Animal Friends visit The Monkey Sanctuary
Although it is not illegal to own and keep a monkey in the UK, lack of understanding and education has meant that many monkeys require rescuing and rehabilitating due to malnutrition and abuse.
Animal Friends proudly supports The Monkey Sanctuary to help care for sick monkeys and has now funded new enclosures.
A group of staff from Animal Friends braved the cold winter weather to visit to The Monkey Sanctuary in Cornwall to attend the official opening of a new enclosure.
The enclosure itself has two parts, with adjoining runways for the monkeys to run between them. In addition, there are heated rooms where the monkeys can go when it is extra cold.
There are currently four different breeds of monkeys at the sanctuary, each with their own needs and requirements, which are all met by the excellent level of care on offer. The monkeys clearly have their own personalities and quirks, which make them so individual.
We were lucky enough to have a ‘behind the scenes’ tour of the sanctuary, which enabled us to see the monkeys who are still rehabilitating. The monkeys who come to the sanctuary can have physical, social and emotional problems, which take time and patience to overcome.
Listening to some of the stories that the monkeys had been through was heart-rending but to see how they are coming along shows that the work the Monkey Sanctuary does is vital to ensure the best for each animal. Many of the monkeys who are brought to the sanctuary have dietary problems and even have diabetes due to a lack of the right food and nutrition. These medical problems can be dealt with and medication can be used to enable the monkeys to regain full health with no implications. Without the support of people like Animal Friends this wouldn’t be achievable. All the staff at the sanctuary are exceptionally experienced and passionate about what they do and this is obvious from the outset.
It was an honour to visit the monkeys and the staff who work so hard, but also it was great to see that Animal Friends really is making a difference.
What the Animal Friends staff had to say about the Monkey Sanctuary:
“It was good to see how well the monkeys were cared for as it was clear from their behaviour they had psychological issues in the past.
The setting was idyllic and a nice location for the monkeys that live there, its just a shame it’s not illegal to keep them as pets as this I believe is the route cause of their issues.”
“What an amazing day! It was very satisfying to see that our hard work was being acknowledged and also it give the chance for the public to see how our funding makes a difference.”
The Monkey Sanctuary takes on unwanted and ex-pet monkeys, offering them a home for life and provides them with an exceptional level of care. For more information visit www.monkeysanctuary.org
