July 01, 2004

By: Curtis Mckay
Website: http://www.1st-in-pets.com

Primates Seized in High-Profile Cruelty Case Finally Cleared to Leave BC for Texas Sanctuary

This week BC SPCA officials will transport four Barbary macaques across the border to Blaine, Washington, where they will be met to begin a journey to Sparks, Nevada. There the primates will enter a federal quarantine centre in preparation for transfer to their permanent home at the Wild Animal Orphanage in San Antonio, Texas.

This happy ending for Cinnamon, Teaspoon, Barbie and baby Jethro (born shortly after his mother Cinnamons arrival at the SPCA) comes more than a year after they were rescued in an SPCA cruelty investigation case that made national headlines.

It took more than 14 months of intensive research and work by the SPCA to locate an accredited facility that was willing to accept the Barbary macaques and to negotiate the many complex steps required to obtain permits to transport exotic animals to the United States.

The animals have been living at the Surrey SPCA since their seizure in November 2002. We're delighted that the primates will get the on-going care and enrichment they need and deserve, says Craig Daniell, CEO of the BC SPCA, but this case highlights the enormous price of keeping exotic animals in captivity - both in terms of animal suffering and in the actual cost of rescuing and relocating the animals seized from neglectful guardians.

Daniell says the SPCA is deeply concerned about the growing number of exotic animals that are being kept and bred in BC. There are currently no laws in Canada preventing the sale and trade of exotic animals and it has led to immense suffering for exotic animals and very expensive and complicated cruelty investigations for us.

So far, the SPCA has spent more than $20,000 in cruelty investigation costs in the primate case, a further $30,000 for temporary enclosures and care for animals at the Surrey SPCA during the past year and $20,000 in costs to relocate these animals to the United States. These cases are extremely costly and they place an enormous strain on the SPCA's very limited resources, says Daniell.

The primates new home, the Wild Animal Orphanage, is a far cry from the dark, dirty garage that housed the animals before the SPCA intervened and seized them in a major cruelty investigation in late 2002. The primates were among more than 100 exotic, domestic and farm animals in various states of injury, malnutrition and distress removed from a rural property in Kaslo, BC.

The primates were confined in a small space at the back of a dark garage with no access to sunlight, no room to move freely and little enrichment or stimulation, says Daniell. These are wild animals with very specific physical, social and intellectual needs and it was tragic to see the conditions they had been forced to live in for years.

The owners of the animals have been charged with several counts of animal cruelty and will appear in court in May 2004 as a result of the SPCA investigation.

The SPCA built temporary indoor/outdoor enclosures for the primates at its Surrey Shelter in the Lower Mainland and carefully monitored the animals health, diet and enrichment for more than a year while they searched for a permanent home.

After their isolation it was wonderful to see how enthusiastically they responded to little things, like having enrichment toys to play with and branches to climb, says Hugh Nichols, an SPCA staff member who helped care for the primates.

It was amazing to watch the first time Teaspoon went outside and felt the sunshine on his face. He lay on his back in the grass, stretched his arms behind his head and just drank in the whole experience.

Nichols says the Surrey Shelter staff worked hard to come up with new ideas to keep the intelligent and easily bored primates amused. We changed their toys all the time but their absolute favourite was the non-breakable mirrors we gave them, says Nichols.

We also put a larger mirror outside their enclosures and they spent hours watching themselves - they were fascinated with their own images. He adds that staff quickly became familiar with the individual personality traits and preferences of each of the primates. They definitely had very particular tastes, says Nichols. Jeffrey, for instance, refuses to eat the skin on his peanuts. He rolls them around on the ground until he rubs all the skin off before he eats them.

While the SPCA staff will miss the bonds they have developed with the primates, they are thrilled to see them moving to their permanent home. We did everything we could to keep them happy, but they need to be in a sanctuary where their needs can be met for the rest of their lives, says Nichols. For more information, see natural pet foods .

About The Author:

Curtis Mckay is a successful author and regular contributor to http://www.1st-in-pets.com.  Pamper your pet and get up to date information on pet health, food, accessories, behavior, gifts and toys.