I have met lemurs and my life will never be the same! Many moons ago, one of my best friends lived in Madagascar and I asked that she please bring me a lemur back - but she told me that they could be very aggressive - so I'd have to ask for something else. So my dreams of meeting a lemur were not realized.
So imagine my joy when my mother-in-law mentioned on the way to Florida that she knew of an animal sanctuary near her home in Central Florida and as she understood it - you could interact with lemurs! She asked if that would be something I was interested in and I immediately told her YES!
Chase Sanctuary is located in Webster, Florida and is home to a multitude of animals that have been rescued from the exotic pet trade and are re-homed and introduced to a troop (family) that they can make their own! The Sanctuary has lemurs, monkeys, tamarind, birds, cavies, tortoise, anteaters, deer, rabbits and even a stray cat or two wandering around, ha-ha!
We joined an approximately 2.5 hour tour and we were able to learn so much and interact with so many different animals along the way! It was truly an amazing experience! And I promise the cat pictured below wasn't as angry as he looks... ha-ha!
We started our tour in the Lemur Barn - where the moms and babies were being kept! It was so exciting to get to see babies and while we watched the introduction video, Pendleton the Lemur (above on the first picture and below, sucking his thumb) hopped around right in front of me and I was able to pet his soft, fluffy fur! We had a large tour group, so once the video was done - we headed out with Ellie - with the promise that we would return to the Lemur Barn to spend more time with the Ringtails and their babies!
We were introduced to teeny tamarinds that would fit in the palm of your hand and a tortoise so large, the tour guide noted she couldn't flip him right side up on her own! The tortoise chased after my MIL - and when we asked why - it was because her hot pink sneakers made him think of hibiscus, one of his favorite snacks! We gave him a carrot instead and watched how he used his claws to remove stuck bites from his beak (who knew tortoise had beaks...)... and then the cavies escaped, ha-ha!
The cavies were in our next enclosure visit - and these little rat/dog/rabbit hybrids had dug our of the enclosure, left their baby behind and were trying to make a run for it! They were restored (safely and gently) to their enclosure and while they were returned, we got to meet a lovely deer and rabbit friend! The deer and rabbit were both rescues and enjoyed some carrot and watermelon treats - the rabbit even "fought" the deer for a bite of watermelon and won! Who knew rabbits could be so fierce?
I don't have pictures - but we learned about Vervet monkeys - and unfortunately a whole group of them were brought over from South Africa and I confess, I don't remember what happened but what I do remember is they now live at the Park and Ride in the Jacksonville Florida area, in and around an abandoned car, where they are frequently hit by cars and fed things like Taco Bell and Burger King by tourists. *sigh* They cannot be returned to South Africa (red tape) and unfortunately must be left there to fend for themselves - because they can't be taken in, because they would have to be euthanized. It was absolutely a cautionary tale about the horrors of the illegal exotic pet trade that occurs daily.
After meeting some brown lemurs and taking a quick stroll through the butterfly garden - it was time to return to the Lemur Barn and have more time with the ringtail lemurs (and their babies). We were given bananas to share with the little guys and I cannot even tell you how amazing it was to hold out a banana and have a little lemur scamper up to you, reach out their teeny (soft) hands and take the banana! Theses little creatures have so much personality and it was so fascinating to watch them hop around, make gigantic leaps and just generally be adorable!
The adorable babies seemed to get a sugar high off the bananas because after a few minutes of banana treats, they went a little bit wild! They were leaping and flying and scampering around the barn and it was pretty hilarious! While I didn't ever coax one to hop onto my shoulder or have one use me as a leap pad for their bounding about the barn, it was one of the most incredible experiences to feed them bananas, be tapped by their little hands and just be able to pet their soft fur! It was the most amazing thing and I still can't believe that I can say I've hung out with lemurs!
After a quick stop to visit to the anteater and the sloth (which I have no picture of because they were too far back in the enclosure - being sloth-like) we went into our final enclosure, where the ruffled lemurs were! We got into the enclosure in the nick of time, as a big ol' Florida thunderstorm rolled in and so we hung out under the shelter with the ruffled lemurs for the next twenty minutes or so... and these little guys were incredible too! None of these guys climbed on me either (one did use my MIL as a spring pad) but one incredible little one did sit next to me at the picnic bench over and over again - and that was a complete joy!
Once the rain passed, we said our final farewells to the ruffled lemurs and made our way into the gift shop to peruse and wash our hands (lemur germs... I guess...). I cannot tell you how much this lemur experience meant - it was so incredible to experience these little guys and I am trying to convince my husband that he needs to experience this when we go back to Florida for Christmas - he loves all animals and he would absolutely be overjoyed! It was - I know I've said this a million times - the most amazing experience and is now a cherished memory!
There is nothing quite like having a baby lemur hold your hand - and I can't believe I was lucky enough to get to experience that!
I am so glad you were able to experience this! Looks amazing!
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