Adopt-A-SlothConservationSloth Diaries
We have a special year-end message from Sam Trull, Co-founder of The Sloth Institute.
Since I first started working with sloths, more than 7 years ago, I’ve met a lot of special individuals. I don’t know why and it’s hard to explain, but there have always been certain patients that I connect with more than others. By connection, I mean from my perspective, because I can really only speak from my point of view.
Obviously, all of the sloths are wild animals that constantly have the goal of being free again at the top of their priority list…but even still, certain sloths adapt to the rehabilitation process more smoothly than others. Generally, these sloths are less aggressive, take their treatments well, enjoy their Pedialyte, and it doesn’t hurt when they have THE most gorgeous faces. Those special somethings about their personality make them a “favorite” over time and before I know it, I genuinely can’t wait to see them every day. Becoming increasingly invested in their fate, my emotions are linked to their progress. When they’re happy and feeling well, I’m happy. When they’re struggling, I’m struggling. Over the years I’ve actually tried to not get so emotionally invested, because quite honestly if their story doesn’t have a happy ending I end up destroyed.
In recent years, I think I’ve done a pretty good job trying to maintain that emotional balance, to protect myself for when nature sometimes rears its ugly head and no matter how hard we try things don’t go our way. But every so often, some sloths, slip through the cracks in my heart and land right smack dab in the middle. Where there’s nothing I can do but cater to their every need and pray that we both get that happy ending. Eric was one of those such sloths…and here is his story.
Eric: A brave little prince
Last year in August we received a call about a sloth that had fallen and wasn’t moving on a property called “Mogambo” here in Manuel Antonio. When our team arrived on the scene we found a young male three-fingered sloth slumped over and not going anywhere. Clearly, his situation was critical so we rushed him back to our clinic. On examination, we noticed that his left arm was fractured (humerus) and that he had a weird head tilt. All signs pointed to a bad fall. Luckily he was still in good spirits and was eating well but we needed to act fast if we were going to have a chance to save his arm.
We took him for a CT scan and X-rays. His head tilt couldn’t be explained, but his fracture was confirmed. Luckily our vet Janet and her orthopedic surgeon colleague were able to fit Eric in for surgery quickly. Within just a few short days he was under anesthesia and getting orthopedic pins placed to set his bone so that it could heal.
Luckily, the surgery was a success! However, I was still nervous because I knew of at least two other three-fingered sloths, with broken arms, that rejected orthopedic pins and ultimately succumbed to their injuries. I was terrified that Eric would have a similar fate.
We waited nervously…
We kept a close eye on Eric’s arm after surgery to look for signs of infection or rejection of the pins. He was on a lot of medications and he was such a kind soul about getting his treatments. At first, things seemed great. He wasn’t in too much pain and was actually trying to use the broken arm again. I was hopeful. Maybe Eric could beat the odds and have a smooth healing process?!
Sadly, a couple of weeks post-surgery, we started to see puss coming out of his surgical site. “NOOO!” I thought…he was doing so well. We consulted with the surgeon and tried different antibiotics. But nothing was helping. His body was rejecting the pins and we had to take them out. Every time we had to examine Eric’s arm closely we knew it was uncomfortable for him. He never tried to hurt us but he always tried to get away. He didn’t want to be there but somehow he knew we weren’t there to hurt him.
After a few weeks of trying to heal his arm with a special sling (instead of pins) and yet again new antibiotics, Eric went for a check-up to Xray his arm and review the progress. I was hopeful again. He’d been doing so well, eating and even climbing with his arm in a sling. But as we viewed the X-rays alongside the vet team…my stomach dropped. His arm looked horrible.
The negative reaction to the pins had completely destroyed his humerus bone resulting in an infection that would not go away…even with the multiple different antibiotics that we tried. The only way to save his life and prevent the infection from taking over…was to amputate his arm. Devastated was an understatement. I tried really hard not to cry in the vet office (it’s not very professional after all).
