It’s almost the end of the year and so much has already been achieved and accomplished it is quiet unbelievable. I would just like to say a big thank you to you all for helping us get the foundation back on track especially to Josie my wife whom without none of this would ever be possible. The health and wellbeing of all the monkeys has fallen heavily on her shoulders and it is just remarkable how she pulls some of the most terminal looking cases through.

Thanks to all the volunteers and staff who have stood by us and worked with us to make the many changes - you are the life blood of the foundation and it’s your sweat, tears and monkey bites that helps improve these monkeys lives and gives them a better future, I hope every time you come back you will be amazed at what your fellow volunteers have done. You are all very special and the VMF really appreciates every one of you - Thank You guys

A lot has been going on, main feed is almost complete, we now have a nice undercover area to chop up food and cement flooring to lay out the bowls but as you all know improvements will never come to an end. We have also started a small vegetable patch to make use of the excess water from bowl cleaning, adding a composting area and rubbish area. Skrow enclosure has finally been refurbished with new fencing, poles and intro enclosures. Crèche has been demolished with Scat moving in with Nigel and Nigella in an intro cage at the James enclosure and he loves it, it's like one re-united family. Disneyland now has a new cement floor hopefully for easy cleaning and ready for any new babies that might arrive in the future.  We have also had delivery of new signs sponsored by Vixtrix’s signs for the main road and near the entrance of the foundation - Thanks Waldo.

Something that has been requested for a long time from the volunteers are signs for each monkey cage with a description, how long they have been here and their background. Goliath have been finished so we will gradually work on some more for the other sections shortly.

On the monkey side of things our special diet monkeys - Angel and Lily have returned to Robert troop and Brownie is back in Engeljie which is just a tiny part of what is actually going on. Leanie is back in the sickbay enclosure and Opal & the Tweedles have moved in together on the side of Skrow. Monkeys are being caught with the help of our 2 vet nurses Emily & Sarah taking and checking faecal samples and treating them for worms and parasites or any other ailments. Ian has also played a big part in catching monkeys lately. We are taking the opportunity to re-vamp their cages whilst they are out. BWC (black walnut, clove and wormwood) is almost a swear word at the foundation and is a strict regime we use to try to cut down on the parasites in addition to the usual veterinary de-wormers. 

We are still looking for vets to help us with vasectomies as a form of birth control. As mentioned in previous newsletters, vasectomies don’t change or influence the behaviour of the males unlike castrations so they can do the job without a negative result whilst we do what we do best - looking after orphans and the misplaced or injured primates .

Welcome:

Brittney Chrans, Tim Warrington, Jennifer Redinger, Jessica Dietrich, Natalie Collins, Victoria Cole, Lizzie Hamilton, Fiona Thomson, Claire Humes, Mandy Siegal, Natalie Coleman, Alex Anthony, Dawn Puttock, Bryony Brooks, Carolyn Thomas, Koen Nederhand, Alex Crawford, Michael Temple, Trudi-Humphrey Ranking, Teresa Smith.

Welcome back:

Rachel Plotnek

We say goodbye to Kirissie Sullvan this month and thank her for all her help in getting protocols started, organising volunteers and sickbay area. Although everyone works hard in all areas of the foundation, sickbay can be particularly intense at times ensuring all monkeys take their meds and worrying for their health so we thank everyone who has ever worked in sickbay or had the responsibility of answering hundreds of questions a day - this position requires a lot of multi-tasking!

Eveline has made the decision to work on a neighbouring farm so we are currently looking for someone to look after Middle section and thank Veronique for her help so far with it. Jackson has also moved away from all the busy life of the VMF so she can have time & electricity to write her book to raise more money to help the monkeys. We thank them both for everything they have done here and look forward to reading Miss Jackson's book for which I'm sure many of you will want to see. The nice part is both Eveline & Jackson are just across the fence!

Emily & Sarah are doing a great job as always under the pressure and we are priviledged to have 2 vet nurses for a short period of time. Victoria and Natalie have been helping Emily & Sarah with the supplements and meds side of things so it's great we have a team of reliable people all working together to help the monkeys.

In addition - Brittney has been helping look after the maintenance and husbandry of sickbay area with the help of the other volunteers and Claire has also been helping with the area.

Jessica & Emily amongst other volunteers have started some active enrichment for the monkeys with priority being given to those who are currently on their own. Items used are to enhance the vervet natural behaviour - you could spend hours watching Mini up at Goliath play with all the leaves, flowers and branches attached to the outside of her cage.

For all those of you who know Highbrow - he is still in sickbay but on the road to recovery - he looks forward to his boiled eggs on occasions and if you've ever seen the excitement in his face when he sees it coming, you will know what a character he is.

