Monkey World director praises new Bill to ban primates being kept as pets
The new Animal Welfare Bill aims to stop monkeys being kept in small bird cages
Last updated 10th Jun 2021
Star of Monkey Business and director of Dorset's renowned Monkey World, Dr Alison Cronin, is praising a new Animal Welfare Bill.
It will ban the sale and trade of primates as pets in the UK and introduce legislation to protect those monkeys currently kept as pets.
Anyone who can't foot the expensive bill of providing proper care for their pets, which includes large enclosures and keeping them in groups, could see their animals confiscated.
Monkey World has rescued 123 primates from the pet trade in the UK.
Dr Alison Cronin told Greatest Hits Radio Dorset:
"It's not incredibly difficult, but you do have to have a lot of money in order to achieve it and dedicated care and attention because these animals require care 7 days a week.
"I suspect there will be a lot of people who don't meet the burden of care.
"Often what we find is that well meaning individuals don't do their homework... and people get them back to their homes and very quickly realise that the sad, lonely figure of the marmoset in the bird cage that they've grown to love and care for is suffering physically and mentally. That's most often when we get the call here at Monkey World."
The trade has expanded rapidly in recent years, leaving the centre with a waiting list of over 150 monkeys waiting for a home. The centre cannot keep up with the demand for housing, having built two specialist houses at the park which were both filled within six weeks of completion.
Monkey World first met ministers to discuss the problem of pet primates in 1999, and has handed in two petitions to parliament since then, with over 160,000 signatures in total. The campaigns run by the rescue centre to stop this trade were supported by thousands of followers, who wrote letters to MPs, emails to unscrupulous breeders and dealers, and reported countless social media posts.
Dr Cronin added:
"This government should be applauded for taking prompt and decisive action to protect primates that are kept as pets in Britain today. For over 30 years Monkey World has been campaigning for a change to the inadequate legislation governing the trade and keeping of primates as pets. The primate pet trade is out of control with monkeys kept in tiny bird cages, in solitary confinement, in sitting rooms around the country."