Philippine monkey as a pet
Chunky Monkey – I was given a small female monkey from the mountains of the interior of Leyte that we are planning on raising as a pet. Her name is Moi but I thought Chunky Monkey sounded good, so that’s her Kano name.
The mountains in Leyte where this long-tailed macaque is from.
The beautiful back country in Leyte – geo-thermal power plants in the distance..
I estimate the monkey’s age to be 7 months. She was very attached to one of the pineapple farm workers that was caring for her for 5 months, but he decided that he could not keep her any more.
Up in the mountains.
We keep a chain around the monkeys waist connected to a slider on a rail below the ceiling.
You will often see monkeys kept as pets, on your travels in the Philippines. Some are aggressive and others are very mellow.
This one is good with adult men and kids. It took about 3 days for her to get used to me so I am not going to force the friendship. She has a sweet personality and it will likely just take time.
Chunk likes to splash and wash her food in the water bowl and then dump the water out and give the dish a toss.
Pineapples are a favorite but bananas are ignored.
Ormoc Farms
The local kids found out that she like lolipops but I decided to put an end to that because it will tear up her teeth over time.
Kids have more fun with Chunky as she reaches down to grab their hair. Monkeys seem to thrive on attention and this one gets plenty.
One week later – I am noticing that this monkey, a female, is getting a bit aggressive towards women but now has accepted me as a trusted friend.
I have no problem holding her and she likes to run up my arm and make false charges at any female that happens by.
I think that the monkey is just playing but she did grab one of the older girls hair and wouldn’t let go for 10 seconds – same kid that stole her bananas.
One thing interesting to me is that the monkeys seem to communicate a lot with facial expressions. This one also seems to remember every person that comes by and treats them differently depending upon their prior interactions.
I do question the wisdom of keeping a wild animal as a pet but we will see how this works out. I put up a small house on the edge of town near a large stand of bamboo and plan to transfer the monkey back there in a couple of weeks.
She gets a lot of company so at least she won’t get bored like the monkeys kept in small cages in someone’s backyard sometimes do. Maybe some of them become biters just out of frustration.
Just keeping one of these animals in a cage would probably drive the poor thing mad. I suspect that most people do not have the time to keep one of these critters but we have so many neighborhood kids coming by that the monkey is entertained as much as they are. The monkey also has a long run just under the roof so it can get away when it chooses to.
I plan to cut a 10 meter bamboo pole that will lead from the back door to a stand of live bamboo. That way she can come and go more freely. I am noticing that this monkey likes to chew up plastic dishes, rope, and anything else in reach. An unused bakers oven is within reach and Chunky periodically open all the oven doors – just for something to do.
My feeling is that having a monkey as a pet is probably not a good idea for most people – especially in western countries. These monkeys have endless energy and love constant attention.
Roly with the monkey.
The novelty of having a pet monkey will soon wear off and the owner will weary of cleaning up a constant mess. The monkeys seem to like to throw food all over the place too. There is also a liability issue if your monkey starts biting. I feel pretty good about ours, but I don’t know what she would do if she felt threatened.
These monkeys live in troops – social groups – in the wild so likely a captive monkey would not do well if you tried to reintroduce it into the wild at a later time.
Deep in the mountains where we keep this one there are plenty of people willing to help out and I think that it’s going to work out ok. I will try to keep posting the pluses and minuses of having a monkey as a pet.
My feeling is that in most cases it simply is not wise. I met some circus people that have Capuchin monkeys that are used to generate income at state fairs. Their monkeys have had all their teeth removed to comply with insurance regulations.
Our monkey is adjusting well to all the people stopping by the store and now jumps onto my arm when I am near. She is very affectionate and really fun to have around and likes to nibble on your fingers but it seems like a greeting more than aggressive behavior.
I even put my fingers in the monkeys mouth and check her teeth and just see what happens. She just tries to push your finger out with her tongue.
This monkey does not have big canine teeth like some monkeys do but she did nip one of the older women that was pulling her tail. It did break the skin but the monkey just doesn’t want people jerking on it’s tail – fair enough.
The monkey got away from me yesterday when I was changing the rope on it’s lead. These little guys are very strong and it got into the little sari sari store and started tearing the place up
My girl tending the store ran out screaming claiming the monkey was trying to bite here but it looked to me like the monkey was just freaking out because of all the screaming.
I landed up taking the monkey down to the place we are building just to see how it would react to different surroundings. She became very clingy and was not at ease and it was quite annoying for me to try to get anything done.
Later that night we found out that this monkey is mad about mashed potatoes!
Monkey with cucumber slice.
Chunky Monkey escapes! Chunks slipped off the chain and took off but didn’t want to leave familiar territory. Fortunately Roly was home and the monkey came down to him after being offered some junk food.
This leads me to what diet a monkey should be on. Chunks loves junk food and gets plenty of it – even though I tell the kids not to feed the junk to her. The monkey also loves soft drinks and then gets hyper and just runs and jump all over the place.
My feeling is that this stuff is very bad for her because even her personality changes after eating a handful of this junk.
This monkey gets a constant barrage of kids coming by to play. If she gets sick of it she can climb to the ceiling and be out of reach.
