As far back as I can remember, I had always wanted a monkey. My father tells me stories of when I was 5 about how I used to watch the Little Rascals and ask him if he would buy me a monkey like Spanky's. My parents would always respond "the day you live in your own home is the day you can have a monkey". I always swore to them that the day I moved out I was going have a monkey.
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Well, about four years ago I got engaged, I immediately began researching private primate ownership. I went to the local library, several pet stores and contacted the Simian Society. There weren't many books on primates as pets, and unfortunately, the board member of the SSA that was listed in the library was not much help, rather than give me information, she yelled and screamed about how people should not own primates as pets. As a result of running into brick walls, I spoke to breeders. Needless to say, the breeders were not very truthful. I was told that monkeys that are human raised from infants do not bite unlike older monkeys who were not human reared. Since I didn't know any monkey owners and did not know how to locate primate owners, I went by the little information that was in the library and the information given to me by several breeders. I was aware of all the responsibilities of owning a primate, the costly vet bills, the constant supervision required, the constant cleaning and most important the enormous devotion of time necessary to keep a healthy, happy primate. None of this discouraged me and to this day is not an issue, but the one thing I was not prepared for was the day my monkey attacked me.
I, like many first time monkey owners, used to think "Not My Monkey", he would never bite me. For two years I bottle fed, slept with and devoted 24 hours - 7 days a week to my capuchin. My husband and I did not go on vacations, took our capuchin everywhere and never practiced negative reinforcement. Kong, our capuchin, has always been very loving and friendly. My husband and I used to lie in bed with him in the middle and say there is no way we could picture Kong ever becoming aggressive with us. All that changed when Kong was around two years old. I cannot explain exactly what happened, to this day I do not know, but Kong had decided it was time to lead the troop and he attacked me. For those of you who do not have monkeys, when I say attacked I do not mean a little bite, I am referring to a full fledged attack. All I remember is praying that each bite was the last. When it was all over, my legs were bloody, my hands were bruised and my heart was broken. To say I was in shock would be an understatement. From that day forward, I was attacked at least 15 more times. I could no longer feed him, clean his cage, bathe him or pet him. My husband was the only one who could interact with him. The physical pain was nothing in comparison to the emotional pain. I would lie in bed at night just crying, wondering what went wrong, why did my monkey hate me, why was he attacking me?
About six months have passed and thanks to the help and advice of other capuchin owners, I can handle Kong and he is, once again, the loving, friendly monkey I used to lie in bed with, but he is growing up and he is doing what comes naturally. I now know now that he does not hate me and that I did nothing "wrong". Kong was just behaving like a monkey and that is what he is "a monkey". No matter how human-like monkeys may seem, they are still monkeys. Kong is still young and both my husband and I have come to the realization that there may come a time when we will not be able to handle him and he may have to be confined to a designated area. We have accepted this and are in the process of building a sanctuary within our home for him and if this time comes we will get him a mate so that he can live out his life with another monkey.
If I knew then what I know today, I do not know if I would have bought a monkey. Unfortunately, at the time, there was not a lot of information out there and I based my decision on pure selfishness. I no longer think monkeys should be kept as pets. Kong deserves so much more than I can give him. He deserves to be swinging in the trees with a troop of other capuchins, foraging for food and lying in the sun. He will never be able to do these things and although I wish I could change that, I know it is not possible so my husband and I are determined to provide the best possible environment for him for the remainder of his lifetime. My goal is to inform as many people of the pro's and con's of owning a monkey. My husband and I are very privileged to be able to interact with such a magnificent creature, but the reality is that most people are not prepared to live with a monkey and because of this monkey's are passed from owner to owner and very rarely live out their lifespan in one household. Knowledge is power and the decision of buying a monkey should not be taken lightly, but rather should be an informative choice and acceptance of a lifetime of responsibility.