Lemur Lory

In the tropical forests of Asia lives a marvelous animal, which is considered one of the most ancient animals on the planet. For a long time this mammal was classified as a sloth, but since 1766 everything has changed. Then the famous naturalist from France, Buffon, called the lemur loris a prosimian. This funny animal has been quite actively used as a pet by lovers of exotic creatures of nature.

Now we know of three species of such prosimians. This is a thin, slow, thick (large), and also a small loris lemur. Each of them has different characteristics of behavior and character, but they all have common features. They are slow, quite cowardly and active at night. As a rule, at home they keep either the slow loris or the small loris. It is these animals that we will talk about today. We will also tell you what the animal looks like, how long the lemur loris lives, where to buy it, how to choose it, and give advice on keeping it.

Characteristics of a funny animal

This animal with its appearance evokes only tenderness. On the small muzzle, large sad eyes are visible from afar, the expressiveness of which is emphasized by dark rings. There are two types of loris: greater and lesser. How are they different? Now we'll tell you.

The first is size. The small loris weighs no more than 700 g, and the great loris weighs no more than 1.2 kg. That is, the difference in mass is almost twofold. Color is the second difference. The small loris is beige, and the big one is light gray with a beige (or red) butt and a stripe on the back. The third difference is the degree of bite. The small one bites less and does not hurt as much as the big one. The first gets used to the environment faster than the second, who adapts rather slowly to a new home. Fourth - nutrition. Of course, the great loris eats more (several times) than the little loris.

How to choose the right pet

Of course, you need to choose a healthy animal. But how can you determine your health status by appearance? A healthy loris lemur has shiny eyes, fluffy clean fur and white strong teeth. A healthy animal hisses and escapes from the hands. There must be documents for this animal: a veterinary passport, pedigree, and a health certificate.

The lemur loris is a very cautious animal. It will take a long time for it to get used to you. For the first few days, try not to touch the animal, then gradually accustom it to hand feeding. When your animal recognizes you as its owner, it will become very sweet and affectionate.

Domestic lemurs: varieties and prices

Speaking about keeping a domestic lemur, it’s time to highlight 3 varieties that are most popular:

lemur loris;
ring-tailed lemur;
mouse lemur.

The ring-tailed lemur is larger than the loris species. Maintaining it is quite simple, which cannot be said about breeding. By the way, it is almost impossible to prevent the appearance of litter at home. The pet is generally friendly, affectionate to the owner, for whom he is very sad during the period of separation. A ring-tailed lemur costs an average of about 50 thousand rubles.

Where to keep a pet

Before buying an animal such as a loris lemur, you need to prepare a cozy place in the house for it, so that upon arrival it will have a place to settle down. Either a large cage or a vertical aviary is suitable for keeping.

You need to locate your home in a warm room, where there are no sudden temperature changes, drafts or high humidity. These animals can catch a cold very easily. It is also necessary to remember that lorises are very curious animals. Therefore, do not place the cage near any objects, as the animal may reach them. Remember that a loris can be poisoned by houseplants, injure its limbs with piercing objects, become entangled in ropes or wires, or become a victim of other pets.

Lori leads an active nocturnal lifestyle and sleeps during the day. Therefore, you need to make a house in a cage or in a higher enclosure so that the animal feels calm and can hide from prying eyes at any time. Wooden poles or branches should be tied to the walls. The animal will be happy to climb on them. By the way, did you know that lorises leave their marks on branches? Thanks to them, the animals feel calmer.

Be sure to place a tray with fillers in the enclosure. A smart animal will understand for itself what it is needed for. Some people, however, have trouble getting used to the toilet. Then you need, instead of a tray, to cover the entire floor of the cage or enclosure with sawdust or a special wooden filler.

A little about keeping a lemur at home

You should arrange your home following some rules. Provide cozy and calm conditions in the apartment, reduce the number of possible stressful situations. Keeping a lemur at home has its own nuances; it needs special care - feeding with special food, purchasing an enclosure made of hypoallergenic materials. It is recommended to get a male - they learn faster and are usually more flexible

Experts believe that the animals are not gifted with great intelligence. But they quickly become attached to their owner, love to communicate and play. Giving him at least half an hour a day will make him very happy.

The cage for the lemur is selected individually or made to order. Consider the characteristics and size of the animal. Clean every day and change the litter at least 2 times a month. For housing, it is better to choose a quiet corner where strangers will not disturb him. Also provide protection from drafts and create a warm and comfortable temperature in the primate's resting area.

