INTERNATIONAL ANIMAL RESCUE US
Saving animals from suffering around the world
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Orangutan Rescue: The plight of the orangutan in Indonesia has reached a critical stage, with the survival of the species under serious threat. animals are suffering and dying because of the systematic destruction of the rainforest. Armenian Bear Rescue: aims to free the 80 brown bears that are being used as tourist attractions in restaurants and bus depots across the country. Dancing Bear Rescue: The cruel practice of dancing bears was made illegal in India in 1972. However, in the decades that followed sloth bears were still caught from the wild and beaten and mutilated to force them to dance. Our goal is to end the dancing bear trade and provide them sanctuary. Slow Loris Rescue: The slow loris in Indonesia is in serious danger of extinction and the greatest threat to its survival is the illegal trade in wildlife. Howler Monkey Rescue: Every year hundreds of howler monkeys and other wild animals in Costa Rica are electrocuted on un-insulated power lines.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Orangutan Rescue and Rehabilitation, Borneo
The plight of the orangutan in Indonesia has reached a critical stage, with the survival of the species under serious threat. Animals are suffering and dying because of the systematic destruction of the rainforest, primarily for palm oil production, particularly in Kalimantan, the Indonesian part of the island of Borneo.
International Animal Rescue’s team is working in West Kalimantan to rescue and care for baby orangutans that have been taken from their mothers to be illegally sold as pets and adults that have spent their entire lives in captivity, chained up or imprisoned in tiny cages. Our human-orangutan conflict (HOC) team also comes to the aid of orangutans left stranded when their forest home is destroyed and translocates these vulnerable animals to safe areas of protected forest. Any animals that can no longer survive in the wild will be given a permanent home at the center. The project is an ambitious one but we are committed to rescuing and rehabilitating as many orangutans as we can and giving them a second chance to live safely in their natural environment.
Armenia Bear Rescue
Every year wild bears are illegally caught or trapped by poachers in Armenia. Once captured, many of them end up in small, squalid cages in restaurants and other public entertainment venues as a tourist attraction. Some are kept in bus depots, others are hidden from view in dark cellars. Some of the bears are mentally and physically damaged by the boredom and frustration of their miserable existence behind bars.
The bears in Armenia are Syrian Brown Bears (Ursus arctos syriacus). They are found in the mountainous areas of the country where they forage for fruits, berries and insects in the meadows and forests and hibernate in caves and tree hollows. Their barren prisons are a far cry from their natural home in the forest.
These bears have been incarcerated for years in cramped cages with scarcely any food or water. Their environment meets none of their psychological or physical needs. They have very little space to move around in.
The Great Bear Rescue:
In October 2017 International Animal Rescue launched a new campaign to help these suffering bears. The Great Bear Rescue aims to free them from their suffering and, after thorough veterinary checks and assessment, rehabilitate and eventually release those that are physically and mentally equipped to fend for themselves in the wild. Those that are not viable for release will be given a permanent home in sanctuaries where they will be well cared for, well fed and have the freedom to express natural behavior.
The Great Bear Rescue will require funding for the transport of the rescued bears to their temporary new enclosures, as well as for veterinary treatment, food and ongoing, long-term care of those bears that can’t be released.
Dancing Bear Rescue
Dancing Bears The cruel practice of dancing bears was made illegal in India in 1972. However, in the decades that followed sloth bears were still caught from the wild and beaten and mutilated to force them to dance. A nomadic tribe called the Kalandars used the bears to entertain villagers and tourists who would pay to watch the bear ‘dance’ while in tremendous pain. A red hot poker would be driven through the muzzle of the bear, often a baby, with no aesthetic and a coarse rope would be strung through the wound left behind. The rope would then be tugged and yanked to produce a ‘dance’ and for many bears over the years, this is the only existence they knew. With the help of our partners Wildlife SOS, we have rescued over 620 dancing bears from this cruel trade and in 2009 we rescued the very last one. The sanctuaries in India currently care for 300 bears where we provide a lasting home for them to live out their days in peace.
