Santa Martha often assists with animal rescues. These incredibly beautiful animals are rescued from illegal situations where they are found kept in private homes, hotels, and market places across the country. For these rescues Santa Martha works in conjunction with the local police, the Ministry of the Environment, Espíritu del Bosque, and our veterinarian Dr. Leonardo Arias.

These animals, once illegally taken from the wild are often kept in appalling conditions. They are often malnourished from being fed an inadequate diet - it is not uncommon to find a macaw that is losing all of its colorful feathers from malnutrition. We, also, commonly find animals kept in cages too small to move around in properly or with ropes cruelly tied around their bodies to prevent them running away - monkeys often have nasty sores from this cruel rope burn.

Once removed from these situations the animals are checked and recorded by our vet, Leonardo (there are also opportunities for interested volunteers to work with Leonardo - see volunteering), where the animals are then usually transferred to our care here at Santa Martha by the Ministry of the Environment.

Once with us, it is our job to look after these animals, and to rehabilitate them with the goal of either releasing them or of finding the best possible place for them to live. We need to observe the animals to ensure they are able to eat adequately, to adjust to a more natural environment, and to make certain that they are not sick.

In this safe environment, enclosures are designed to replicate natural habitats as closely as possible and as we hope to return animals to the wild promptly, we try to handle them as little as we can to try to avoid letting them get too accustomed to people. In this way, animals can regain lost skills needed to survive back in the wild.

In our care the animals are fed a natural diet similar to that which they would eat in the wild such that they can regain their health and strength that was lost while they were being fed inadequate and incorrect diets. It is not uncommon for us to receive animals that have been brought up on junk food, such as bread and coffee for example!

It is also important for us to observe behavioral patterns. For example, whether or not monkeys (that have been in captivity a long time) can adjust and learn to associate with other monkeys as they would in the wild, or if parrots that have been held in tiny cages with no room to move can finally learn to fly.

The building of bigger, better, and more natural enclosures is an extremely important part of the work we do here. By constantly endeavoring to improve our animals living environments we can improve this process of rehabilitation. For us this is a very costly but vital process to ensure a better stay and one in which our volunteers help immensely.

We often receive animals that are ill and when possible, they will be treated on site. It is occasionally possible for volunteers to assist with these basic veterinary procedures and to treat the animals. Unfortunately we have a shortage of adequate veterinary supplies, and any help that could be provided in this area would be much appreciated.

At Santa Martha we receive new animals daily and as a rescue center we are constantly endeavoring to relocate our animals to find better places for them to live. Because most of the animals we receive come from the Amazon or from the coastal areas of Ecuador the final step in most of our rehabilitation is often the relocation to a more natural climate.

We are always looking to liberate our animals back into the wild where possible but it is often more appropriate for us to find a soft release center where they can be relocated initially to continue their rehabilitation. A soft release center would normally have a large amount (like 10sq km) of natural habitat undisturbed for the animals to freely roam in. They are free in a completely natural climate and habitat. This is a fantastic way to release the animal at its own pace. The animals are fed (if they want to return for food) and looked after if they become ill but are essentially free to wander as they wish and when they feel they are ready, to leave for good.

When relocating a group of animals volunteers may also have the opportunity to participate in the liberation of these animals. If we are making trips to the Amazon or to the coast with a group of animals, it is often possible for volunteers to help and to come and see where the animals they have been looking after are going.

Where appropriate we release animals directly into the wild. After extensive preparation and training ensuring the animals are ready we obtain the relevant permission to release an animal into is natural habitat. For example we work closely with the help of the Andean Bear Project to release our bears once they are ready. With an animal such as a bear we would use a GPS collar to monitor the animals progress once liberated and to ensure they adapt back into the wild. This also helps provide useful research for studying these endangered bears.

Sadly we, also, receive animals that cannot be released back into the wild. For example it is impossible to release a big cat that has had its claws removed and has never had to hunt for food, or to release a parrot that cannot fly because it has had its wings badly cut. For these animals we try to find the best environment for them to live after rehabilitation. We may consider another animal sanctuary where the conditions (especially the weather) and facilities may be more suitable for that particular animal.

Importantly each animal we receive is considered individually and we take special care in trying to place each animal in the best possible conditions for them to live safely and to enjoy the rest of their lives.