We’re standing there, deciding his fate, all the while he looks up at us with those beautiful little brown eyes. So calm, so patient. He was such an angel. I didn’t want to take his arm! Could he even survive in the wild without it?!
There’s never been a documented success story of a three-fingered sloth with one arm living in the wild. Amputating his arm may be the only way to save his life but what would be the point if he was stuck in a cage permanently?
Luckily we know through our research that one-armed two-fingered sloths can live a full life in the wild…so it was worth trying with a three-fingered. It was worth trying, we couldn’t give up on him!
Eric lost an arm, but it saved his life.
It turns out it was much easier for him to heal from the amputation surgery than from the original orthopedic one. After only a week we were able to completely stop antibiotics, the wound was healed and we could focus on his climbing practice.
At this point Eric was starting to get antsy. He’d been with us a few months already, he was feeling better than ever and he was ready to get out. We fitted him with one of our specially designed VHF collars so that after release we could still track him in the wild.
On the day of his release he looked great and he was so ready to go. We found a perfect tree in a protected forest inside of Tulemar Gardens and we let him go. “OMG. This is it!”
As we watched him slowly climb up we were all so nervous.
Would he be ok? At first, he seemed ok. He was a little slow but climbing well. However, less than half an hour later I got a call, “Eric just fell”. “Is he ok?!?” I frantically asked? Yes, he was fine…but what does this mean for his future I wondered?
We put him back in his enclosure to let him rest while we decided if and when we should try again. After a few days, Eric started to get antsy again. He was waiting by the door. He did not want to be there. It was obvious what he wanted, but I was scared. He’d already fallen once…maybe he couldn’t make it in the wild with just one arm?!? Plenty of people have said, “no way should you release a one-armed sloth!!!” Maybe they were right..maybe it was time to give up. Maybe we had failed him. But then he looked at me. He wanted another chance. We HAD to give him another chance.
After the second release, I kept waiting for a call. Our team was out tracking him for hours every day. We had eyes on him frequently. I couldn’t sleep I was so worried. Every time I looked at my phone I wondered if it was news about Eric. Was he ok?!? Would he make it?!? But somehow, like a miracle, the bad news never came…and now a year later I keep getting pleased with more and more good news about Eric.
Not only is he living successfully in the wild with only one arm but he is thriving! He’s finding enough food to maintain his weight, he’s established his own home range and he has even been spotted mating with females! Having only one arm hasn’t seemed to slow him down at all. We have witnessed some pretty creative scratching maneuvers, but otherwise, he’s just like any other sloth. He’s living his best wild life…free and with us close by just in case he ever needs our help again!
Sloths like Eric are WHY we do what we do. Not only is he one of my personal favorites, but he’s a perfect example of everything we do at The Sloth Institute.
You helped us pave the way for all sloths to have a second chance at life in the wild.
We don’t give up on them…even when it seems the hill is too high to climb…and the post-release tracking provides examples of our success stories that help to encourage other rescue centers to give their rehabilitated sloths a second chance at a wild life as well.
I love Eric. I love what he represents, and I love how I feel every time I see him happily enjoying his life up in trees just as he was meant to be.
I hope his story inspires you to continue your support. The Sloth Institute exists because you believe in us, and you believe that sloths like Eric deserve a second chance for a new beginning.
Thank you,
Give today to save more sloths like Eric!
Here are ways you can contribute:
Symbolically Adopt A Sloth. Adopt a sloth and you’ll get an e-certificate with a photo of our chosen sloth and the name of your recipient. A great gift for sloth-loving family and friends!
Contribute to Monster’s WiSH Fund Monster was one of the first sloths rescued by TSI. In her memory, your donation will go towards the WiSH (Wild Sloth Health) program to support sloth conservation.
Buy a Sloth Speedway. Provide sloths with safer travel routes high above the ground via Sloth Speedways, a non-invasive rope connection formed between an open space in the forest canopy.
Give a one-time donation. Your donation in any amount contributes to the conservation of the sloth population in Costa Rica and the planet!
This is such a amazing story! I hope Eric is still doing great, and make sure you keep up the good work! 😀