this to such a beautiful being? Skunkey would have been a big, beautiful alpha male, proud with his tail held high (a sign of status). This owner removed his "manhood" and his main weapon of self defense. Now, at the VMF, he simply will not intregrate with other monkeys, and, rightly understandable considering his horrific short comings forced upon him by a human. I, and other volunteers and staff, often sit with him (I sat on the outside of the enclosure) and groom him as he is always alone. He is a great groomer as I learned while he searched my hair, with great determination, for-well, um, I don't know really- bugs and dirt? I often became worried as apparently he was busy at work removing things from my hair (including the styling wax I forgot was in there- oops).

In cases such as with orphan babies, I think human interaction is necessary up until they can be introduced successfully to a surrogate vervet mother or into a troop. With the lonely, humanized monkeys, human contact may be important to their psychological health until hopefully they can be intregrated with a troop. I would not at any time feel comfortable being in direct contact with adult male monkeys (well, accept maybe Skunkey!) and at VMF a volunteer would not have this option anyway. I hope that they continue to keep the contact with the babies to a minimum amount of people, although again, I understand this is a catch-22 where volunteer expectations come into play.

Overall I had a good experience there and enjoyed the time. There were some moments that I was a bit "over" the camping thing and dreamt of cleaner days and comfortable big beds. The camping accommodations were good, however, and I cannot complain. The vegeterian food served up by Maggie and Rachel was enjoyable and I came to appreciate their hard work taking care of us and the main house. I enjoyed meeting and spending time with some great people- the staff at VMF, the "long-termers," and the volunteers. It is an experience that certainly attracts good people with a real interest in helping animals.

Tzaneen is a beautiful place and the surrounding area is stunning. It is a great place for a holiday with Kruger and other game parks nearby, wonderful lodges, gorgeous sights such as mountains, waterfalls, and nature trails. Tzaneen is also quite modern actually and offers a downtown with a mall and other businesses that offer whatever you may need- and is quite safe compared to some major cities throughout Africa.

Well, I hope you enjoyed my blog. Please feel free to leave your suggestions, comments about it, or the topics I have discussed. Thanks for reading!

Until my next blog (ah, threats!)... Warmest wishes,

Michelle

Bratty Monkeys: Working with the trouble makers

These two monkeys in the photo do not look like brats, do they? Well Marula and Innocence (the one sleeping) are two of the three trouble makers I looked after this week as they were put in "time-out." In other words, they didn't get to join in with the other babies in the "Disneyland" enclosure for a few days. The other trouble makers I am referring to are the wild vervet monkeys who pester local restaurants and their patrons. These were the two main projects I got to focus on last week- and it was great!

Scooter (a high-ranked male), Marula (duel personality syndrome-one minute a snuggle bunny and the next the evil biter), and Innocence (the "princess" baby and not so innocent!) were all put in a time out for several days for stirring up trouble in the baby group. Instead of going out each day to the Disneyland enclosure as the current routine goes, they had to stay back in their small night time enclosure, along with Suffolk (a human-wary young female). Lucky me got to go in with them to keep them company and watch over their behavior! Well, one would think going into a small enclosure with the brats who like to bite and pull hissy fits would be terribly scary and against one's instincts! However, it turned out to be my favorite task yet! They were lovely! Scooter, who had been testing and threatening me a bit previously was a total love bug. At one point he fell asleep on my shoulder, head resting on my head and one little hand on my face.

Marula, who is known to pull a "Sybil" at any given time, never so much as raised an eyebrow at me (which in monkey communication is a threat)- in fact she would quickly become one of my best buddies.

Innocence, who is a bit of a spoiled young baby, did put on a few tantrums, but I was explained how to deal with this behavior. In the wild, the mom would grab the scruff of the baby's neck and push her down to the ground and hold her there until she calms down. When she is calm, the mother will then comfort her, as if to say its ok now, with a grooming session. This is what I did and she responded fine to it! I put her gently in her place and the other monkeys did not even blink and eye, as if they instinctively know this behavior from both participants (in other conflicts were the monkey is vocalizing distress they would come to her aid by attacking the perpetrator). I really felt like a monkey at that moment! Innocence has since snuggled a lot with me- she even fell asleep underneath my t-shirt while sucking her little fingers.

