image via – youtube.com
There are quite a few videos online that feature easy going, wide eyed sloths. The adorable slow moving creatures are loved by many people the world over and it’s easy to see why. They’re always well behaved and very docile, gentle, and non-aggressive in their mannerisms and movements.
It’s in their nature to be sheepish but sometimes the furry little creatures just want to cuddle up close with a warm body and be loved, like the one in this clip.
The video was captured at the Sloth Sanctuary in Costa Rica, a special place that offers visitors a chance to get up close and personal with the sloths that live there. One of the visitors who had gone to see the residents and interact with them gingerly offered up a colorful Hibiscus flower to one of the sloths.
The flowers are a tasty treat that sloths love, but the one in the video was more interested in the lady than the yummy snack. The adorable animal slowly made her way over to the woman and paused to smell the pink flower, then kept going until she was in a spot where she could climb into the woman’s arms.
Ever so slowly the sloth extended her legs towards the delighted woman until she was in her arms hugging her! The friendly sloth definitely made the woman’s day, she couldn’t stop smiling, and it looks like everyone there was happy as could be!
The Sloth Sanctuary is devoted to rescuing, rehabilitating, and releasing sick or injured sloths who call the country’s rain forests home. They also run a variety of research and education programs which aim to promote respect and understanding of the gentle animals.
Many people are misinformed about sloths and part of the reason why is the negative associations people assume about them based off their name. Sloths got their unflattering name due to the fact that they move so slowly.
However, they are built for this and are not the lazy, sluggish, lethargic mammals that many often view them as. Sloths only move when necessary because they need to conserve as much energy as possible due to their diet consisting of mainly leaves.
Leaves provide little energy and are hard to digest, which is why sloths have specialized stomachs that slowly break down leaves. It often takes them a month or more to completely digest the contents of their stomachs.
Other ways in which they conserve energy include low metabolic rates and low body temperatures, and of course, slow paced movements. Sloths are wonderful, fascinating creatures and one of nature’s sweetest animals.
Check out the video to see how kind and gentle they truly are, and fall in love with them.
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