HUDSON COUNTY, NJ — First things first. It’s illegal to own a monkey in New Jersey. Got that? Good.
However, the legal ramifications of primate ownership when applied to interstate travel probably weren’t the first thing on a New Jersey driver’s mind when an owl monkey wearing a diaper leaped into the backseat of his car last weekend.
The monkey business took place on Saturday, Nov. 17 near Journal Square in Jersey City, according to the Liberty Humane Society (LHS), which also services Hoboken.
Around 8 p.m., the nonprofit shelter’s Animal Response Team got a call from a driver in the area who said that there was a monkey in a diaper running loose in the area. The caller told LHS staff that the animal landed on the hood of his car, then darted into his backseat when he opened the door.
LHS team members rushed to the scene, captured the critter and secured it inside a carrier. After a consultation with a zookeeper, rescuers identified the animal as an owl monkey, a rare, nocturnal primate from the rainforests of South America who mainly eats fruit.
“This particular monkey, named Biggie, was legally licensed in Florida and registered as a therapy pet,” LHS Executive Director Irene Borngraeber said. “His owner was visiting New Jersey when Biggie escaped.”
Borngraeber pointed out that it’s illegal to own a monkey in New Jersey.
“They are considered potentially dangerous animals, per state law,” she said. “However, they are allowed to be kept as pets in other states.”
And never fear, Borngraeber said. Biggie’s story has a happy ending.
“On Monday, New Jersey Fish and Wildlife’s exotic specialist allowed Liberty Humane Society to return Biggie to his owner, provided he immediately return to Florida,” Borngraeber told Patch.
“After a short stay with us at Liberty Humane, some cuddles, and much fruit, we are so happy to have been able to safely return Biggie to his owner. The moral of this story is: pet monkeys are illegal, no matter how tame… don’t bring them to New Jersey.”
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Photo: Liberty Humane Society
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