Natuwa Wildlife Sanctuary

While we were in Monteverde, our family got to visit an amazing animal rescue sanctuary! We started in a big garden filled with twelve adorable sloths. Each one had been rescued for a different reason—some will be able to return to the wild, while others won’t. One sloth was paralyzed from the waist down and spent his days resting in a hammock, another had eye problems, and one had lost a leg. There were even a few babies, but we didn’t get to see them because they had just arrived and were still in quarantine. All the sloths were incredibly cute, and we even got to watch a little sloth cuddle party!

Next, we visited two jaguar siblings (Sam’s dream come true!!). They were huge and had been rescued as cubs. Because they were so young when taken in, they’ve spent too much time around humans to be released back into the wild. When we first saw them they were sleeping on a platform, but we were lucky enough to see them wake up and move around!

The last animal we met was a tapir! People call them “Frankenstein animals” because they look like a mix of several different creatures put together—odd but very cute. The one we saw had been rescued as a baby from a family who was keeping him illegally as a pet. Eventually the family turned him in, and that’s how he ended up at Natuwa.

We also had the best tour guide, who told us all about each animal and answered every question we had. Overall, it was such a cool and memorable experience!!

Until next time!

~Love, Hannah