Slow Loris Rescue
The slow loris in Indonesia is in serious danger of extinction and the greatest threat to its survival is the illegal trade in wildlife. Its huge brown eyes and soft fur make this small nocturnal primate highly prized as a pet and the victim of an online craze created by videos on YouTube. Thousands of slow lorises are poached from the wild and illegally sold on the street or in animal markets. The slow lorises' teeth are clipped off by the traders to make them easier to handle, resulting in the death of many of them from blood loss or infection before they are sold. Our goal is to return as many slow lorises to the wild as possible. However, many of them have had their teeth cut out and may no longer be able to fend for themselves. Veterinary dental specialists are helping us determine whether these teeth can be repaired or replaced. We provide a permanent home at our center for lorises that can never be released. Our primate rescue center is set in the beautiful rainforest of Ciapus, near Bogor, on the island of Java. The center is the only one in Indonesia to specialize in the rescue and rehabilitation of slow lorises. The center has a fully equipped veterinary clinic, spacious primate socialization enclosures, a public education center, accommodation for volunteers and visitors and a viewing platform for observing the animals. Set apart from the other buildings are quarantine enclosures for new or sick animals. Working closely with universities and scientists, we are also carrying out research into successful rehabilitation and reintroduction programs for slow lorises. A good number of lorises with their teeth intact have been released wearing radio collars and are being closely monitored by the team. We also work closely with local authorities and the police to catch wildlife traffickers and dealers and bring them to court. Education of local communities and better law enforcement are vital if this endangered primate is to stand a chance of survival.
Howler Monkey Rescue
Every year hundreds of howler monkeys and other wild animals in Costa Rica are electrocuted on un-insulated power lines and transformers. Sadly the monkeys don’t know the difference between electrical wires and natural vines and will often travel across wires to get to feeding grounds. This is a particularly serious issue in areas of deforestation where monkeys have no choice but to travel on the wires.
The transformers are extremely dangerous - many parts of them can deliver a deadly jolt of electricity to anything that touches them. Tragically, the monkeys don’t sense the danger until it’s too late. The shock is incredibly painful and causes horrific burns and often muscular spasms so the monkey can’t let go and sometimes even catches fire. Even worse, when a member of the troop cries out in pain, the rest of the troop will rush to help, often leading to several family members being electrocuted and dying.
Most of the howler monkeys that survive electrical burns are infants that were clinging to their mothers when they were electrocuted. The mother absorbs most of the current while the babies suffer burns on their hands, tail and any other body part in direct contact with her.
In January 2017 we announced our commitment to support Refuge for Wildlife in Nosara, Costa Rica by contributing funds and raising awareness of its vital work. The Refuge shares IAR’s commitment to the rescue, rehabilitation and release of injured, displaced and orphaned wildlife.
As well as assisting with the running costs of the Refuge, IAR is looking forward to supporting the further expansion of the release program and the setting up of post-release monitoring.
Macaque Rescue
Macaques are one of the most traded primate species in Indonesian pet markets. However, unlike the slow loris, which is listed as endangered and supposedly protected by national and international laws, there is no legislation to protect pig-tailed and long-tailed macaques from exploitation and abuse. Thousands are caught from the wild and exported to overseas laboratories for research, kept in chains or cramped cages as pets or brutally trained to perform for tourists on the streets and even eaten as a delicacy.
Our work helping macaques in Indonesia has a number of key aims: to improve the lives of individual animals through our rescue, rehabilitation and release program at our primate center in Ciapus, Java; to increase understanding and tolerance of macaques among local communities through education; to raise awareness of the dangers of keeping macaques as pets and the risk of zoonotic diseases; and to campaign to win macaques some legal protection in Indonesia.
Our team rescues macaques which have often spent years in captivity. After rescue, veterinary check-ups and a period in quarantine, their rehabilitation can begin in earnest. This involves working hard to remind these animals that they are wild, since most have spent their lives as pets, away from their own species, consuming human food and behaving in a way that is not normal in the wild. It requires a specific diet and feeding pattern that will make them work for their food – something they must learn if they are to survive.
The next step is to socialize the macaques in the groups they will live in once they are released. This process can take months, even years. Once they form a solid group and are showing wild behaviors, they are ready to be reintroduced.
Education is a vital part of our work in Indonesia to increase people's understanding of their native wildlife and motivate them to respect and protect it. The education team in Ciapus frequently gives talks and presentations to visiting schoolchildren and other local groups. The animals in rehabilitation at the center demonstrate to visitors how primates look and behave if they are given the freedom to live as nature intended.
Cat Rescue
Rescuing Cats at Home and Abroad
Sterilization is the only humane and effective way of reducing and controlling large populations of stray cats. International Animal Rescue’s vets in India and Indonesia routinely sterilize stray cats at our clinics.
