Adorable moment when a wheelbarrow full of abandoned baby sloths go on the fast and furry-ous ride of their lives.
The youngsters are famous for their slow-moving lives in rainforest treetops.
But – as this video shows – they can also get a taste for speed.
The young pups look delighted to be pushed around their rescue enclosure in a wheelbarrow at what – for them – must seem like breakneck speed.
And as they are pushed around the ground, the youngsters hold their heads up to get the most of the wind in their faces.
The heartwarming footage was captured by carers at the Jaguar Rescue Centre in southeastern Costa Rica.
The centre is in the coastal town of Puerto Viejo de Talamanca in the country’s Limon Province, which is also a popular tourist attraction.
It is dedicated to the rehabilitation of injured or orphaned animals and – once healed – they are reintroduced into their natural habitat in protected areas.
Of the six species of sloths that exist in the world, Costa Rica is home to two of them – the Brown-Throated Three-Fingered Sloth (Bradypus variegatus), and Hoffman’s Two-Fingered Sloth (Choloepus hoffmanni).
The centre estimates they receive around 300 sloths every year.
Many are adults electrocuted by badly insulated power cables, hit by cars, or attacked by dogs.
But a large number of newborn babies are also being orphaned.
Pups usually stay at the centre for up to two years while they go through training at sloth kindergarten and then middle school and finally high school before they graduate to being released back into the jungle.
While in the different schools, they learn the skills that they need in order to survive in the wild.
Sadly, there are also older adults too injured to survive properly in the wild, and these are permanent residents, often helping the younger ones to get the skills they need to survive.
All those that are released are monitored with radio collars to make sure they are coping with being independent.
The Jaguar Centre relies on donations (https://www.jaguarrescue.foundation/en-us/SupportUs/MakeaDonation), as it receives no public funding for its work.
As well as sloths, it also cares for reptiles, birds, monkeys and many other animals native to the region.
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Story By: Michael Leidig, Sub-Editor: Marija Stojkoska, Agency: Newsflash
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