i love sloths Archives - The Sloth Institute

Sloths ENdangered or IN Danger?

Sam Trull — Sun, 06 Nov 2016 20:14:35 +0000

In addition, underlying diseases and abilities to adjust to an ever changing world go un-detected without targeted research initiatives. There are active steps we can take towards creating a safer, healthier and happier future for wild sloths in Costa Rica. But first we need to learn, what makes a healthy sloth? What factors affect the health of individual sloths and sloth populations? In order to truly tackle these questions, we recently completed the build of Monster’s WiSH (Wild Sloth Health) lab.

A question I get asked often is “Are sloths endangered?”. While the sloths of Costa Rica may not be categorized as ENdangered, they are still very much IN danger. Every day critical habitat is destroyed and sloths are injured by human encroachment. They can’t run across roads, jump through gaps in the forest or fend off dogs. In addition, underlying diseases and abilities to adjust to an ever changing world go un-detected without targeted research initiatives. There are active steps we can take towards creating a safer, healthier and happier future for wild sloths in Costa Rica. But first we need to learn, what makes a healthy sloth? What factors affect the health of individual sloths and sloth populations? In order to truly tackle these questions, we recently completed the build of Monster’s WiSH (Wild Sloth Health) lab.

As a part of our research, we take various samples from the wild sloths that we are tracking so that we can monitor different health parameters to get an overall picture of the quality of life of certain sloth individuals and ultimately populations of sloths. Everything from weight, body measurements, feces, blood, hair, photos and more can be collected non-invasively to help us paint a clearer picture about baseline sloth health and what factors affect that baseline. With this lab space, we will be able to collect comprehensive knowledge about common sloth diseases in wild populations. We aim to not only investigate the baseline health of ‘normal’ sloth populations, but also correlate this information with habitat quality so that we can make recommendations on how to better develop human encroached areas to improve the health and quality of life for wild sloth populations in Costa Rica before it is too late. This lab is an instrumental part of our ever growing WiSH program providing our team a perfect environment to work, collect, store and analyze samples. In addition, this lab is a space where we can invite visiting researchers to collaborate on important conservation research that will save sloth lives.

We are so grateful to our incredible community of supporters that made Monster’s WiSH lab a dream come true to help us avoid sloths becoming endangered. We look forward to sharing our educational journey as we work every day to save the sloths that we all love.

– By Sam Trull

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Make a Difference, TSI’s Elementary School Sloth Challenge kickoff begins!

Sam Trull — Mon, 03 Oct 2016 02:10:29 +0000

Jane Goodall says, “What you do makes a difference and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make”. Teachers of the world make a difference each and every day by inspiring our young. One of our three missions at The Sloth Institute Costa Rica is Education; through education we hope to assure the well-being of sloths not only here in Costa Rica but on this planet. And by helping the sloth, we help preserve trees and the forest; for without a tree or the forest, not only would sloths become endangered but so will many other species of animals.

We are thrilled to have so many teachers signed up to participate in our 2016 Elementary School Sloth Challenge when we celebrate International Sloth Day the entire month of October. Inspired by Ms. Yang’s 1st grade class at West Point Elementary, The Sloth Institute through the many teachers who have signed up to participate, hopes to help inspire and educate young children about wildlife conservation. By educating our young about the importance of conservation of wildlife and the forests, we help ensure that our planet will be preserved in the future. Help us celebrate by sharing this with all the teachers you know. Teachers who have signed up will be receiving Sloth/Wildlife Information (Sloth Facts, How to be a Responsible Sloth Tourist, Why Taking Sloth Selfies is not a Good Idea and Why it’s Important not to Support the Pet Trade) throughout the month to share with their classrooms. You can still sign up as late as 5pm PST on October 3rd.

Here is the schedule for the month:

Week 1 Lesson:
Sloth Facts; Activity: Sloth Coloring Page or an activity of the teachers choosing

Week 2 Lesson:
Being a Responsible Sloth/Wildlife Tourist; Activity: The Pledge (stay tuned for more information on The Pledge!)

Week 3 Lesson:
Why Taking Sloth (or any other wildlife) Selfies is not a Good Idea; Activity: Discuss ideas on how to enjoy the wildlife without disturbing them

Week 4 Lesson:
Why the Pet Trade is So Bad; Activity: Come up with an anti-pet trade slogan and drawing (this can be submitted for a chance to win a 15 minute Skype session with Sam).

Thank you for your support and for teaching our young ones. And don’t forget, make a difference! #slothlove

Illustration by Autumn Ashley

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Ellen and Kermie: Update from the field

Sam Trull — Thu, 21 Apr 2016 04:07:34 +0000

It’s always fun getting updates from my research team in the field these days. One person per sloth tracking them through the jungle every night. What are Ellen and Kermie up to?!? Ellen almost never comes back to the release cage anymore. She prefers being in the jungle. She spends her entire night climbing, foraging and interacting with other wild sloths. Just before dawn, usually around 3-4am she heads to one of her preferred sleeping spots (often at the top of a palm tree) and disappears into the tree…making her extremely hard or almost impossible to spot by anyone that may pass by.