The four of us had a lot of play sessions and even the nervous scaredy cat Suffolk warmed up to me and got the courage to touch my fingers and play with my shoestrings. Yesterday they were back in Disneyland with the others after "doing their time." I was there for most of the day and could feel the lasting effect of our new friendship as at one point the three "brats" fell asleep on my lap...

The day before yesterday I went monkey patrolling for the second time with a few other volunteers. We went back to the Tea Garden restaurant to talk to the owner who has complained about the pesty troop of monkeys showing up every day. The majority of their seating is outside overlooking a gorgeous, lush valley of overgrown abandoned tea plants. This was once a working tea plantation but went out of business due to cheaper tea from other countries.

The owner had told us that the 15-20 member troop is quite cheeky and will steal food from patrons and off the tables (usually once the people leave). She says that they even "terrorize" the children on the playground (we allowed her a bit of possible embellishment). We returned to give her advice about two solutions to her problem. First we advised her that we cannot just simply remove the monkeys, as she so frankly requested, for obvious reasons to us but apparently not to her. Even if we were to remove all these monkeys which would be a major time-consuming difficult task, once the territory was freed up most likely a new troop would move in. We suggested her to either put up an electric fence or put out their scraps and left over food in one consistent spot away from the kitchen and eating area. The latter of course was the option we were really pushing for. We advised her that this has worked in the past and that it would not be a major task at all. Simply get a bucket for the scraps and have a worker throw it outside twice per day in the same spot and they will find it. This may then satisfy their appetites thereby they may not bother to venture to the human territory. Hopefully she will put this to practice and do it faithfully so it will have a chance to produce the results she desires.

We were then off to a trail in a forest where there supposedly are some wild vervets. It was a beautiful trail, looking similiar to a lush rain forest. We didn't see a lot of vervets, but we did have the rare pleasure of seeing the shy Samango monkey. Samangos are not brash or as brave as the vervets are where humans are concerned. They do not normally pester human areas and will stay up in the trees. Seeing the two Samangos was very special, although the dominant female didn't agree and proceeded to put on a good disply of threats in our honor.

Our mission here was to try to get a good count of vervets in this particular small area, but they were being shy. We saw one jumping away high in the trees and later heard one's alarm call (maybe also in our honor).

Overall it was an interesting and fun week. I had a nice day off where I went to a lovely lodge for the day and treated myself to a couple of spa treatments. I embarrassingly had to apologize to my pedicurist for showing up with a big fresh rip in the front of my pants (near the crotch no doubt) and for my horrifying monkey-laboring feet! She responded with something like "I've seen worse from the Vervet Foundation" and handed me two safety pins!

Well, I only have five days left here- boy did that go by fast! I will surely miss the monkeys but am also looking forward to getting back home to Aly and our comfy house! I will hopefully get one more post in before leaving.

Hope everyone is well! Take care.

A blind introduction: my sightless friends get a new home

Hi everyone!

Well the South African weather changes faster than the wind and I have become a specialist at layering clothing. The mornings are quite cold and I have a long sleeve shirt and a fleece and long pants..by mid morning it is just the long sleeve..by 11am it is change to a t-shirt..by lunch time it is into short pants and depending on the job function, maybe a tank top. By dinner time (5p), I reverse this process! At bedtime you will find me in long socks, fleece pajama pants, a long sleeve night shirt, big sweater and a winter cap and then tucked in my sleeping bag, head covered!

This past week has been an exciting one for VMF as some of the blind (sight challenged!) monkeys were introduced to each other in their new home- a large outside enclosure (they have a night time covered enclosure). I had the privilege to be there for the first two introductions and wow, it was great. These monkeys had been living in small, catching-size cages as they came in without an enclosure available to them. They were solitary and I imagine a bit stressed or scared as they were sitting next to stranger monkeys but could not see what was happening around them. When one monkey in the inside facility would start alarm calling, the whole lot of them follow and it because a house of stress- if maybe only for a minute or so. Just imagine being blind in all this!

