Why does our logo feature a dancing blue monkey?

Well, our logo is indeed inspired by a monkey- a special monkey named Blue- who was the first animal rescued from the illegal wildlife trade by ACRES.

Blue was rescued from a miserable life as a ‘pet’ here in Singapore, kept alone, chained up in a small cage. It was no life for a free-spirited monkey.

When we first met Blue, he lived alone, in a small cage, attached to the bars by a chain around his neck. His short chain meant there was no way he could move more than a few steps in either direction. Even if he could somehow remove the chain his world was just 1.5 x 1.5m x 2m. There were no fruits for him to pick, no branches to jump between, no friends to chase or groom. It was just the same old cage, the same old view, the same old food- and endless boredom- day after day.

Rescuing Blue from the cage wasn’t difficult. But finding a place for him to stay in Singapore was another matter. Where could he be safe and free? Where would he find company of his own kind? We came to the inevitable conclusion that Blue had to return to his native Africa. We embarked on a mission to raise the funds needed to send him back home. It was a mammoth task, but in 2004, thanks to the generosity of ACRES supporters, Blue got his second chance at life, and was on his way to his new home at the Munda Wanga sanctuary in Zambia.

Blue’s days were very different in the wild. His world was filled with trees and grass, and all the sights, sounds and smells of the African savannah. And space! Living in a huge open enclosure, filled with things to play on, being able to run, climb, leap, forage – all the things a monkey is designed to do. Best of all, Blue had company and a family of his own. Blue and his mate Toni spent blissful hours grooming each other and watching over their young offspring Indigo and Sapphire, safe in their sanctuary home.

Blue passed away in the wild years later, but his is an inspiring tale – of capture, suffering, hardship, journey, reunion, freedom and love.

Blue and his story are now celebrated in our logo, which depicts Blue dancing with joy, happy to be free again.

His image is an inspiring symbol for us all, constantly reminding everyone – we at ACRES, our supporters and our partners – of the lengths we are always willing to go to help animals.

And how, while we are working towards the bigger picture- towards a world where exploitation of all animals ends- we must remember that every individual animal is important, and helping even one animal to a better life is a worthwhile goal.