The AAP Almere foundation
AAP Almere is an animal shelter based in The Netherlands, for apes which were rescued by the AAP foundation. Here in the forests of the city estate De Kemphaan, apes are given shelter. They were rescued from illegal trafficking, were abused or kept as domestic pet.
To offer them a better life, the apes are brought to various animal shelters where they gradually are prepared to be released back into the wild. At De Kemphaan you can see these apes. So come quickly to the animal shelter and have a look.
The foundation
The apes brought to the AAP foundation first are brought to a temporary animal shelter. And that is a centre hosting various mammals. Here the apes and the other exotic mammals get a chance to recover and relax from all the abuse they had to endure. The AAP foundation runs its Dutch animal centre on the premises of De Kemphaan since 1996. Goal is to release the animals back into the wild as soon as possible. It is important that they get back to their conspecifics and to their natural habitat. In some cases the animals were kept captive and deprived of their natural environment for a longer time. Such animals need intensive rehabilitation. With the animal shelters the AAP foundation ensures that the apes first can calmly get used again to living in their natural environment together with their conspecifics.
The animal shelter
The animal shelter of the AAP Almere foundation consists of several building blocks, hosted on a total area of 5,5 hectare (13 acres). It comprises the ape islands, the quarantine section, the chimpanzee complex, the mammal section and the ape house. Each complex of buildings has its special function. Regarding staff the foundation works with a bigger number of paid employees plus many volunteers. All dedicated to work for the well-being of the animals. The animal centre at any time hosts between 400 and 450 animals. Species vary from the Pallas squirrel and prairie dogs to hamadryas baboons and chimpanzees. Got curious about the animals and how the work looks like at the shelter? Then visit the centre and participate in a guided tour. These are offered by keepers of the AAP foundation each Friday, Saturday and Sunday. You can book your place via phone or e-mail.