We are currently working on improvements to Bottom section - the first was Skrow enclosure being re-vamped and the move of Opal, Tweedledee & Tweedledum in together to the new Skrow intro cage. Opal is currently teaching the Tweedles a few manners, they are gradually learning to respect him after a few months of being without older monkeys. This is preparing them for when they are released into the troop at a later date.

Derek, a monkey from Skrow that had some nerve damage is recovering well and using his leg once again, hopefully it won't be long before he can go back into the troop.

Attie's cage (Robert A) has been worked on so that him and Robert can move in together shortly.

Many more improvements to come - thank you to all who have been carrying out observations and to Ian for trapping the monkeys so we can progress quickly for them and improve their lives all round.

After all this time, Elf has finally made his next steps from sickbay and moving back with Armstrong and Thandi into Skunkey G. It took a long time for him to recover from a period of illness but he is doing very well now. Ian has been busy on his day off sorting their cage with new sand, enrichment and giving it a revamp. All have been de-wormed and health checked before moving back in together again. See Ian's article below.

When I arrived back at the VMF in early May after an absence of six months, I was asked if I would help take care of three young monkeys named Armstrong, Elf and Thandi in a cage at the Skunkey enclosure. Though Thandi was healthy the two boys, Armstrong and Elf, were both very ill with internal parasites and would need special care to help rid them of these and nurse them back to health.

When I first entered the cage I was greeted by two very friendly male monkeys in a very bad state. Armstrong’s growth had been stunted and both were losing fur and were incredibly thin, I could easily fit my hands around either of their wastes with room to spare, and neither had the energy to jump around and play fight as three and a half year old boys should.

Over the next three months I raked and cleaned their cage every morning, fed them three times a day (often holding up a food plate while Elf sat on my head to eat!) and gave them all the love and attention I could. With courses of de-wormer and meals containing things like onion and garlic (which help combat and prevent intestinal parasites) Armstrong went from strength to strength gaining more and more energy every day.

Sadly the same could not be said for Elf, if anything he was getting worse. Being the sickest monkey in the cage means being the lowest ranking and being the lowest ranking means eating whatever is left when the others have eaten their fill. But it was Elf who needed feeding the most so we made the decision was made to move him to sickbay where he would receive the best one to one care and no competition for food.

I was sad to see Elf leave my care, I’d developed a very close bond with him over the previous three months, I’d been the one who groomed him when Thandi and Armstrong wouldn’t and I’d been his protection when he wanted food they wouldn’t let him eat. Looking at his condition though I was scared for his life and I knew it was the best chance for his survival.

Over the next three months I continued to spend a lot of time taking care of Armstrong and Thandi, cleaning their cage and feeding them three times a day. I also visited Elf in sickbay whenever I could; I helped with his de-worming and even picked live worms off the floor of his cage to stop him re-ingesting them (not the most pleasant task).

On Saturday 8th of November I took a small capture cage into Skunkey G intro cage where Armstrong and Thandi were enjoying a newly furnished caged with fresh sand on the floor, swings hanging from the roof and easily cleanable plastic pipes for them to climb on. Inside the capture cage was a very lively, feisty, playful and healthy four year old boy who couldn’t wait to be back with his old friends. Opening the hatch of the cage and seeing Elf run back to Armstrong and Thandi has been the absolute highlight of my stay here so far and I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a little emotional sitting in the cage with them as they greeted each other running around play fighting as four year old boys (and a girl) should. 

Thank you to Ian and all the volunteers who have worked hard on the improvements for bottom section this month - the rewards are seeing the monkeys happy and healthy. Elf is just one of our little miracles.

After weeks of integration, our ‘ orphaned babies’ are finally out! What started as a rough introduction has turned out to be a very proud time for all of us involved in the move. With every day, Bundu, Berlioz and Priya (and Whitey of course) continue to make SAAV enclosure their new home…venturing up every tree and covering every inch of ground. I am extremely excited to watch them as they thrive and play with the likes of Scooter and Nandi (though not without the odd fight) and I wish them great happiness as we are needed less and less in their monkey endeavors.

And so it’s here…an unbelievable 6 months and it is now time for me to return back to the UK (although not for too long!). When people ask me what I have been up to since being at the foundation, no story will be able to compare with the actual time I had here. So many people, places, monkeys and experiences…I am nervous from the thought of heading ‘home’ even if it is just for a short while.

