RING-TAIL LEMURS
Jimmy Squarefoot’s cataracts bar him from a life in the forest

Jimmy Squarefoot and Gascar are ringtail lemurs who are unable to live happily in our 12ha forest… fortunately, they get on very well with each other and therefore share a cage. Just like humans, lemurs are extremely social primates, so it’s a relief for us that they can live with companions of their own species. However, our most recent addition to the sanctuary is a severely handicapped ringtail lemur by the name of Perfect, who now lives alone. Our cages were designed to hold animals temporarily, not to house groups of elderly or disabled primates indefinitely. The largest problem is inadequate space for groups and insufficient sunlight, which provides essential vitamin D.

Jimmy came from a local circus where he was kept along with another male ringtail named Bill Doody, who is still happily living in the Monkeyland forest. Whilst treating Jimmy for minor injuries he sustained during a fight with a black & white ruffed lemur last year, we discovered that he has lost most of the sight in his right eye, presumably due to old age. Jimmy never really recovered his usual strength and energy after that incident. This is due to old age and our vet, Dr. Rolf Lamprecht, could not find any further problems. According to the limited information we received when he arrived eight years ago, Jimmy is now at least 17 years old. The average life expectancy of ringtail lemurs is around 20 years in captivity, so he really deserves a cosy retirement now!

Gascar came with three other ring-tail lemurs from a zoo in Canada, since they had an acute space shortage. He was released into Monkeyland with the other male and two females. Unlike his companions, Gascar never adapted well to the forest since he struggles to run and climb. He even got stuck on a tree and in the ravine! It seems this is due to a weakness in his back legs – they cannot take too much weight, possibly due to a life in a very confined space that does not allow the muscles to develop their full potential (a mild form of cage paralysis). He received several bites from his rival male Bill Doody, and although the injuries were not serious, we felt that Gascar deserves to live in peace without being bullied.

Perfect has only just arrived and we don’t know him very well yet, nor did we receive much background information from his previous private owner. One of Perfect’s arms was amputated and one leg is completely stiff. We agreed to accept him knowing that he would not find a better home and that he could fit into the planned Special Monkey
Home perfectly.