Fourways residents report sighting of a male baboon roaming the streets and are urged to not scare him off
Residents are encouraged to report sighting of the baboon to a central location and to Owl Rescue Centre as they continue the search for the animal.
[Update: September 21 15:30]
‘Mr Baboon’ has now made his way to Megawatt Park in Sunninghill. He had previously fallen asleep at Lonehill Koppies near the Lonehill Dam and made an early morning hike towards Sunninghill.
Owl Rescue Centre’s Brandon Murray said traps will be put up around Mr Baboon’s route with the vet on standby for a safe opportunity to dart him.
“We haven’t been able to dart as we did come a bit close to him. So we are going to wait until he falls asleep tonight and place traps around him when it’s dark and hopefully can catch him in the morning. If we don’t catch him by tomorrow (September 22) morning, he will head over the highway towards Sandton side,” he said.
Murray added that the calm animal has now found a way to get food from homes while on his walks throughout the Fourways area, but has emphasised that he is not harming anyone.
“He’s going from complex to complex and route to route, so anyone’s windows or doors that are open he goes inside. He is grabbing different foods and fruits from people’s counters. He has managed to get into one lady’s house and eat the bananas, eggs and oranges on the counter.
“He doesn’t attack people or pets, he is quite scared of people. He just wants food,” said Murray.
Owl Rescue Centre and Wild Serve NPO alongside other rescue organisations are working hand in hand to safely track and relocate ‘Mr Baboon’, and have been for the past few days.
[Initial story: September 20 15:40]
A baboon has been calmly roaming the streets and residential areas of Fourways since September 19, with it still to be caught and safely relocated.
Residents in the area reported the wandering baboon to the safety experts in Owl Rescue Centre and Wild Serve NPO to aid in the matter, alongside a number of other organisations.
According to the Owl Centre’s Facebook page, ‘Mr Baboon’ has since roamed from a shopping centre’s roof two days prior to being called out and was last seen in the Fairfields Estate on September 20. It is suspected to have come from the Hartebeespoort area.
Estate manager Charlene Mathe said the residents in the complex had called security and for assistance after the baboon was spotted in the estate the previous day. “We had gone from house to house to investigate as some residents were concerned for their safety. This is actually not the first time we’ve had monkeys or baboons here as they have moved into the trees. This time though, the baboon is going into gardens and houses,” she said.
Community members have been urged not to panic as the baboon is calm and has not caused any damage or injury while roaming the suburb. This was stressed by Wild Serve’s Dirk Engelbrecht. He gave a number of tips locals can follow and assist catching the baboon and keeping themselves safe.
“The thing with the public is that when they see an animal, they want to help. The best thing is not to do anything, and give us a call as soon as possible. It is best for people to go inside with their children and pets. This is so that we don’t distract the baboon as we want him to move through,” he said.
“Don’t scare him off and let him go on his way so that we can keep track of him. At the moment, we can see that he just keeps moving. He doesn’t look for children or dogs, so he’s not a threat. We’ve got a method we use every time something like this happens, and it works.”
He added that people need to keep reporting the baboon’s whereabouts to a central location in order to keep an idea of the next move he might take.
If you see Mr Baboon anywhere, contact the Owl Rescue Centre on 082 719 5463 with all information you can give.
Share your thoughts on the Fourways Review Facebook page.
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