Our aim is to improve the welfare of stray cat populations through sterilization. Large communities of stray cats can be a nuisance to people. The animals themselves also suffer from a lack of food, untreated wounds and injuries leading to infection and even death, as well as countless unwanted kittens born to females that are too weak and malnourished to feed them.
As well as providing a sanctuary for unwanted cats, Catastrophes Cat Rescue’s work with feral cats involves spaying and neutering complete colonies and giving any necessary veterinary treatment. Feral cats are returned to their site of capture if long-term food and shelter can be provided. If not, they remain at Catastrophes for life.
Malta Bird Rescue
Thousands of migrating birds are illegally shot down as they fly over Malta each year. International Animal Rescue joined the campaign to end this indiscriminate slaughter in 1990 and lobbies at a national and European level for greater bird protection. Max Farrugia, Chairman of International Animal Rescue in Malta, runs a small bird rehabilitation hospital in Valleta. Injured species that he has nursed back to health include honey buzzards, hobbies, kestrels and short eared owls, as well as familiar garden songbirds. Once fully recovered, rescued birds are released back into the wild.
Where we work
Affiliations & memberships
The Charity Awards- Winner in the ‘Environment and conservation’ category 2019
External reviews

Photos
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of animals rescued
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults
Related Program
Armenia Bear Rescue
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
2019 rescues were affected by Covid-19 pandemic as well as the war. The sanctuary is currently at capacity and we can not take in any more bears until the expansion is complete.
Number of animals with freedom to express normal behavior
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults
Related Program
Dancing Bear Rescue
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
We currently have about 200 bears in our care and NO more bears have been poached. We are certain that we have all of the dancing bears in our sanctuary so the number should not rise.
Number of animals rehabilitated
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults
Related Program
Orangutan Rescue and Rehabilitation, Borneo
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Decreasing
Context Notes
Number of orangutans rescued and rehabilitated at IAR center each year. These numbers are largely affected by the wild fires. 2019 was affected by Covid-19 pandemic.
Number of captive animals released
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults
Related Program
Orangutan Rescue and Rehabilitation, Borneo
Type of Metric
Other - describing something else
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Numbers of orangutans that were released back to the wild. These numbers will be dependent on whether these animals were wild (translocated) or confiscated babies which need years of rehab.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Orangutan Rescue: IAR's team is working in West Kalimantan to rescue and care for baby orangutans that have been taken from their mothers to be illegally sold as pets and adults that have spent their entire lives in captivity, chained up or imprisoned in tiny cages. Our human-orangutan conflict team also comes to the aid of orangutans left stranded when their forest home is destroyed and translocates these vulnerable animals to safe areas of protected forest. Any animals that can no longer survive in the wild will be given a permanent home at the center. We are committed to rescuing and rehabilitating as many orangutans as we can and giving them a second chance to live safely in their natural environment.
Armenian Bear Rescue: In October 2017 IAR launched a new campaign to help suffering bears. The Great Bear Rescue aims to rescue 80 bears and, after thorough veterinary checks and assessment, rehabilitate and eventually release those that are physically and mentally equipped to fend for themselves in the wild. Those that are not viable for release will be given a permanent home in sanctuaries where they will be well cared for, well fed and have the freedom to express natural bear behavior.
Dancing Bear Rescue: In 2002 we helped our partners Wildlife SOS complete the construction of the Agra bear sanctuary. From then on the project went from strength to strength, becoming so successful that by the end of 2009 we had rescued all the dancing bears from the streets of India. The majority are housed in Agra, others at a second sanctuary in Bannerghatta near Bangalore in the south and a small number at a third center in Bhopal, central India. The sanctuaries in India currently care for 300 bears where we provide a lasting home for them to live out their days in peace. We will continue to provide each bear with exceptional veterinary care, nutritious food and environmental enrichment while continuing to monitor to be sure no more bears are poached from the wild.
Slow Loris Rescue: Thousands of slow lorises are poached from the wild and illegally sold on the street or in animal markets. The slow lorises' teeth are clipped off by the traders to make them easier to handle, resulting in the death of many of them from blood loss or infection before they are sold. Our goal is to return as many slow lorises to the wild as possible. However, many of them have had their teeth cut out and may no longer be able to fend for themselves. Veterinary dental specialists are helping us determine whether these teeth can be repaired or replaced. We provide a permanent home at our center for lorises that can never be released.
