With Costa Rica closing its zoos, other organizations focused on animal welfare have a chance to shine. One of these organizations is the Sloth Sanctuary of Costa Rica, which has now become the rescue featured on Animal Planet’s “Meet the Sloths.”

The sanctuary has come from humble beginnings, when a few neighborhood children bought an orphaned baby sloth. The family called the San José zoo for help, but, “the zoo said they didn’t know anything about baby sloths and essentially said ‘You’re on your own and good luck!’ Another rescue center on the Pacific coast said pretty much the same thing, so…armed with lots of common sense, [they] began feeding her the leaves that the wild sloths in the trees in their forest ate. Today, the 21-year-old Buttercup…greets visitors to the sanctuary…”

Over the years, the family has helped hundreds of sloths, and is dedicated to providing them the best care possible. They are currently undertaking a long term research project to discover exactly how sloths survive in the wild, in order to create a more successful reintroduction program.

One visitor they tend to have often are baby sloths that have for some reason become abandoned. In this video, you’ll catch a glimpse of Little Punkin making a very special decision. You won’t want to miss it!