Sully is a beautiful Egyptian fruit bat who was part of the exotic pet trade in Ohio. He was purchased, along with another male, by an ex-boyfriend of the woman who ultimately saved him. Sully’s rescuer pleaded with her boyfriend not to purchase these poor creatures of the Internet, but her boyfriend wanted “exotic pets” in his living room. He never considered the emotional and physical needs of the bats. Sadly, the woman and her boyfriend already had a cat who killed Sully’s companion after he escaped the small cage where the bats were kept. This left Sully alone and living in constant fear of the cat.

In February of 2019, the boyfriend left, thankfully leaving Sully behind. That is when we received an email from the girlfriend pleading for our help. We immediately agreed to rescue Sully and made arrangements to get him to Laurie, a bat care specialist in Michigan a short distance away. Because it was simply too cold to transport Sully to Texas in February, Sully remained with Laurie through the harshest part of the winter. Under the care of Laurie and her daughters, Sully finally felt safe. He received everything he needed, including hanging blankets, a heating pad, a hammock, toys, and plush “friends” that included a monkey that soon became Sully’s best friend.

As soon as the weather warmed, Sully was flown to Bat World Sanctuary and his forever home. He was flown with his plush monkey to keep him company and give him comfort throughout the flight. Once at Bat World Sanctuary, his plush monkey was placed with him in a temporary holding enclosure within just a few feet of his soon-to-be forever family. After Sully had a clean bill of health he was marked with a temporary, non-toxic green paint so we could keep track of him as he settled in.

Sully quickly made dozens of friends of his own kind at Bat World Sanctuary. Instead of being alone in a tiny bird cage, he now enjoys the freedom of a large flight enclosure with troughs filled with fresh fruit, mango, sweet potato, lettuce, and melon kabobs, ropes to swing on, and toys of every kind. He can enjoy an outdoor flight area where he can hear crickets and see the moon rise every night, and sleep peacefully snuggled with more friends than he can count. But even with all this, we made sure that his plush monkey is close by, just in case.