A person in gloves gently holds a pangolin on a table covered with paper towels.

Thank you for helping pangolins

Your support is helping save pangolins from the wildlife trade

Thank you for giving pangolins hope this festive season with your kind gift. Your kindness is helping protect the world’s most trafficked mammal and giving terrified pangolins a lifeline - safety, care and, for some, a return to the wild.

Right now, pangolins in Indonesia are being smoked from their burrows, trapped in sacks and moved through trafficking routes at frightening speed.

Because of you, our partner Jakarta Animal Aid Network (JAAN) has a greater chance of finding and rescuing them before it’s too late.

A person with a tattooed arm and a shirt hashtagged "#CombatWildlifeCrime" inspects a truck filled with orange bags. A trained dog sniffs the bags.

INVESTIGATE

Behind every rescue is weeks of undercover work. JAAN’s investigators infiltrate wildlife trafficking networks, posing as buyers and gathering intelligence that leads authorities to poachers, smuggling routes and hidden wildlife. This intelligence is crucial, as specialist teams and sniffer dogs are often a pangolin’s only chance of being found alive. It gives rescuers the precious minutes they need to find them.

A pangolin uses its long pink tongue to eat from a metal bowl filled with food. A gloved hand and green leaves can be seen nearby.

RESCUE

At Sumatra’s busy ports, every second counts. Pangolins are often found weak, dehydrated and terrified - hidden in boxes, sacks or buried under cargo to mask their scent. The K9 Wildlife Detection Unit, led by Bailey, Indonesia’s first wildlife sniffer dog, works alongside JAAN’s rescue teams to uncover trafficked animals, bring them to safety and ensure they receive urgent care in those critical first hours.

A solitary pangolin with overlapping scales walks on grassy terrain, surrounded by blurred trees in the background, conveying a peaceful, natural setting.

REHABILITATE

Once rescued, pangolins arrive at JAAN’s wildlife centre exhausted and frightened. Here they receive specialist medical treatment, proper nutrition and a safe, quiet environment to rest and recover. Expert care helps injured and traumatised pangolins heal, regain strength and begin their journey back to a life in the wild.

Meet the team on the frontline, fighting to save pangolins

A brown dog with curly fur wearing a harness stands on a leash outdoors, with a person's legs visible in the background.

Bailey is a rescue dog with an extraordinary gift: she can detect the scent of hidden wildlife through crates, sacks and cargo. Rehomed with JAAN, she found her purpose as a wildlife sniffer dog and has helped uncover thousands of trafficked animals.

Today, she leads JAAN’s K9 Wildlife Detection Unit. Together, the team searches ports, trucks, markets and warehouses - anywhere traffickers try to move wildlife unseen. Their work helps authorities find pangolins in the tiny window where they can still be saved.

Amba’s story: A pangolin rescued in time

Amba was discovered after a poacher’s arrest in Central Java. Hidden among 80kg of pangolin scales, he was curled tightly into a ball, terrified, dehydrated and severely stressed. He was rushed to JAAN’s sanctuary where he received emergency care. With time, warmth and specialist treatment, he began to heal. Today, Amba digs in the sand, eats well and shows every sign of a pangolin with a real future back in the forest.

Your support this Christmas helps make rescues like Amba’s possible.

Pangolin on a white paper towel at a clinic, surrounded by gloved hands.

Thank you for being part of this life-saving mission

Your generosity is helping expose traffickers and fuel rescue efforts, strengthening the frontline teams working day and night to give these gentle animals a safer future. We are so grateful you’re with us.

World Animal staff walking into Expedia office