Ecuador Eco Volunteer

Archive pour la catégorie ‘Animal Rescue Center’

Désolé, cet article est seulement disponible en English.

Désolé, cet article est seulement disponible en English.

Here is what Caroline Ely from the UK fthinks about her time volunteering in the Amazon at the Animal Rescue Center – But first the shortened version: « After finishing my 6 month travels through all of South America this was by far the high light of my trip and i hope to one day return. »

I spent 2 months volunteering at the Animal Rescue Center in Ecuadors Amazon rainforest and had the most amazing time there. Its hard to put into words how magical the place is. When i first arrived i was picked up in Puyo by the owner named Merdardo, who was very friendly and chatty and it was easy to see that he was very passionate about the animals which he looked after.

After a quick trip to the supermarket we went to the Animal Sanctuary in the jungle where i was welcomed by an amazing group of other volunteers all willing to show me around and let me know what there was to do on a day to day basis.

There was a big mix of animals at the sanctuary, all of which were on their own journey to being rehabilitated back into the wild. I was fortunate that whilst i was there a little 3 year old spider monkey had been rescued from the black market in animal trafficking and i was lucky enough to be appointed the « mother » of this adorable little monkey.

I got to spend my days with her in the cage building up her trust so i could then let her out of her cage daily for her to roam around the jungle as she wished before returning with me to the cage. This was so very rewarding knowing that id helped her become more confident not to be scared of the outdoors (as she was previously a pet kept indoors!) I also feel i need to mention Lucero, Merdardos wife who is the kindest person i have ever met and works so hard to keep everything going, and is always around if you need help for any reason.

The Animal Sanctuary is in a beautiful place in the Amazon surrounded by animals and amazing rivers to wash in and i would class it as a very tranquil experience. After finishing my 6 month travels through all of South America this was by far the high light of my trip and i would hope to one day return.

Here is Matthew Jeffries second volunteer testimonial from his experience with the 9 week volunteer package, this time at the Amazon Rescue Center deep in the Ecuadorian Jungle. One of the wonders of Ecuador is how starkly different the landscapes are between regions as you can see from his photos in the previous post.

When we arrived in Puyo in Ecuadors Amazon by bus, we were greeted by a friendly face with a sense of fun hidden behind the eyes….Merdardo. On the trip towards the centre in his van ‘Shine on you crazy diamond’ by Pink Floyd was playing, never a truer word could be said about Merdardo, a little crazy, but there is no reason for him to change as he has a warm heart and a good sense of fun.

Also on this trip 2 guys hitched on the back with shotgun’s and machete’s, whilst initially taking us aback, we soon found out that people around this area of the Amazon are very friendly, and these two were clearly just doing their jobs and hitching a ride on their way.

Once we got there we were showed to the Amazon Rescue Center, we weren’t in the main house, but the other had a hammock and was up an amazing path where everywhere you looked you would see another stunning butterfly or amazing plant, leading towards the house with anastasia (a weasel type animal) and amelia (the paca) nearby.

Every day we went down for our two feeds and each person had a favourite animal, all choosing different animals for different reasons. I loved jacqui, who would swing near the entrance when she wanted food, and needed a person to go in each day to spend some time with her and befriend her. Luckily for me she took to me straight away and from then on in (except when it rained) she would swing over, grab onto my head and climb down onto my lap and curl up ready to be stroked.

This never got boring, and the day I was leaving the Amazon Rescue Center I’m sure she had some kind of animal instinct as she kept grabbing onto my head and wouldn’t let go as I tried to leave. A truly amazing animal, but that isn’t to say that the other animals didn’t have their own personalities…the other monkeys, the noisy, strong wooly monkeys, the crazy energetic squirrel monkeys and the shy, unusually marked tamarin monkeys paying a visit was always a pleasure.

The parrots, with Loca the all talking, all laughing, parrot who climbs upon your shoulder and ruffles her feathers, grumpy green who appears to be waiting for one person who he will love with all his heart, until then he will make a kind of growl at most contact and petrucio and the other parrots who each snatch for the food, but each has an endearing personality.

The tortoises who slowly make there way over to you at feeding time snapping away, getting muddy and stumbling over each other. The paca with her interesting markings and big teeth, cute and reserved, the warthog similar. The two snakes, one big one small who I unfortunately never got to feed and finally anastasia who I mentioned earlier, a weasel type animal with a lot of energy and a wicked sense of instinct, I personally couldn’t get to love her, but in her own way she was endearing and maybe others could get to love her.

All of this on top of building things, the constant amazing guidance and love from Lucera and the trips to the jungle river for a dip in the sun made for an absolutely amazing volunteering experience in the Amazon and I would highly recommend it to anyone.

There is little wonder why the Amazon Rescue Center is by far the most popular volunteer program on Ecuador Eco Volunteer. All of our volunteers care deeply about the Amazon Rainforests conservation because it is such an important part of the planet – the « Earths Lungs » – which is responsible for filtering the pollutants and carbon dioxide in the air before converting it into clean breathable oxygen. Without the Amazon we would all die of asphyxiation.

The volunteer program in the Amazon Rescue Center is designed for those people who are passionate about the jungles preservation. There are two important tiers of the project, the first is growing saplings that are then planted on deforested land. The second is taking care and rehabilitating a diverse range of animals that have been rescued from the black market in animal trafficking or areas of the Amazon that have been logged.

Check out the following testimonials from our volunteers at the Amazon Rescue Center over the years to get a better idea of what you will be doing when volunteering in the jungle

Volunteer Testimonies from the Amazon Rescue Center

Here is the experience of Jack and Nick, two 19 year old lads from Manchester in England about their volunteer work in the jungle

Lise Blanchard a medical student from France experience in the Amazon Rescue Center

Photos from Chris and Chris, two friends from Germany and England that volunteered in the Amazon Rainforest

And now for Anika from Sydney, who volunteered at an indigenous community in the Andes as well as the Amazon Rescue Center

Angela and Jye an Australian / New Zealand couple who studied Spanish with us before volunteering in the Amazon

and finally Finn from the Netherlands who talks about his time doing volunteer work in the Amazon Rainforest

If you are serious about trying to make the world a better place and saving Earths most precious natural wonder then dont wait any longer, email us at ecuadorecovolunteer@gmail.com