Kermie has been using the cage much more…going out every night as soon as possible and then eventually coming back to go to bed. But finally this past week he spent almost an entire week outside! First he chose an ok sleeping spot in the nook of a tree about 5 meters high….I was a little concerned because it wasn’t very high and he wasn’t as well hidden as he should be. But amazingly the next day…after a night of exploration…he chose an amazing sleeping spot twice as high and completely hidden in the canopy of a water apple tree! That was definitely one of my proudest moments for Kermie. He really is learning out there. After about a week of sleeping in that spot and hanging out in that area he made his way all the way back to the cage and chose his old familiar sleeping bag for a night.

This gradual process of helping Ellen and Kermie figure out how to live in the wild…is going so well so far! None of this would be possible without our amazing supporters! Thank you all from the bottom of our hearts for helping Ellen, Kermie and all the other sloths who will be next…live the life they were meant to live. In the jungle!!!

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“Sharing is Caring”….& meeting Moe the sloth at Cincinnati Zoo”

Sam Trull — Thu, 22 Jan 2015 14:59:41 +0000

Sharing is Caring” – one of the first behaviors you are taught as a small child in pre-school. While a very relevant and great life lesson, my hunch is that pre-school teachers nail this phrase to the board to avoid fights and snotty tear-stained cheeks…not so much for the underlying greater value.

But when you think about it, sharing really IS caring. Caring about something bigger than yourself. This past December I traveled to Cincinnati, Ohio to participate in something much bigger than myself. In an attempt to share what knowledge I have accumulated over the past two years, I presented about sloth rehabilitation during the International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council (IWRC) Symposium. In addition to speaking, I was also privy to many amazing talks ranging from how to build a homemade incubator to how to hand-raise, release and post-release monitor bobcats. The amount of knowledge in that conference room was both exciting and inspiring. Meeting people from across the US, I know I have made some lasting connections and I look forward to continuing to work with and share knowledge with other IWRC members. The night of the banquet I was honored with the presentation of the “2014 Susan M. Fosco Scholarship” which provided me with much needed financial assistance to attend the conference. Being one of those people who, “never wins anything” I felt very honored to receive such a special scholarship. Being presented with a fancy plaque at the banquet was pretty fun too!

Also while in Cincinnati, I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity to visit the Cincinnati Zoo’s very own sloth, “Moe”. Moe is a female adult Choloepus didactylus; the South American two-fingered sloth species. In addition to visiting with Moe I was also invited to speak about Sloth Rehabilitation to Zoo staff and volunteers in a brown bag seminar the day before the IWRC conference began. The Cinncinati Zoo staff came to my talk with great questions and before I knew it I had been talking for almost an hour and a half! It’s hard getting me to shut up once I start talking about sloths! I spent the rest of the day chatting with Moe’s keepers and meeting other zoo animals. Two days later, I went back to the Zoo again and was able to witness some amazing operant conditioning sessions. Not only is the Cincinnati Zoo committed to taking exemplary care of the animals in their collection, but they have also committed a large part of their budget to helping in-situ conservation efforts as well. Zoo visitors learn about how they can help animals in the wild, making Cincinnati Zoo animals true ambassadors to their counterparts living in their natural environments.

My trip to Cincinnati was short, but impactful. Having the opportunity to not only share knowledge with others in the same field, but also to meet my first American sloth…I feel truly inspired and re-committed to sloth conservation. There are so many people all over the globe working with sloths and wanting to learn more about them and help them in their native forests. I’ve only begun to scratch the surface of what is possible and what can be learned about sloths and to be able to bring this passion to others reminds me of what sharing is truly about. #slothlove

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Sloths on the BBC – Our international sloth stars

Sam Trull — Sun, 24 Aug 2014 02:42:01 +0000

After learning that the rescue center where I worked was chosen as the Costa Rican Rescue Center to be featured in the BBC series, “Natures Miracle Orphans”, Hannah, one of our returning volunteers, and I literally ran screaming from the wildlife center and jumped fully-clothed into the pool, pausing only to remove our phones from our pockets. Somehow this gesture seemed like a perfect way to express our pure excitement about this wonderful opportunity; plus, let’s face it, we were really hot and sweaty because we live in the jungle.

Read about BBC’s Nature’s Miracle Orphans Show airing mid-August.

