Baboon Rehabilitator & Care-Giver

About the program

C.A.R.E. is a reputable wildlife rehabilitation centre since 1989, with over 400 baboons in our care.  We need your help to provide the best care and welfare for all the animal orphans which deserve a wonderful life after humans took so much from them.  We are located within a stunning Big Five Private Nature Reserve, in the Greater Kruger National Park. 

Our volunteer program provides a unique experience working with the beautiful chacma baboons of South Africa alongside other iconic African animals. You may wake up one morning, look outside and see an elephant or giraffe, grazing peacefully on an Acacia tree. You'll hear the rutting of the impala, the call of jackals, and even the low roar of lions. Located 45 minutes from the nearest town, C.A.R.E. is truly out in the bush and every day is a safari day (with plenty of hard work), offering an escape from the bustle of everyday life. 

C.A.R.E. greatly needs volunteers to help hand-raise baby baboon orphans, assist with their bonding to baboon surrogate mothers, assist with the rehabilitation of baboons who have spent up to 13 years of their life in a lab-cage, and to help animals which have been rescued from all sorts of circumstances. To be part of the animals healing; to bond with the baboons in a way that is incomprehensible to most, to watch them grow in confidence, and to witness them becoming wild, sociable animals again, is an experience with unparalleled rewards that our volunteers will never forget.

Whilst the work is varied and involves caring for the orphan baby baboons, some ex-laboratory sanctuary baboons and the husbandry of the adult baboons, there are never any guarantees that orphans will have just arrived and be in the early hands-on care stage of rehabilitation during your stay with us.  Orphaned baby primates grow quickly and we try to give them to surrogate baboon mothers as soon as they are ready; to ensure they are wild and fulfil our goals and promises to them to give them back a social family.  With 430 baboons, all previously orphaned and awaiting release, there is so much essential work and additional experiences you'll partake in to ensure C.A.R.E. is achieving its broader goals of helping the communities and environment on a greater scale.  We take our role as rehabilitators seriously, and you are very welcome to come and help and learn all about the incredible baboons, who amaze us with their intelligence every day.  

Here are some of the activities you may be involved in, depending on how many volunteers there are available at the centre and which staff are available. The volunteers are always assigned to the raising of the orphans, and if we have enough hands we enjoy getting our other projects off the ground too. Our Outreach and Education Program is a vital part of the project, working closely with other organizations locally to increase support of the baboons and educating children to respect and understand baboons, all of which you are welcome to help and take part in.

• Hand Rearing Orphan Baby Baboons (if there are any in this phase of rehabilitation during your stay)
• Being a Primate Keeper for Adult Baboons  (prepare food, clean enclosures, make enrichment, collect grass)
• Enrichment Program; make enrichment such as ice-lollies, packed bamboo or kong toys, hang up balls for our blind baboon Stevie wonder, or provide social enrichment to our very old, geriatric baboon Patats by visiting her with treats)
• Husbandry of adult baboons undergoing rehabilitation
• Veterinary Experience; take fecal samples, have a look through the microscope
• Behavioural Observations; we monitor the baboons every day; checking health, demeanor, oestrus swellings and more
• Data collection
• Enclosure Maintenance
• Collecting natural vegetation for feeding; the animals love seedpods, fresh green grass and branches to browse on and play with
• Collecting natural items for enrichment and feeding
• Cleaning enclosures: enclosures are cleaned every day, we hope you will help.  Scrubbing, hosing, replacing fresh grass. It's hard work but really rewarding and the baboons are obviously excited when they enter their new, clean home with fresh hay and branches to look through.
• Husbandry for the smaller animals including adorable rescued guinea pigs and rabbits
• Cleaning and organising all areas of the centre
• Tracking; our staff can take you for a river walk, to learn tracks and signs of other wildlife. Seeing a lion print in the sand it something you will not forget!
• Alien and Invasive Plant Removal; we need assistance to keep the invasive plants at the river under control, and sometimes the team get together at the end of the day and do a mass removal; it is a great team-bonding time too.
• Education of School Children at the Centre 
• Community Outreach with other projects including: Vaccinations and health check (veterinary program) in rural areas for community dogs, spreading the awareness of baboons, visiting a community eco-village and childrens creche / after school program.
• Opportunities to go on excursions; e.g. the Kruger National Park next door, the Panorama Route (Blyde Canyon, waterfalls etc.), horse riding safaris, nearby attractions all arranged and guided by our CARE staff.

Working with a large number of wild animals means that your day can change in an instance but generally your day will include the following:

Looking after 430 baboons is a huge task and a 7 day a week job! 

However, we know that our volunteers need time off so we encourage it! The days at C.A.R.E. can be long and hot so it's essential that you rest and reboot so you can continue helping the baboons.

Many volunteers take a day off each week and head to the lodge nearby to to swim and relax.

As we are located so close to the Kruger National Park, a safari is also a must! We can help arrange 1 or 2 day safaris into the park. There are other excursions near by that our volunteers love to visit including, A Community Dog Care Project helping care for dogs in the Community, Nourish, a local project giving Education to local school children, a reptile park and a rehabilitation centre focusing on indigenous African animals, visits to the Blyde River Canyon (Panorama Tour) and curios shopping. 

We can schedule all of these activities for you- it's a great way to see more of South Africa and enjoy a much-deserved day off!