Loriki are nocturnal and active animals by nature and usually wake up by 9 pm - provide your pet with space to move around the house unhindered. You can provide the monkey with a play area in the room - he will like artificially created structures that will allow the animals to have fun without causing harm to the home interior. If you decide to get another pet, be sure to expand their living area. Each of them must have its own place, otherwise serious skirmishes and fights will begin between the lorics, and this is fraught with damage to property.

It is better to choose ceramic, porcelain or glass dishes. It is not recommended to buy plastic options.

Peculiarity

If you plan to have several lorises, then remember that conflict situations may arise between the animals. Although usually males and females get along well, there may still be times when one of the animals wants to be alone. If you keep several individuals in one cell, then in any case a hierarchy will appear. Weaker ones will avoid the aggression of dominant lorises. Therefore, it is important to have several cells (just in case), as well as places to hide if a conflict suddenly breaks out.

Since these animals are intelligent and curious, the door to their home should be equipped with a locking mechanism that the loris cannot open. An escaped animal is a problem; it can get into various troubles in the apartment.

Caring for loris

Lorises often contract diseases from humans. Therefore, at the first signs of illness, you need to immediately take him to the veterinarian to carry out an examination and the necessary tests.

Feeding wondrous animals

In their natural environment, these animals feed on insects and other small prey. They eat small reptiles and birds with great pleasure. In addition, such lemurs feed on plant foods.

Some lorises specialize in a high-calorie diet, which consists of tree sap (gnawed from the bark of a tree) and flower nectar. By the way, it is likely that for this reason lorises actively gnaw branches in their cage or enclosure.

Eating the lemur loris

The lemur eats animal and plant foods: vegetables, fruits, bread, cereals, chicken eggs, dairy products, chicken fillet, milk worms and insects. Lori loves sweets, and if she refuses food, add honey to it, and your pet will be much more willing to eat the food. Hand feed your pet from the very beginning so that he gradually gets used to you without feeling threatened.

But under no circumstances feed from our table! The best diet for this animal is a third of everything (fruits and vegetables, cereals, insects, fermented milk products); if the diet is not prepared in this way, the loris may get sick. To ensure that you always have insects in your diet, you can freeze them in the freezer in the summer!

To begin with, the baby will need a spacious cage or enclosure, since it will take him a long time to get used to the new environment. You can make rods from any material, the main thing is to create natural conditions in the cage - a house, a nest, trees, branches, just don’t overdo it, free places are also necessary. Place several bowls for water and food, change the water daily.

Place the cage in a quiet place, without drafts, direct sunlight and sources of strong heat (radiators). It is also necessary to install a UV lamp; turn it on during the day for several hours.

Perform general cleaning daily, wiping everything with a damp cloth and removing waste; besides, it is better to throw away old products so that they do not cause poisoning. Of course, over time the animal will get used to it, and you can let it out for a walk in your house, getting used to being handled, but it does not get along at all with children and other pets.

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1. Lemur Lori does not adapt well to conditions in nature

2. At its core, a lemur resembles a sloth

3. Laurie is slow due to his massiveness

4. In captivity, lorises rarely reproduce, so the species is becoming extinct

5. Lori may have several babies

6. The father carries the baby on his back most of the time, not the mother.

7. Lorises mark their territory with urine.

8. Loris can eat small birds

In nature, the loris diet consists of various crickets, lizards, small birds and their eggs. A special feature of the loris is the ability to feed on poisonous caterpillars and insects, as well as consume tree resin. Plant food also occupies an important place: the loris never refuses fruits, vegetables, herbs, and flowering parts of plants.

In captivity, animals are fed baby cereals with added oils, honey, fresh juices, vitamin complexes, and dried fruits. It should be noted that individual individuals have their own taste preferences and habits. In general, the diet should be rich in calcium and protein.

The domestic lemur loris can be tamed if it receives its favorite food from the hands of its owner. Insects for feeding should be purchased from pet stores to avoid infections from random street carriers.

So, if you still intend, no matter what, to have such an animal at home, promising to provide it with all the necessary conditions for its comfortable existence, this section is just for you.

Before buying a lemur, you need to prepare a place of residence for it. This is perhaps the most important component, because the saying “my home is my castle” is equally relevant for both humans and animals.

A large cage, or even better, an enclosure for primates, is suitable as a future abode. It should have a vertical shape, that is, be extended from bottom to top. Lories are nocturnal animals, so it is very important for them to be able to climb higher for privacy and sleep during the daytime. These primates do not need horizontal space for galloping.