With almost 8 weeks of filming, participating in this series was a huge time commitment. However, towards the end of it, I found myself wishing it wasn’t going to be over. It’s really difficult to put into words how much this experience meant to me and how life changing it has been in many ways. The film crew was exceptional, was always respectful of the animals, and was a lot of fun to be around. Each day was a new and interesting challenge trying to figure out the best way to tell the animal’s stories while making time to film real life events and emergencies as they happened. At first, the process felt a little awkward having strangers around when it would normally be just a few of us taking care of the animals. Eventually though, being followed around by the crew and cameras felt so natural that I started to forget how life was without them. Every intimate moment, whether sad, happy, or scary, became a moment I wanted to share and felt privileged to be able to do so. We welcomed the film crew as members of the family, and I truly felt invested in the final product of the show. I always felt like this was a project we were creating together and that it was a fabulous way to let the world know what we are doing here in our corner of the rainforest in Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica.

There is no “average day” and taking care of rescued wildlife, especially orphans, is a 24 hour commitment. My life revolves around what the animals need and most days are filled with feeding and exercising babies, gathering wild foods, observations, medical exams, instructing volunteers and of course rescues and releases. The opportunity to share my passion with the world is rare and precious, and having the chance to invite a diverse audience to ride the same emotional roller coaster that I live on a daily basis is something I will always cherish. I just hope that this series provides the audience with a new perspective on wildlife rescue. It is my goal that we portray these animals not just as cute and cuddly creatures that exist solely for us to have and to hold, but instead that they are amazing creatures with wonderful stories of their own and that they all deserve another chance to be wild.

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I Love Sloths……Join me & Help me Get them back home

Sam Trull — Sun, 24 Aug 2014 01:41:33 +0000

I love sloths

When I wake up in the morning…I think about sloths. When I go to sleep at night…I think about sloths….and throughout the day when not directly working on another project; I am completely engrossed in thoughts about sloths. In fact, just this morning…I shot out of bed with another research idea about sloths and went directly to my computer to start typing. If I could remember my dreams better…I’m pretty sure I would find that I dream about sloths too.

No people, that is NOT an exaggeration.

I realize that this description of my innermost ideas, may sound crazy to some and at the very least unbalanced to others. However, I don’t care because I LOVE sloths! The rest of the world is going wild over sloths and a lot of people, who have never even met one, are throwing around the idea that they adore them. But, I can assure you that my love is pure and is based solely on doing everything I can to save them. They are NOT meant to be pets or to be possessed or owned or spend their days in tiny cages. They are meant to be free and living in the forest as they evolved to live. They should be free to smell the breeze, feel the sun and make their own decisions about their lives.

Sloths are incredibly charismatic animals. They are gentle (when not stressed), beautiful, adorable, unique, smart, playful and just plain cool. They are also particularly vulnerable to the threats that humans impose (roads, dogs, habitat fragmentation, hunting, pet trade) yet they have survived over the centuries because of some incredible evolutionary adaptations. However, these exact evolutionary adaptations are what make them so difficult to care for in captivity and our encroachment on their habitat has lead to their frequent appearance at rescue centers throughout Central and South America.

I met my first rescued sloth orphan exactly 541 days ago. Her name is Pelota and she is now the oldest member of “The Three Amigos”. As soon as I saw her, I fell in love. Clutched tightly to her teddy bear she was fast asleep (it was day time and two-toed sloths are nocturnal). Her caregiver at the time started explaining Pelota’s diet and routine and then she said something that lit a fire inside of me that has yet to be extinguished. “Sloths always die”. My heart sank and I felt sick to my stomach. How could that be? Why? Why do they die? Instead of feeling discouraged…I felt motivated. I wanted to know more…everything I could about sloths. I NEEDED to know more. That night, I went home and like a good 21st century researcher…I started googling. Downloading and reading every paper I could find about sloths I began to learn about their biology and behavioral needs which started to paint a picture of why they are so difficult to hand-raise and maintain in captivity. However, the more I learned the more I realized that the current scientific literature still leaves so many unanswered questions.

Being naturally inquisitive, these unanswered questions are what keep me up at night. I feel an intense obligation and responsibility to not only keep the sloths in my care alive, but for them to thrive and make it back home to the jungle. The thought of “my babies” living the rest of their lives behind the protective bars of a cage makes me nauseous. They deserve more. In order to give them what they deserve I need to learn as much as possible through scientific research as well as work with the numerous other places around the world who care for sloths. Any person who works to save and return sloths to the wild, is a friend of mine and I want to meet them, talk to them and figure out how we can work together to save as many sloths as possible.

A year and a half later, Pelota is thriving with her younger friends Kermie and Ellen and they are my first hand-raised sloth orphans gearing up for their big release. But the process of getting them to this point has been very time consuming and expensive. Even more expensive is studying this process and planning a post-release observational study. The three amigos will be the first hand-raised sloths that I release back to the wild, but they won’t be the last. It is important to learn from this process and use that knowledge to help future rescued sloths. The Sloth Institute was created to seek scientific answers to these burning questions and stop at nothing to give every orphaned or injured sloth the second chance they deserve to be wild.

The sloths that I care for need me. They need me to love them unselfishly and they need me to help them get back home. Are you willing to prove your love for sloths and join me?

Sam Trull
Director and Co-Founder

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