A Guide for Indonesia’s Animals
Every animal has a story. PanduanHewan puts those stories, and the people protecting them, in one place.
In brief
PanduanHewan is a free Indonesian-language guide to Indonesia’s animals, developed within Kaiser Khan’s Kode Nirlaba initiative. It explains species and habitats island by island, offers practical pet-health guidance, and lists 34 animal organisations with links to their official channels. It takes no donations and is not a rescue service; it helps people find the right help.
Why Indonesia’s animals?
Indonesia holds an extraordinary share of the world’s wildlife: orangutans in the forests of Sumatra and Kalimantan, Komodo dragons on a handful of islands in East Nusa Tenggara, the Bali starling, and the mangroves and coral reefs that connect land and sea. Much of the best writing about them is in English, in academic journals, or scattered across organisations’ own sites.
The people living closest to these animals deserve the clearest guide, in their own language. PanduanHewan (panduan hewan means “animal guide”) is my attempt at that guide. It was developed within Kode Nirlaba and is written in Bahasa Indonesia first, with an English edition for international readers.
What is in it?
- Species guides, organised by animal group and by island, from Sumatra to Papua. Of the animals in the guide, 76 are threatened on the IUCN Red List and 20 of those are critically endangered.
- Habitat guides to rainforest, mangrove and coral reef, because protecting an animal starts with protecting its home.
- Pet-health guidance for cat and dog owners: core vaccines, sterilisation, choosing a licensed vet, and rabies, which is still endemic in 26 provinces.
- What to do if you find an animal that needs help, and where to turn.
- A directory of 34 organisations working for animals across Indonesia, searchable by region and focus, from the Bali Animal Welfare Association to orangutan programmes in Sumatra and Kalimantan.
(Figures checked on PanduanHewan on 26 September 2026.)
How does it help Indonesia?
In three ways, I hope.
Knowledge first. A child in Kalimantan or a family in Bandung can learn about the animals around them in their own language, with sources they can follow.
Public health second. Rabies is prevented by vaccination, and clear guidance on vaccines and responsible pet care protects people as much as animals.
Connection third. Small rescue groups and sanctuaries do remarkable work but are often hard to find. One searchable directory sends people to their official channels, where adoptions, volunteering and support actually happen.
What does it deliberately not do?
PanduanHewan is an information platform, not a clinic, shelter, rescue service or government agency. It does not accept or process donations; anyone who wants to give is sent to the organisation’s own website. Profiles are compiled from each organisation’s official site, and a listing is not a partnership, an audit or a guarantee.
One relationship should be declared plainly. I am Director of World Animal Rescue Network, and PanduanHewan links to WARN’s own support information. That link does not mean organisations in the directory receive WARN grants, and readers are asked to check WARN’s pages like any other source before deciding.
Why build it for free?
Because some things are worth more as a public good than as a product. A guide that charged for access, or took a cut of donations, would reach fewer people and be trusted less.
PanduanHewan costs its readers nothing and asks nothing of them except curiosity, and perhaps a first small step: learning, adopting, volunteering. As the site puts it, every small step counts.