The orangutans of Borneo and Malaysia (the only natural areas where they live) are not doing well. They are losing the battle against habitat loss, poaching, and capture for circuses or show business. It is easy to love these animals, and they enjoy not only human interaction, but tactile contact, which can be dangerous (tourists have been bitten). Yet their trust of caretakers and visitors creates avenues of hope for their survival. Their recovery would show that we recognize the forces that connect us to animals so far away yet so similar in sensibilities.