Primates as pets?

Dunklin County Health Department Executive Director Steve Neal said a statewide advisory was issued recently warning residents about keeping primates as pets.

Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) Director Julia M. Eckstein discourages the practice, a DHHS Health Advisory issued Friday indicated.

The purpose of the advisory is to ensure that medical and public health professionals are aware of the very significant health and safety issues associated with contact with primates, Eckstein said.

State Public Health Veterinarian Howard Pue said private ownership of monkeys, apes, and "lower primates" such as bushbabies is not uncommon in Missouri and a number of other states.

Pue said the trade in these animals is largely unregulated, so the exact number of privately owned primates is unknown.

However, their popularity as pets increased because they are intelligent and have some human-like characteristics, and because they have been portrayed in movies and on television as cute, harmless, and adaptable to human social settings, Pue said. He added that the view that primates are harmless and can be raised like humans is a gross misconception, since they are capable of inflicting tremendous physical damage and transmitting numerous infectious diseases to people.

"Most people who acquire primates as pets do so as a whim or out of curiosity, not realizing the dangers they and their families might face," Dr. Pue said. "Documented cases describe people who sustained horrible physical wounds inflicted by the long canine teeth and weapon-like nails of primates who turned on them.

"It's just a bad idea for the average Missourian to own a monkey," he added.

Pue noted that infant primates are docile and tractable, as any young animal tends to be.

But captive primates begin to ascend the social structure of their human family as they mature, just as they would in the wild, where they normally congregate in groups with a strict social hierarchy, Pue said.

Primates, by virtue of their strength and ability to inflict damage with teeth and nails, soon achieve supremacy over children in the family social order, Pue noted. Even adults are no match for a mature primate -- a 20 pound monkey can quickly overwhelm a 200 pound man, he said.

Captive breeding and hand rearing will not eliminate the need for the primate to climb the social order because it is "hard wired" into their genetic makeup, Pue added.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that a macaque bite -- or exposure of the eyes, nose, mouth, or broken skin to saliva from a macaque -- be treated as an emergency situation. The person must be evaluated by a physician and treated with anti-viral agents within 24 hours of the bite to maximize the chance that treatment will be effective.

Added to significant physical and health threats, primates can also be difficult and very expensive to keep for various reasons, according to Dr. Pue. By the time a primate reaches sexual maturity, which varies greatly by species, but averages four to eight years of age, it has developed many undesirable or even dangerous traits.

While herpes B virus has only been documented in about 40 people, 80 percent of them died from the infection, according to DHHS stats.

Other primates pose no known risk for B virus infection unless they have had the opportunity to acquire B virus directly from a macaque, Eckstein said. Infected monkeys usually have no or mild symptoms, she added.

But in humans, B virus infection can result in a fatal encephalomyelitis, the director said.

"It has been noted that when potentially seropositive macaques have been domesticated as pets, opportunities for exposure to B virus are frequent," Eckstein said. "Persons who have been bitten by a macaque or had other potentially significant exposures should be evaluated promptly by a physician."

The most important action in a case of potential exposure to B virus is to immediately and thoroughly cleanse the wound or exposure site, the director said. Anyone exposed should be instructed to immediately cleanse the affected area for at least 15 minutes, Eckstein added.

Potentially exposed skin should be washed with povidone iodine, chlorhexidine, or detergent soap, she added.

In addition to being washed, wounds may be gently massaged to increase their contact with the cleansing solution, Eckstein said.

Eyes or mucous membranes potentially exposed to B virus should be irrigated immediately with sterile saline solution or water for 15 minutes, the director added.

"Primates generally cannot be 'housebroken,' and may relieve themselves anywhere at anytime, Pue said. "They are very uninhibited animals that may engage in natural activities that are embarrassing for people."

Pue said primates also become extremely unpredictable, often lashing out with teeth and nails with no warning when frightened, surprised, or frustrated. Unlike a domesticated animal such as a dog, primates perceive punishment as a threat and often respond through physical retaliation.

"I may be painting an unpleasant picture, but I hope to provide people with a realistic view of what owning a primate can mean, hopefully before they buy one," Pue said.

Primates may live from 30 to 60 years, which places a tremendous burden on the owner, Pue noted. Once the animals grow beyond the "cuddly" stage and become unmanageable, owners may abuse them or keep them locked in a cage, which usually makes the situation worse, he added.

Getting rid of a troublesome primate is generally difficult, since most zoos do not accept them and reputable sanctuaries are at or near capacity, Pue said.

Private ownership of primates is expensive because of stringent dietary needs, destruction of household items by inquisitive or unmanageable animals, time-consuming, presents the owner with the potential of legal liability for medical bills and lawsuits from people injured by the animals, and is inhumane in the vast majority of cases, he noted.

Infant primates are taken from their mothers at a very young age, depriving them of the nourishing and socializing relationships that are needed for their proper physical and psychological development, Pue explained.

Primates are wild animals that do not have the ability to bond with humans that has evolved in dogs and cats over thousands of years, he said. Through improper societal role models, lack of constant companionship, inadequate diet and housing, and exposure to diseases from people, primates in a household setting often become unhealthy, maladjusted, and a threat to the people around them, Pue added.

Therefore, the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services discourages private ownership of primates. Primates instead should be maintained in educational and scientific institutions under federal and/or state regulation to protect the health of humans and to promote proper care and well-being of these animals.