Monkey

A monkey is any member of two of the three groupings of simian primates. These two groupings are the New World and Old World monkeys of which together there are nearly 200 species. Because of their similarity to monkeys, apes such as chimpanzees and gibbons are sometimes incorrectly called monkeys. Also, a few monkey species have the word "ape" in their common name. Because they are not a single coherent group, monkeys do not have any important characteristics that they all share and are not shared with the remaining group of simians, the apes.

Monkeys in captivity

As pets

Generally, monkeys do not make good pets. While baby monkeys are usually as easy to keep clean as a human infant (by diapering), monkeys that have reached puberty usually remove their diapers and cannot be toilet trained. They require constant supervision and mental stimulation. Bored monkeys can become extremely destructive and may even go so far as to smear or throw their own feces. Most adolescent monkeys begin to unpredictably bite and pinch adults and children alike. Any surgical means to stem this behavior (such removing the teeth or fingertips of the monkey) is widely considered cruel.

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While a majority of monkey owners find their monkeys too difficult to manage as pets and find other homes for them (such as zoos and monkey rescues), some people report having long and rewarding relationships with their pet monkeys.

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It is usually difficult to find veterinarians who will treat pet monkeys. Even many exotic animal veterinarians are not familiar with them.

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In most large metropolitan areas in the U.S. it is illegal to keep monkeys in the home; even in places where they are legal, a Department of Agriculture permit is usually required. Their legal status as pets varies in other countries.

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In laboratories

Macaques and African green monkeys are widely used in animal testing facilities because of their relative ease of handling and their psychological and physical similarity to humans. Unlike human primates, non-human primates are not regarded as persons in law, and their individual interests are therefore not protected. In the United States, 15,000 macaques are currently housed in laboratories, http://www.ippl.org/aug-01-05.html and 10,000 monkeys were used in experiments in the European Union in 2004. Highly sociable animals, monkeys are caged separately in barren cages, with no perch, no bedding, and nothing to stimulate them. Their cages are arranged in double tiers to save space, which means the monkeys in the lower tiers spend their lives in the dark.

Related Topics:
Macaque - Green monkey - Animal testing - Humans - Person - United States - European Union

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Viktor Reinhardt, a former research veterinarian, wrote for the International Primate Protection League that: "he conditions I witnessed were so depressing that most monkeys had developed stereotypic behaviors such as pacing, rocking, bouncing, somersaulting, swaying from side to side, biting parts of their own bodies, pulling their ears, tossing their heads back and forth, or smearing feces on the cage walls." http://www.ippl.org/aug-01-05.html http://www.buav.org/covance/videos/stereo.mpg (mpg)

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