The Problem with Pet Monkeys - Keeping Monkeys as Pets

Reasons Monkeys Do Not Make Good Pets
There is something irresistible about an infant monkey - they appear so
sweet and helpless, and seem so much like a human infant in many ways.
However, those sweet babies grow up into difficult adults, and as a
general rule adult monkeys do not make good pets. Their intelligence
makes them special, but ultimately makes them a very challenging pet.

Commitment
Taking on a primate is a long term commitment. A well cared for monkey
can live anywhere from 20-40 years, and needs your full commitment
throughout their lives. A monkey cannot do without your attention when
life gets busy or circumstances change.

Monkeys may not take well to new people in your life (including spouses
and children), and make it hard to get away for vacations. Finding a new
home for a monkey is extremely difficult, and very hard on the monkey
which has bonded to its first owner.

Monkeys are expensive to house and feed, and some require specialized
diets that can be time consuming to prepare. A significant commitment of
time is needed just for routine care and cleaning up after the monkey,
but more importantly a monkey needs a large amount of social interaction
and attention from the owner. A pet monkey deprived of your time and
attention will only develop severe behavior problems and psychological
issues.

Legal Issues
Monkeys may be illegal to keep in some areas. Check locally as well as
state or province wide. If legal, permits may be required, and sometimes
permit holders are subject to inspection for proper facilities and care.

Medical Issues
A wide range of diseases can be passed from monkeys to humans. See
"Zoonoses Acquired from Pet Primates" by David M. Renquist, D.V.M., M.A.
and Robert A. Whitney, Jr., D.V.M., M.S. for a thorough discussion of
this aspect. Finding a vet who is able and willing to treat a primate
may also be difficult. Monkeys are also susceptible to a variety of
illnesses of humans, which can be devastating for the monkey.

Aggression
The sweet dependent baby monkey will eventually grow up, and become the
wild animal it was meant to be. Unfortunately, raising a monkey around
humans doesn't change the wild nature of monkey, and in fact depriving
the monkey of normal social relationships with other monkeys can create
behavior problems and neuroses.

It has been said that all monkeys bite. They have different
personalities so one cannot generalize, but some monkeys will be very
aggressive, and others will be more docile. Nevertheless, monkeys are
unpredictable and may turn aggressively on anyone, including the person
to whom they are the closest.

The Mess
Monkeys are messy. They can't really be effectively toilet trained (many
younger monkeys can be diapered or at least partly toilet trained, but
that is often lost at maturity) and sometimes engage in distasteful
activities involving their feces and urine.

Aside from the toileting messes, monkeys can be extremely mischievous
and destructive, especially if bored.

Housing
Monkeys need a large secure enclosure and should spend time outdoors too
if possible. They must be provided with a wide variety of ever changing
toys and exercise equipment to keep them challenged and stimulated, or
they will suffer from boredom.

Note: this article specifically discusses keeping monkeys as pets, but
the issues apply equally (if not moreso) to apes as well.
IT IS TOTALLY ILLEGAL IN THIS COUNTRY
YOU HAVE TO APPLY FOR A LICENCE WHICH ONLY THE RESCUE CENTRES ETC EVER GET.