International Animal Rescue has released a video of a visibly distressed baby orangutan who was kept as a pet for two years.
Joss wrapped her arms tightly around her body, in a hugging motion, which the organisation has described as a “coping behaviour”.
Jaclyn Eng, a vet for IAR said: “Joss’ life up until now must have been very traumatic and stressful for her to behave in this abnormal way.
“Animals usually develop stereotypical behaviour as a coping mechanism in response to a stressful situation.
“Our team has never seen such a young baby orangutan exhibiting stereotypical behaviour like this. It is extremely distressing to watch because it must reflect the mental and emotional trauma little Joss is suffering”.
Joss became even more distressed when the team tried to comfort her and as can be seen in the video, she banged her head against the wall.
She needs constant supervision and distraction and IAR say ” only time will tell whether she will make a full recovery from such a terrible start in life”.
Main image and video via IAR