In addition to the fact that the lemur should be kept in a vertical house, it is also important to consider that it is an arboreal animal, accustomed to climbing from branch to branch in search of food or to mark its territory.

We will also say a few words about the territoriality of the loris. Speaking about the high-altitude lifestyle of the animal, we note that it is imperative to recreate the lemur as much as possible, at least a semblance of the conditions of its daily life in the wild.

To do this, it would be best to install something like a house in the upper part of the enclosure, where the animal can rest, hidden from prying eyes. And from the house to the base of the living area it would be very correct to hang something resembling vines and branches suitable for climbing over them.

Yes, lemurs are very cute, but think about it: will they feel so good with you?

It would also be wise to make one or more horizontal crossbars leading from the house to the opposite part of the enclosure. You can also place one obliquely, from bottom to top. The lemur will happily climb them, using the vines and crossbars as the means of communication that he is accustomed to in the wild.

Also, don't forget about the tray. Lori, as a rule, gets used to a certain place of the toilet quite well, without creating problems for the owners. But this does not always happen.

If the lemur ignores the tray, you should simply provide adequate flooring at the bottom of the enclosure. Here sawdust or special purchased filler will come to our aid.

You should also strictly observe the temperature regime indoors. Loris are accustomed to living in dry and warm tropical forests. Animals easily catch colds from drafts or hypothermia, and you are unlikely to be able to find a veterinarian who understands the intricacies of lemur treatment in our area.

Let's move on to the nutritional features of this animal. Loris are omnivorous animals with a predominance of fruits and insects in their diet. Also, these animals may well use the found bird eggs for their intended purpose, sometimes along with the birds themselves, if they are caught.

The owner of the loris lemur should feed his ward the following dishes:

bananas, kiwi, grapes;
melon, papaya;
apples, pears, plums;
cherry and raspberry;
quail eggs.

When kept in captivity, the loris' diet consists mainly of plant foods. With some inclusions, like eggs or insects caught in the house. Yes, yes, a cockroach will do just fine. The lemur will only thank you for such a treat.

You can also buy shrimp for the animal if possible. Lorises also happily eat baby foods, such as puree mixtures or curds. The lemur will also be grateful for the cookie you receive.

It may seem that keeping loris at home is not so problematic, but everything is not as simple as it might seem at first glance.

Tropical animals, despite their habit of living in hot climates, get along well in Moscow apartments.

Cute faces have conquered the world, people are willing to pay large sums to become the owner of a rare beauty of a lemur.

It is important not only to give your pet your love, but also to properly care for it.

To make your baby’s stay as comfortable as possible, it is better to create special care conditions for him:

Your own living space.
You should not let your pet roam around the apartment in your absence. No matter how much you teach him, he does his work on the floor. Opt for a spacious cage and don’t forget to arrange your home. • Imitate the animal's home area by attaching tree branches to the cage to make it easy for him to climb. • Create relaxation areas. Select a small corner where the lemur can hide from prying eyes and from sunlight.
Beware of viruses. Lorises are susceptible to several human diseases. Precautionary measures will help protect against colds: limited contact with sick people, absence of drafts in the cage. If illness cannot be avoided, contact your veterinarian.
Diet. At first, the tropical guest will refuse unusual food. After rehabilitation, the little pet will eat with pleasure.
Socialization. Lemurs love to communicate. If you have the opportunity, purchase several individuals so that they do not get bored. Entertain the baby yourself so that he does not wither away from boredom.

We suggest you read: How to properly care for a cat at home

You shouldn't have any difficulties caring for your pet. After all, everything here is quite simple. You need to feed the animal once a day. The cage needs to be cleaned every three weeks, and the tray every four to five days. The bedding in the house should be changed every day, since during sleep the loris can urinate on it, and sleeping on a wet animal is prohibited due to pain.

In their natural environment, these animals feed on insects and other small prey. They eat small reptiles and birds with great pleasure. In addition, such lemurs feed on plant foods.

In captivity, the main food is plant matter. Loris eat bananas, kiwi, grapes and tomatoes with great pleasure. These lemurs also consume other vegetables and fruits. Let us note the fact that each loris is an individual person who has his own preferences in food. In addition, the animal’s daily diet should include insects, such as locusts, crickets or zoophobass.

In order to establish contact with the animal, use its favorite food (feed by hand). Most of all, lorises love insects such as zoophobas. For the sake of this delicacy, even the most grouchy animal will be ready to leave its shelter. Remember that the loris lemur is not as easy to tame as it seems at first glance; this animal has rather sharp teeth and bites painfully.

