Volunteers delivered a rescued ring-tailed lemur to the Kyiv Zoo

Animal welfare volunteers have handed over a ring-tailed lemur to the Kyiv Zoological Park; the animal had suffered from improper care while kept as a pet. 

The four-year-old animal, named Kotik, has no physical injuries, but it has completely lacked socialization due to prolonged isolation, according to KyivZoo. Currently, the primate is undergoing a 40-day quarantine at the veterinary hospital for diagnostic procedures.

Zoo specialists note that after the examinations are completed, the lemur will undergo a lengthy adaptation process. The specialists’ goal is to gradually acclimate the animal to life in a group of its own kind in the Lower Park’s lake area. The primate’s socialization is a necessary condition for its future full-fledged existence in a zoo environment.

Animal rights activists emphasize that it is unacceptable to keep such exotic animals outside of specialized facilities. The case of Kotik demonstrates the consequences of isolating social species from their natural environment and their group. The lemur’s condition is under constant supervision by primatologists, who are developing an individualized rehabilitation program for him.

As a reminder, a newborn lemur at the Kyiv Zoo was named Bayraktar.