Since coming to the VMF, I have had the absolute pleasure of seeing so many positive changes (thanks to the constant efforts of Dave and Josie!), from the completion of Camelot enclosure, Quarantine and re-build of Skrow…to improving the health and standard of living of many many monkeys. I have learnt an unbelievable amount about the monkeys, homeopathy and nutrition…things that will definitely prove useful in future. As the volunteer coordinator, I have had the privilege of working along side some amazing people every day. Each bringing their own part to the foundation, I have loved being surrounded by such great company and learning the likes of the ‘Rudi’ dance, snippets of other languages and having the pleasure of hearing so many extraordinary stories. Needless to say it will all be sorely missed! Fortunately though, I will be back. Who knows what new adventures and experience await me on my return, but one thing is for sure, I cannot wait!

…I would like to take this chance to thank Dave and Josie for giving me this fantastic opportunity and all of the volunteers for making it what it is. I look forward to seeing most of you back in the UK, and the rest back at the foundation!

Thank you to Ryan for the last 6 months, thank you also to Hilde, Jennifer & Rachel who are helping with various tasks whilst Ryan is away to help the place run smoothly.

Time flies … almost 3 months (after 7 months of absence) since I’m back at the foundation and not a single day did I regret my decision to come back.  When I first arrived we decided that I would take on the responsibility of quarantine and monitoring.  After a couple of weeks and a couple of days I noted we kept running out of food for special diets on a regular basis, so it was decided it might be better to have someone taking care of the stock.  I tried to take this on me, but that does mean that I usually start my day now at 6am because an hour later sickbay and the close neighbourhood becomes a wasp nest full of activity, way too busy to keep my head together!

At this early hour, after I leave my cabin and “shed village”, I pass Robert enclosure where I greet all the monkeys, say good morning to them, ask them if they slept well, etc.  My next monkeys to say hello to are the ones in James enclosure where specially Seeay says “hello to you too” by sticking her bum in the air for a quick groom.

When the stock list is done for the day, I start preparing the morning meds for all the quarantine monkeys.  Quarantine does not only mean cleaning cages and feeding monkeys but also has a lot to do with giving out morning, noon and afternoon meds (which includes supplements and herbals to keep them strong) – sliced bananas here, drops and powders there.   Giving meds out though is most of the time quite a mission because when you deal with high and low rankers in one cage, you always seem to miss a couple of arms and/or hands!  That’s why I always make sure to have a “fellow meds giver” with me, so we have at least two pairs of arms and hands available… I can tell you, after a while you definitely get the hang of giving out meds, spreading arms and legs as if you were a ballet dancer!

Hilde has not only taken on supervision of quarantine, monitoring and stock but will also be helping with our adoptions and general running of the centre amongst taking people to see our gifts at the shop. We thank Hilde for all the hard work she has put in since being back. If anyone has ever tried to get vervets to take meds - they will know they aren't the easiest of primates to give them to!

This month we had a visit from GVI (Global Vision International) regional Co-ordinator - Olly Burdekin. He arrived on the night of Halloween so fun was had by all in a Halloween party organised by the volunteers. Olly was here to get an overview of the volunteering experience for GVI.

GVI are still looking for testimonials and also recent photos of GVI volunteers for their website - please e-mail them to josie@vervet.za.org if you have any and they will be passed on.

Thank you to the following people who helped us this month:

• Elizabeth Whitehouse donated $100
• Vixtrix Signs donated 2 signboards
• Doerthe Jansen - donated 20 Euros towards the shop and sent a wonderful CD of her best photos

Can you help the monkeys this Christmas?
We are currently in need of the following items:

• Kitten baby bottles and teats
• Small fleecy blankets for babies
• 1ml syringes
• Single waterproof mattress covers
• Single bed sheets & pillowcases for volunteers
• Screen for projector
• Stationary - pens, pencils, blue tac (prestik), scissors etc
• Panacur de-worming granules
• Droncit injectable de-wormer
• Milbemax puppy de-worming tablets
• Work gloves for volunteers
• Two-way radios
• Blank DVDs for adoption films
• Or you can use our click to donate button on our website
  
  Please contact info@vervet.za.org if you can help or for a bigger list of items currently needed.
  

Tim has been busy this month helping to film some of our adoption monkeys for our special gift package in order to raise more much needed funds for the monkeys. Monkeys that will be up for adoption include Shadow (Adult in Goliath Troop), Bundu (1yr old in SAAV troop), Hoppy (1yr old) & Mamba (orphaned baby). More to come about these in next month's newsletter.

If you would like to be put on the list for one of these monkeys, please e-mail hilde@vervet.za.org so we can contact you as soon as they are up and ready - they would make fantastic xmas presents or late New Years gifts.

Vanessa Moffitt, Annette Klein, Rhian Williams, John O'Brien, Carmin Lepitzki (return), Gitte Friis Jansen, Julie Klenoe, Kirissie Sullivan, Eveline Vos, Jacqueline Pearce, Amanda Treese.