What does an animal eat in captivity?

In captivity, the main food is plant matter. Loris eat bananas, kiwi, grapes and tomatoes with great pleasure. These lemurs also consume other vegetables and fruits. Let us note the fact that each loris is an individual person who has his own preferences in food. In addition, the animal’s daily diet should include insects, such as locusts, crickets or zoophobass. Sometimes you can give your pet chicken meat (boiled) and raw eggs (it is advisable to use quail eggs, not chicken). What to feed the loris lemur, besides what we have already listed? The animal's diet should also include dairy products: baby cereal, cottage cheese.

Where to see the miracle beast

The nocturnal lifestyle, secrecy, caution and timidity of lorises make observing them in the wild a difficult task. In captivity, you don’t really look at the animals either:

Firstly, they are very impressionable, fastidious in their maintenance, easily injured, susceptible to stress, and contract infections. In general, they do not tolerate being outside their natural environment well. Because of this, only 28 zoos in the world can boast of such guests. And the menageries where the animals gave birth can be counted on the fingers of one hand.
Secondly, lorises sleep during the day. Even if you get to the menagerie where these little ones live, the chance of seeing them is extremely small.

Therefore, the best way to watch an exotic animal is through specialized video channels, Discovery, National Geographic or Nat Geo Wild programs.

Entertaining videos on YouTube with inviting titles like “Cute slow loris eats a banana” or “Scratch the lemur” are unlikely to please you when you find out the other side of the touching picture.

Health problems

To avoid many problems, do not feed your pet sausage, yoghurt, sweets and other goodies from the table. Lori will eat all this, but then various diseases of the digestive system may occur. If you feed only soft food, the animal will develop plaque on its teeth. It can also lead to the formation of tartar.

Lemur loris at home must receive a sufficient amount of vitamins and minerals from food, since a deficiency will cause health problems. If there is a lack of roughage in the pet’s diet, then constipation, flatulence, etc. are possible. By the way, bloating is dangerous for loris, since the intestinal walls are very thin, as a result of which there is a high probability of their rupture. For flatulence, you need to give your pet activated charcoal or dill tea. It is also advisable to stroke his tummy clockwise.

For constipation, give lori Vaseline oil (1 teaspoon). If there is still no stool, you should contact a specialist. He will tell you exactly what to do to make the loris lemur recover.

How to care for an animal's fur? Many people do not know the answer to this question, and this is very bad. Since these animals, like cats, lick themselves, hair can get into the digestive tract, as a result of which the normal functioning of the stomach is disrupted. To remove it, you need to give your pet the drug “Kittimalt” 1/3 teaspoon once a week. Do you know how many times a week it should be combed? A couple of times will be enough. Note that loris fur does not cause allergies, as it is similar in structure to human hair.

An unbalanced diet is the cause of many metabolic diseases, for example, urolithiasis, obesity or, conversely, exhaustion, rickets. Lorises are also very susceptible to colds. Such diseases begin in these animals with sneezing and nasal discharge. As soon as you see the first signs, take action immediately, otherwise a common cold can turn into pneumonia.

Otitis is often found in such animals. A sick loris behaves restlessly, does not allow its ear to be touched, and refuses to feed. After a while, discharge from the ear appears. At the first suspicion of otitis media, you should immediately contact a veterinarian.

What to feed a lemur at home?

Having come from the wild to the civilized world, the lemur happily tries new tastes. But how to feed a foreign guest? Try to diversify the diet so that your pet does not need vitamins.

At home, kids eat chicken, eggs, and some dairy products. Poultry meat is the main source of protein.
Sources of fiber are vegetables, fruits and greens. Lemurs prefer to eat raw fruits.
Vitamins are contained in the juice. A synthetic substitute can be used on the recommendation of a veterinarian.
The carbohydrate component is porridge. The source of fat can be caterpillars and grasshoppers.

Advice! Before getting an exotic pet, consider whether you will create the right environment for it.

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In nature, lorises feed on insects, small birds, lizards, and invertebrates. When kept indoors they are fed:

vegetables;
fruits;
bread;
meat;
eggs;
insects.

You cannot catch crickets and grasshoppers on the street yourself; they can “give” the animal an infection. It is better to purchase such food at a pet store; their price is quite affordable. Buy vitamin supplements for the loris there, which your veterinarian will recommend to you so that the lemur’s nutrition is complete. Feeding frequency – 1 time per day.

