Orphaned at a very early age, the baby, named Joss, was kept illegally as a pet for two years in Ketapang, West Borneo, before being handed over to the International Animal Rescue and the Natural Resources Conservation Agency.
Baby orangutan Joss misses her mother so much she hugs herself constantly, pictured,
She was found in West Borneo by a team from International Animal Rescue who have since taken her to a rehabilitation centre, pictured, and are preparing her to eventually be returned to the wild
The little creature is seen repeatedly throwing herself onto the floor and banging her head against the wall, stopping only briefly when offered a bottle of milk by one of IAR’s vets.
She was owned by a man named Dahlan, who admitted buying the creature for around £25 because he felt sorry for her and did not realise it was illegal to keep the primates as pets.
She had previously been kept illegally as a pet for two years by a family of six in West Borneo, pictured
‘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.’
She added: ‘At first we tried to comfort and hold her but she was obviously so stressed in her new surroundings that she did not want us to touch her and kept climbing off our knees and walking around on her elbows.
Joss hugs herself so much that the team of vets caring for her said she looked deformed to the naked eye
She was voluntarily handed over to the IAR by owner Dahlan, right, when he realised it was illegal to keep an orangutan as a pet
‘We also tried to settle her down with a giant cuddly teddy bear but that didn’t help either. She just kept banging her poor head against the wall.’