Jackie is a 22-year old female orangutan who according to the Sabah Wildlife Department (SWD), “spent most of the last two decades “spoilt” with junk food in Ranau”. In March this year Jackie was transferred to the Lok Kawi Wildlife Park zoo in Kota Kinabalu (KK), Sabah. According to the SWD “She came into Sabah Park’s care since she was two years old after she was found and handed over by a villager residing adjacent to Kinabalu Park some 20 years ago“. We have not been told why she was not sent to the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre instead.
Jackie was exploited in the popular Poring Hot Springs area in Ranau (which is under the jurisdiction of Sabah Parks), approximately 2.5 hours from KK, as a tourist attraction, and her body weight ballooned to an amazing 100kgs.
The staff of the SWD have successfully managed to reduce Jackie’s weight to 85kgs and she has not so far shown any sign of diseases despite years of human contact and a terrible diet. A government paper, ‘The Star’ implies Jackie will be released back into the wild, however it cannot be determined as yet if she can go back to live where an orangutan should.
Updates to come. Below are links we found on the Internet regarding Jackie, with pictures in them. At the bottom is a video of Jackie with tourists.
http://www.mysabah.com/poring/index6.php
http://www.shaolintiger.com/2010/03/05/jackie-the-semi-wild-orangutan-from-kinabalu-park/