FAQ

Can loris swim? No, he can't. This is an arboreal animal, so avoid such experiments.
How long does the lemur loris live? In captivity, under good conditions, these animals can live up to 25 years.
Do I need to trim my nails? No no need. Their claws look like children's depressed nails, that is, they do not exist as such, which means there is nothing to cut.
What vaccinations do these animals receive? None. Vaccination against loris rabies is prohibited. The only thing that needs to be done is deworming every six months, and even then it is better to do a stool test to detect the presence of worms. If they are not there, then you should not once again poison the animal’s body with drugs.
Is the lemur loris smart? Yes, he knows where his bowl, house, etc. are, but he doesn’t play ball or follow any commands. This animal loves to ride on vines and climb branches.
Is there a smell from loris? No, the excrement of this animal does not stink, nor does the animal itself.
Is it possible to change his lifestyle? No you can not. Night mode is an instinctive behavior that, of course, cannot be eliminated. You can only move it slightly if you place the cage with the animal in a dark corner of the apartment.

Reproduction and lifespan

The lemur loris is a nocturnal animal. Activity begins in the evening, night is the time of hunting, and the animal falls asleep only after the sun rises. Bright light is contraindicated for them; they can go blind and die from the blinding rays. Twilight is a comfortable living environment.

They sleep in balls of fur in the trees, holding their feet to a branch and hiding their heads at their feet. The animal can find a convenient place to rest in a hollow or fork in the branches.

Loris move slowly, carefully, grasping the branches from below with all their paws. At the slightest danger, they freeze and can remain motionless for a long time, without moving a single leaf, until the threat from some predatory night bird passes. Animals have excellent hearing.

They are naturally curious and playful. They explore and know their territories well. The animals are very tenacious and strong for their small size; their limbs are ideally suited for climbing branches.

It is known that lorises, in addition to hunting insects and small vertebrates, remove the bark of individual trees and drink the secreted sap. In nature, they never suffer from periodontal disease. There are lorises that are individualistic, having their own areas and leading a solitary lifestyle. And some species do not tolerate loneliness and live in pairs.

In captivity, as a rule, they live in family pairs or groups (a male and several females or a parent pair and cubs). Lorises protect their territory from random incursions of their relatives.

They always stay hidden, in the thick of green branches at a height, which makes it difficult to conduct research behind them. Many conclusions were drawn from studying animals in captivity at research centers.

The voices of lorises are different: at a great distance you can hear a whistle, and up close you can hear chattering sounds with cubs. Animals have the ability to communicate in an ultrasonic range that is inaudible to humans. You can observe animals silently pushing each other with their paws.

The exchange of information may occur in parallel at another level. Sometimes a ball of fur is formed from several lorises intertwined with limbs and hanging on a tree.

This is how they communicate, play, conduct their tidbit section and determine the internal hierarchy. The seemingly harmless animal has a secret and terrible weapon. The animal's elbows contain glands containing poison, the contents of which are sucked out and mixed with saliva. The bite can be fatal. But, fortunately, such danger overtakes the loris infrequently; secret weapons are used in exceptional cases.

Animals are selective in their search for a mate; individuals of different sexes cannot always form a family. Pregnancy lasts a little more than 6 months and, as a rule, 1-2 cubs are born. The babies appear covered in fur, with their eyes open. They hold tightly to the mother's belly, clinging to the fur.

The female carries the baby on herself for about 1.5-2 months. Lactation lasts approximately 4-5 months. Babies can wander from mother to father or close relative, hang on them, and then move to their mother for feeding.

Parents take care of their offspring jointly, but maternal activity is still higher. Only after a year and a half, the stronger offspring become independent and begin to start their own families.

Life expectancy is on average 12-14 years. There are examples where good care significantly increased the lifespan of the lemur loris. How long they live in captivity depends on the absence of infections and the creation of conditions close to natural ones. Animals can survive up to 20-25 years.

Unfortunately, a fashion has arisen for breeding lorises. The price of this funny animal is high, but exotic lovers are trying to make a business out of keeping young lemur loris for sale. You can buy an animal, but without special knowledge and skills in handling this ancient species, it is difficult to win the trust of the big-eyed primate.

Lorises do not reproduce very actively even in nature, not to mention home breeding. Although now there are people who build a business on such animals. The duration of pregnancy in a female is a little more than six months. After the babies are born, the mother lemur feeds them milk for another five months. Loris can be sold no earlier than when they are ten months old - until this period, the cubs must be with their mother.