Volunteer

Join our monkey family! Volunteers needed for daily tasks. It’s more than work, it’s your second home. Arrive as a volunteer, leave as family.

Volunteers are essential for the success of this project and are required for every aspect of the day to day running of the project. There is no typical day and although many of the jobs are a daily necessity such as feeding and cleaning, there is always a new experience or job that needs doing. We will ensure you will get involved and have fun while learning new skills, meeting new people and experiencing a new way of life all while making a huge diﬀerence to wildlife conservation.

While you are a volunteer with us you will be treated as a professional member of the team and it is important that you use your initiative and listen and learn. By all working together as a team we can achieve big things for the animals in our care.

Rescue We take in injured, orphaned and displaced indigenous wildlife with the aim of rehabilitation and release back into protected areas of the wild. We also take in any unwanted exotic pets and give them a home in the most natural conditions possible at our sanctuary.

Rehabilitation Each species requires a different approach to rehabilitation, which involves different processes including troop bonding for social animals and rewildling for solitary animals.

Release Our final aim is always to release any animal back into the wild wherever possible. This involves finding a suitable site, ensuring the animal is in the best condition to survive and securing the necessary paperwork.

Education Only through education can we change the mindset of the public with regards to wildlife.

Am I really making a difference?

Rest Assured: By making your volunteer donation you have already made a huge difference. The volunteer program funds most of the day-to-day expenses of the project. Feeding and caring for up to 100 animals is a costly exercise.
As a volunteer at Helping Hands you are an essential team member and part of the work force. Unlike many projects we rely heavily on our volunteers and the work you carry out on site is vital for the day-to-day running of the center.
There is also hard work to be done such as sorting fruit and cleaning cages and these are all essential jobs to keep the center running.
Although we have no hands-on contact with the adult primate-troops, they still need care such as feeding, deworming and enrichment (e.g. collecting grasses and seeds, building enrichment toys).
Baby Monkey Season is a busy time here at the project and is a very hands-on time of year. These babies come in as helpless, traumatized individuals and it is up to us to provide them with hands-on nurturing in the form of physical and emotional development.
The babies are supervised by volunteers all day in the nursery and will sometimes have to sleep with them at night. The experience here isn’t all about cuddling baby animals. There will be incredible life changing experiences when you get to work hands-on with the animals at the center.
Many of the animals have a long rehabilitation period and can only be released when they are adults. Its important that we still give these adults proper care and enrichment even when they aren’t ‘cute’ babies anymore. We love for volunteers to be involved in all stages of the rehabilitation journey. The rehabilitation process for primates is very long and at any one time we might have 3 troops going through the stages to be released.

What will I learn?

You will learn a lot about wildlife conservation and animal husbandry! We will teach you about:

Rehabilitation – the process and challenges involved
Releases – how we choose release sites and the process of a release
Enrichment projects
How to effectively and efficiently clean and maintain enclosures
The challenges involved in running a rehab center
Animal behavior
How to be resourceful – there is a saying here in Africa: “A farmer makes a plan – we can’t just nip out to the shops if we need something we have to use what we have lying around.”

Safety at Helping Hands

On arrival all volunteers will sign an indemnity form to acknowledge that you will be working with wild animals and that you accept the risk involved.
All new volunteers will be given an orientation tour of the center and explained all of the rules, regulations and safety procedures.
Always close gates behind you and ensure locks are fastened when you leave an enclosure. Airlocks are therefor a reason – NEVER open both doors at the same time.
We are based in the bush and there are snakes around (although we do not see them often). If you see a snake back away slowly and call us for help. If it is close to any of the enclosures try to keep an eye on it from a distance until help arrives so we can remove it as it may be venomous.
Never enter an enclosure without prior permission – some of the animals are aggressive and only certain people can enter the enclosures. Be calm around the animals – screaming is reserved for emergencies only. Never tease the wild troop of monkeys with food. If you are approached and feel threatened, then rather drop what you are carrying and move away.

What climate to expect in our area?

The climate in Badplaas is quite moderate:

Our summer (Sept-Feb) temperatures can rise to 40 degrees Celsius, but it is also rainy season so expect some thundery/overcast days during your stay. Please make sure you have sufficient sun-screen and a good wide brimmed hat for the sunny and hot days!
Our winter months (May-Aug) welcome you with warm temperatures during the day, but with very cold nights. Temperatures drop close to 0 degrees Celsius at night. If you are joining us during the winter months, please bring warm jumpers/jackets, a hat and gloves for the cool mornings and evenings, as well as warm clothes to sleep in.

Helping Hands 4 Wildlife is based at Mount Hlumu, next to Badplaas, surrounded by stunning mountains with a river that finds it way through the valley, here and there as a beautiful waterfall.

Essential to bring

Work Clothes – Your clothes will get dirty, tattered, pooed and pied on!! Rather bring things you are happy to leave behind. We do provide scrubs to wear over your clothes if you prefer while working.
Work Gloves – For building, maintenance, gardening projects.
Suitable working boots – It is safer to wear closed toe shoes when working with the animals and for maintenance projects.
Bring essential personal items, toiletries and any personal medication! There are regular trips to the local shops in Badplaas, where you will be able to buy most elementary. Specialized items may only be available in Nelspruit and branded items may be more expensive than at home.
Waterproof jacket (in summer).
Clothes for free time (Please include jumpers, coats, hat and gloves if you are coming in winter) including Sandals/ Flip Flops and a swimming costume.
Sunhat/ Suncream/ After Sun – The sun is very intense even during the winter!
Torch – For walking around at night if you have to help with feeding nocturnal animals.
Plug Adapter – Most universal kits do not contain a SA adapter!
Insect Repellant

Tips from former Volunteers

Make sure you have adequate small change for the airport porters – R50 is more than enough.
Shops DO NOT accept foreign currency – only Rands!
Bring a credit/debit card, Helping Hands has the facilities for credit/debit cards. Don’t bring travelers cheques – you don’t want to spend hours in a local bank trying to cash them. All excursions you book with Helping Hands or, for example, your drinks you have from our honestly bar after a busy day you can as well pay via paypal with a 7% fee.
Scan important documents and be able to access them.
Don’t bring too much clothing – leave the fancy clothes at home!
Bring your Camera – remember spare SD cards and the power cable.
Bring a pack of cards or games for entertainment in the evenings.
Helping Hands is not based in a malaria area so you will not need malaria tablets while with us. If you are planning on traveling elsewhere in Africa during your trip, then please consult your travel clinic.
While we provide plasters/bandages in the case of any minor scrape/bites, its always useful to bring your own personal first aid kit. This should include Painkillers, Anti-histamine tablets, Imodium, Rehydrate sachets, Insect Repellant.
Last but not least: Helping Hands offers several excursions. Don’t miss the chance to a trip to the beautiful Kruger Park which Helping Hands can arrange for you for a much cheaper price than what can be offered privately.

Visa and Insurance:

Visa requirements depend on your nationality and length of stay in South Africa.
It is essential that you have sufficient travel insurance to cover your stay. This should include medical care, expenses and repatriation if necessary.