Abused Orangutan Overcomes Injuries and Jumps for Joy Upon His Release [Video]

Vivy, a critically endangered Bornean orangutan, is back swinging through the trees after months of recovery.

According to The Orangutan Project, a nonprofit that supports orangutan conservation projects, rescuers found the young male primate malnourished and clinging to life near a village in Borneo on April 20.

Rescuers rushed the ailing animal to the Orangutan Project’s Bornean Orangutan Rescue Alliance (BORA) rescue center for medical treatment. At BORA’s rescue center, Vivy’s saviors discovered the heartbreaking extent of the primate’s injuries. Vivy had an irreparably damaged right eye with a ruptured cornea, leaving the primate permanently blind in one eye.

Vivy also had two air rifle pellets lodged in his body, one in his neck and another in his foot, “highlighting the harsh realities of human-orangutan conflict.” Despite Vivy’s serious health issues, rescuers knew the 12-year-old orangutan deserved a second chance.

BORA’s wildlife veterinarians performed careful surgery to remove the pellet in Vivy’s foot, which greatly affected the animal’s movement. Experts opted to leave …