Autumn 2003

Help us Stop the Primate Pet Trade in the UK.

Primates are wild animals with complex social needs and do not make suitable pets. All monkeys suffer mentally and physically from being kept in captivity and as pets they are often kept in small barren enclosures, isolated from others of their own kind.

The Trade in Britain

There are an estimated 1,500 pet monkeys in the UK. We have been able to rescue a few individuals but there are not enough sanctuaries for all the monkeys in need.
We want to tackle the problem at the source and stop the breeding and selling of primates as pets.

We need to ACT NOW, as a new Animal Welfare Bill is under review and is the perfect opportunity to include a ban on the primate pet trade. The Trust has been working with our local MP, Colin Breed and Norman Baker MP, the animal welfare spokesperson for the liberal democrats to put our views forward.

• We have collected over three thousand signatures on our petition to stop the primate pet trade. Help us by asking your friends and family to sign the petition and help end this cruel trade. Download Petition
  
• Contact us to receive a copy of our press release, which you can use to raise awareness of this issue in your local paper.
  
• NOW is the time for action before the new Animal Welfare Bill is passed. Write to your local MP about the primate pet trade, Ask them to support The Monkey Sanctuary Trust's campaign and Early Day Motion (EDM) to stop the primate pet trade in Britain. Perhaps you'd like to visit your MP in their weekly surgery to discuss the issues further.

Include in your letter:

• Non–human primates are wild animals and do not make suitable pets as they suffer in captivity and need to be in social groups of their own species (see info below).
• The primate pet trade is cruel, taking babies away from their mothers before they are weaned.
• The proposed animal welfare bill is a vital chance to give non–human primates the protection they need and deserve as intelligent and social animals.
• That you are shocked and horrified that it is still legal to buy pet monkeys in the UK.

Background Information on Why Primates shouldn't be pets.

Once a monkey reaches adulthood they become territorial and aggressive. Owners find it hard to cope and as monkeys can live into their forties they often end up being passed around to several owners.

For a primate to grow up with normal behaviour it needs to be with others of its kind, primates separated from their families will show neurotic or insane behaviour. This is especially important as a baby and for the pet trade, monkeys are bred and then taken away from their mothers within weeks. In the wild primate mothers care for their young as humans do and to take the baby from its mother is very traumatic for both mother and baby. No amount of human love can compensate for the monkeys being on their own.

For practical reasons they are difficult to keep, which are why so may 'ex-pets' end up at sanctuaries. Primates are naturally destructive when playing/ looking for food and will defecate whenever and wherever. This means a lot of mess to clear up everyday.

All primates need large outdoor and indoor enclosures, good quality food and lots to keep them occupied. This can be expensive, as can vet bills. Some monkey illnesses can be passed on to people. Monkeys can be permanent carriers of serious illness such as tuberculosis, herpes and Ebola. Monkeys also form dominance structures in a group. As a pet this will include their human family and someone may end up with a lower status than the monkey. This can result in some aggressive behaviour as monkeys often 'tell each other off' by biting and scratching. All monkeys bite and neutering monkeys will do little to curb this aggression.