Gedaffi, a lovely female who could be about 10-12 years old and her young baby companion, Rainbow, were the first to be carried out of this madness and into the outside enclosure. They have not been outside for some time therefore not having the pleasure of having the sun in their face. The photo posted here is me with Gedaffi. We took quite a liking to one another and later she would sleep resting on my knee. She is very humanized and may have been a pet so she is reliant on humans. She did, however, set off to explore this new environment. She cautiously walked around, sniffing and put her little hand out in front of her so not to bump into anything. She knows the work "careful" and I was instructed to go along with her and warn her when she is about to bump into something. By telling her "careful" she will know to stop or go around the object. She often would check back with me, however, and would follow my voice back to my lap. I was proud, however, to see her being quite independent the second time around in the enclosure. Her companion, Rainbow, is completely afraid of humans and would not come out of her small cage to explore. A funny little skittish female who apparently looked to Gedaffi for companionship and protection.

I was happy to hear and see Rainbow out of her little cage and exploring the next day! She still would not approach a human (which is fine, actually) but her fear no longer deterred her from "stretching her legs" finally. Gedaffi and Rainbow were then introduced to another blind female, Keller, who explored at a bit more faster pace, possibly a nervous pace. But Keller seemed not to be bothered. It was soon clear at feeding time that Gedaffi would be the dominant female! She was aware that Keller was eating "her" food nearby and went after her. A bite to the tail and Keller was put in her place in this hierarchy. Keller seemed a bit more nervous after this and slept in a small cozy spot between her old cage and the wall. Since then a few other monkeys have been introduced and it seems to be going very well. I unfortunately haven't been there as I was in Kruger National Park for 3 days. Sad to have missed more of the introduction, but I hope to see them soon.

We had a nice game drive in Kruger National Park. We saw a rhino, two leopards, a lovely hyena family on the side of the road (mama nursing the cubs), a jackal, warthogs, elephants, buffalo, antelopes, and giraffes. I was disappointed, however, that we could not find any lions.

In the next blog I will tell about another fun job that I experienced today: monkey patrolling out in communities...

Hope all is great with everyone! Ciao for now..

Off to a strange start: Schnitzel and a striptease

My South African bush adventure has begun..well, sort of. It begins with a tall cappuccino, extra froth, and a cinnamon roll at a Starbucks in downtown Frankfurt, Germany. No monkeys here (I presume). No "big-5" lurking in the brush or along the savannah. Just a fluffy, nicely coiffed poodle prancing by with his city mom.

I had never planned to be a tourist in the city of Frankfurt, however, now I will have to make the most of it for these 24 hours. What does this city have to offer? I have no idea to be honest, but a jolt of caffeine should motivate me.

The one thing you don't want to hear at a foreign airport on route to a far away land is "you cannot travel on this flight today." Apparently my passport had no free visa pages (a requirement for South Africa), therefore I was denied boarding in Frankfurt- not Amsterdam where I live and departed from. Not from Amsterdam where my comfy bed and lovely shower await. Lufthansa allowed me to board there with my passport not up to snuff. Well, I cannot lay all the blame on the agent who checked me in- I should have been aware of this requirement. As my mom pointed out, how does the "world traveller" not know she has no empty pages left in her passport?? Point taken, mom!

Well, I still felt entitled to at least a toiletry/overnight kit as my luggage would not be released to me overnight. Lufthansa afforded me the toiletry kit but would not pay for the hotel.

The American consulate was to open at 8am and I surely would be there when the doors opened. The fear that things could go wrong was lingering. What if they couldn't take me today or were unable to make the adjustment to my passport? What if I was stuck another night or worse, the weekend?? Although the consulate is normally closed on the last Thursday of the month (who knew??), they made an exception for my sorry stranded self. Luck was on my side, too, when the process took less than an hour! I was then off to discover Frankfurt.

