Wildlife Officials Plead for Donations to Feed Rescued Animals

Thailand’s Parks and Wildlife reports it’s struggling to feed some 26,000 wild animals that have been rescued because the Prayut government cut its yearly budget by US$1.4 million.

The department’s director-general, Ratchada Suriyakul Na Ayutthaya, told the Bangkok Post that many wild animals taken from wildlife traffickers were kept at wildlife centers.

Until recently, the department received an annual budget of 80 million baht to care for them. This year, the funding was slashed from US$2.3 million.

The sanctuary is home to 188 Indochinese tigers and lions, 27 leopards, 8 Asian golden cats, 222 sun bears, 507 falcons, 2,600 monkeys, gibbons, and langurs, 194 lorises, 87 otters, and other wild animals, totaling about 26,000 animals, Mr. Ratchada said.

Due to the budget cut, we are unable to give them the care they need.”

Several projects have been initiated by the department to provide more food and improve the living conditions.

Wild Animals Need More Food

Unsold fruit and vegetables have also been donated to the department to feed the animals, but they are not their main food source, he added.

However, tigers and bears, among others, eat meat. Tigers alone eat about 5 kilograms of meat every day, excluding vitamins. They are also examined every year for health problems.

As part of the “Foster Parents” project, the department is asking animal lovers to donate money to buy food for wild animals in its care.

Donations can be made to Krungthai Bank’s account number 980-216-5379 for the project, said the department chief.