Howler Monkey Rescue: In January 2017 we announced our commitment to support Refuge for Wildlife in Nosara, Costa Rica by contributing funds and raising awareness of its vital work. The Refuge shares IAR’s commitment to the rescue, rehabilitation and release of injured, displaced and orphaned wildlife.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
We work with other like-minded organizations and government departments to develop sound legislation to protect animals from cruelty and neglect. In all that we do, we aim to produce practical solutions that benefit both animals and people.
We also work closely with local authorities and the police to catch wildlife traffickers and dealers and bring them to court. Education of local communities and better law enforcement are vital if endangered primates are to stand a chance of survival.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
We work closely with local NGOs, government bodies and forestry departments to effectively end the illegal trade in animals. While we do provide sanctuary to animals that can no longer survive on their own in the wild, we work to enact laws that will keep more animals from suffering in the future.
Working closely with universities and scientists, we are also carrying out research into successful rehabilitation and reintroduction programs for slow lorises. A good number of lorises with their teeth intact have been released wearing radio collars and are being closely monitored by the team.
We also work closely with local authorities and the police to catch wildlife traffickers and dealers and bring them to court. Education of local communities and better law enforcement are vital if this endangered primate is to stand a chance of survival.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
1989 IAR founded as a charity and establishes Animal Tracks sanctuary in South West England.
1990 IAR joins the campaign against the indiscriminate slaughter of migratory birds in Malta.
1998 IAR opens a veterinary clinic in Goa to relieve the suffering of local stray dog and cat populations.
1999 IAR head office established in Uckfield, East Sussex.
2002 IAR partners with Wildlife SOS in India to open the Agra Bear Rescue Facility (ABRF) for dancing bears rescued from the streets.
2005 IAR opens a new clinic for stray dogs in Tamil Nadu, India.
2005 IAR opens a second sanctuary for rescued dancing bears in Bannerghatta, in southern India.
2006 IAR joins forces with ProAnimalia to support its work rescuing and rehabilitating primates in Indonesia. ProAnimalia is reconstituted as IAR Indonesia.
2007 IAR's new primate rescue and rehabilitation center is built in Java.
2009 IAR's “Year of the Bear" which aims to end the trade in Indian dancing bears.
2009 IAR signs an agreement with the Forestry Department in Borneo on the rescue, rehabilitation and release of orangutans and the purchase of land to build a rehabilitation center.
2009 Animal welfare history is made as the last dancing bear is rescued in India.
2010 IAR Purchases a 60 acre site in West Kalimantan, Borneo, upon which will be built an orangutan rescue and rehabilitation facility – this will form the core of IAR's orangutan conservation project.
2010 First successful release of the highly endangered slow loris primate in Java by IAR.
2014 Our orangutan rescue center in Indonesia is the first facility in Asia to be accredited by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS). Accreditation means that the center meets the comprehensive and rigorous definition of a true sanctuary/rehabilitation center and is providing humane and responsible care to the orangutans.
2015 Forest fires destroy 5000 acres of rain forest surrounding our center in Ketapang and over 5 million nationwide. Over the course of the year our team was involved with 40 orangutan rescues!
2015 International Animal Rescue launched 'Tickling is Torture' to expose the cruelty involved in keeping slow lorises as pets. The campaign would go on to get 700,000 signatures and reach on audience of over 150 million people!
2016 Our team in Indonesia begin an ambitious project to plant 650,000 trees and reforest an area
2017 International Animal Rescue is thrilled to announce our support for Nosara's Refuge for Wildlife to help care for Howler Monkeys in Costa Rica.
With our partners, Foundation for the Preservation of Wildlife and Cultural Assets (FPWC), we've launched a campaign to free 80 caged bears which have been found living in shocking conditions.
2018 For the first time ever in Armenia two bears have been released back into the wild where they belong. The two cubs had been rescued as part of our 'Great Bear Rescue' project and have been rehabilitating for the past year at our sanctuary.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
We don't have any major challenges to collecting feedback
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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INTERNATIONAL ANIMAL RESCUE US
Board of directorsas of 09/11/2023
Alan Knight
International Animal Rescue
Alan Knight
International Animal Rescue
Gavin Bruce
International Animal Rescue
Matt Hough
Tyler Dickson
Rose Stewart
Christine Southworth
Matthew Hough
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
No data
No data
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 09/11/2023GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
- We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We measure and then disaggregate job satisfaction and retention data by race, function, level, and/or team.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.