‘So enigmatic’: injured sloth inspires rescue centre in Venezuela

Couple steps in to rehabilitate injured sloths amid conservation crisis caused by Covid-19 pandemic and ongoing economic slump

It is almost a year to the day that Haydee and Juan Carlos Rodriguez first spotted an injured sloth lying by the side of the road while they were out on a drive. In an attempt to cross from one tree to another in the Venezuelan town of San Antonio de Los Altos, near Caracas, the sloth had climbed on to a high-voltage power line and been electrocuted.

The animal had lost the claws on three of its paws because of burns and the Rodriguezes were told by a local wildlife expert that it was not likely to survive, and that they should leave it to die.