So Frankfurt was not all that interesting...Went on a river cruise, drank German beer and ate weiner schnitzel and sauerkraut, and noticed a lot of street beggars. The city is clean, however, and had a nice old city center. On to Africa...

I arrived at the Vervet Monkey Foundation (VMF) just around dinner time (after a 6 hour bus excursion from Johannesburg). Getting my bags out upon arrival should have been uneventful, but a girl closed the back pull down door on my head- ouch! Was it bleeding- no, good (impressive lump though). Then it was announced that 5 of the male volunteers would be performing a striptease to raise cash for the sanctuary. My first activity at the VMF was watching 5 very young (18-23?) boys strip down to their silky colorful boxer shorts to the tune of "I believe in miracles...you sexy thing!" Girls streaming to cheer them on and an older lady squeezing baby oil on them and touching them inappropiate places! Strange start, eh? They raised 1,200.00 Rand (about 120 euros) which will be enough to build one enclosure- it was a success! If only I was 18 years old and straight... They were very cute.

Everyone here is really nice. Besides the one older woman, I am the oldest here. Everyone is of college age- and state of mind! After the strip show and dinner, it was off to the outdoor road side bar, the "Half Human." I went with the hopes that I would not get stuck there until late as the next day was my first working day. After a couple of drinks at the main house here (yes, they have a cash bar-self serve honor system), about 13 of us piled into a SUV and were off. This brought back memories of earlier days...Luckily I got to sit alone up front with the driver as the others sat crammed all over eachother in the back. Not too long after arriving at the bar, one girl was already vomiting from drinking a bottle of wine by herself. Drunk people were going a random game of limbo. Strange, I thought- am I IN Africa?! Tenting, communal living with college students- will I make it the whole 4 weeks??

The daily tasks include cleaning, fire watch and safety (looking for fires in the surrounding areas and making fire breaks), monkey patroling, sitting with, monitoring, and feeding the orphan babies, and other various tasks. There are well over 15 orphaned babies here. The most common reason their being here is their mother was killed by a human, maybe by being shot or run over by a car. Other monkeys may have been pets that were confiscated or turned in by the owner. Some monkeys were captured on someone's land who called to say they will shoot them if you don't come and take them off my property.

Baby bottles of formula are made up two times a day, as well as a meal of cornflakes with a little milk and fruit on top (pretty much the same as my daily breakfast!). Most of them are between the ages of 5-12 months and are already learning the social life of their species which includes where they individually fit in the hierarchy and how to play and groom one another. It is amazing that without their mother or family that they innately know how to groom, communicate warning calls,threats, and happy noises. They know when they hear a warning vocalization to become alert, look, and climb up high off the ground. When a "bandit" monkey (the ones that roam freely about the property) comes close to their enclosure and causes a problem, they all get together and threaten it and try to scare it off. It is great to see this as it is natural behavior necessary when they are in their future troop.

The babies are rambunctious and play constantly. Many liked to be groomed and will sit on you and "ask" to be groomed. Many also like to cuddle in your neck and "whisper" their happy noise in your ear. Some times they will give you a love bite, however, as I learned not all bites are love bites! They do sometimes bite the keepers if they get upset at you (directly or indirectly). Every volunteer is briefed on how to behave and communicate while in the enclosure with them, as to not upset, scare, or stress them. Monkeys, especially young ones, are hyper-sensitive and can easily misinterpret your body language, expressions, and intentions. Luckily they have only baby teeth and the damage is minimal (although unpleasant).

Some may wonder why it is necessary for humans to have this hands on approach. I am in the stages of determining my own answere to this. I think that the infants have to be handled to some degree. Many come in sick and others may need emotional reassurance. I think some may feel safer with human "guardians" around. Well, I will write more on this subject as I get more experience..

Well, I apologize for the long entry this time.. This computer is quite slow and there are many volunteers here using it. I had the morning off and thought I would catch up on the past week.. More soon. Hope all is well in your world.