It’s a good idea to refill the water dish every few hours because the monkeys seem to enjoy splashing in the water and then dumping the water on the floor.
Monkey drinking water.
The water bowl will remain upright a maximum of 5 minutes.
Here one of the neighbor kids shows of a bat that he caught – dp advice is to never handle bats – ever – they are a rabies carrier.
My believe that having a monkey as a pet is a bad idea. You may ask why did I go ahead and get one? The local farmer asked if we wanted his monkey and I was against the idea even though it was cute as a button.
The pineapple worker mentioned that he was going to bring the monkey down to the city and sell it there. The monkey would have a miserable life in the city so I relented and we gave the farmer 1000 pesos for the little guy (around 24 usd). There are so many kids in this town that they are able to keep this monkey amused for hours.
Swinging monkey.
One person does not have enough energy to keep a monkey entertained – these animals are highly intelligent and inquisitive and will get into anything within their reach. They just love to tear stuff up. It would take an enormous amount of patience to raise a monkey in a typical western home.
I advise strongly against even entertaining the thought! We live right on the edge of the jungle so at least it is an environment the monkey is used to, but it is a challenge for us as well.
Some of the local kids are aggressive to each other and also to the monkey, so I don’t know how that is going to work out. This female monkey defiantly prefers to be around men and takes a hostile stance when some women come by.
I watch the monkey at night rather than tv and made a few observations. The vocal range of these animals is phenomenal. They have incredible personalities – the kids even know when Chunks wants food, to be left alone, or is getting hostile and ready to pull their hair.
This monkey bounces up and down when trying to be aggressive, make high pitch sounds if you are eating a food that they really like – (apples – manga), ansd a completely different set of sounds if a person that they really like is walking past.
Thanks for any tips or information you can give me :) I am going to try to periodically update this page so you can see how things are going.
Raising a monkey as a pet
Monkey from Palawan
Monkey from Sabang Palawan
Monkey at Sabang resort
Philippine Monkey
Palawan Monkey
related story Phalanger orientalis (timor cuscus)
http://www.dutchpickle.com/east-timor/oecussi/kus-kus.html
Moi Moi
Moi Moi eating a slice of cucumber
sunset
Picture from back porcht behind my place at sunset in the hills …something peaceful about being up there!
Climbing Mount Apo
General Santos
Growing Orchids
Judy's Resto Bar
Logging with Motorcycles
Mount Mayon
Balabac Island
Biri Island
Calbiga Cave
Capul Island
Mangrove Swamp Palawan
Mikes's Resort
hi dp, brilliant mate. so we have a third for drinking at the jungle bar hehehe. o sorry u gone tea total now mate. well done. love the monkey. it looks like the same breed as johns who lives at billyboy up the road towards the cococola plant. she looks a beauty. i told melody that she already has a monkey ( me) she agreed. see u in few weeks, cant wait to get home. this cold weather is killing me.
keep up the great stories mate
Hi Dave,
It will be good to have you back here again. Getting boring!
dp
wow, the monkey is very cute…
soon my monkey will be home also hehehe…
best wishes!
Wow DP you never fail to amaze me, always something new….
have had no good connection for some time so unable to log in. I am sure as hell looking forward to seeing this little fellow, maybe he would be happier running about in a large run and cage rather than be tied around the waist.
Problem is if he is domesticated to long he will never make it ourside, guess you must decide soon what you do with her.
We will catch up soon, until then relax and stop spending all that money.
Hey DP, I’ve really enjoyed reading your site for the last couple of hours. I am cano but I was born and lived in the PI for 18 years, mostly Cotobato Province (Midsayap). I’d love to go back to visit but haven’t gotten closer than Davao.
Anyway, we raised a number of monkeys through the years. They do tend to get attached to one person as they age, and everyone we had started biting and getting mean at about two. At that point we didn’t get to play with them as much, and when they escaped they sure could cause a lot of damage. When my sister’s monkey chewed up all the wires to the generator she became supper when nobody could catch her. My poor sister never knew what she ate that night until later in life. My favorite monkey literally fell out of a tree dead of fright when they chased it trying to catch it while I was away.
We also learned not to keep the monkeys close to other animals. They’d pull baby chicks, rabbits, and anything they could get their hands on right through chicken coop wire. (I was raised on an experimental farm for a local college.) Do be careful of feeding them any fruit that might have even a little pesticide on it because that kills them. They sure are fun though and so intelligent.
Do you know of anyone who rents a car in Cebu that can be taken to Leyte or any contacts fro a rental vehicle in Palawan? I live in the US but my family is in Bicol. I have a surplus van there that my other half wrecked last week coming back from church. Her learner’s permit was up so it cost her P1500 to the police and P2000 for trike damage to get the van home. I get to see the damage when I arrive next week, but it sounds like I won’t have a vehicle this month to travel with. I want to go to Port Barton, Cebu, and posssibly back to Leyte. I do have a PI license.
Have you heard of a resort called Coconut Island off of Port Barton? I’ve tried to get there several times but storms and closed roads have kept me back. Coco Loco Island off the coast north of PP is a real simple and nice alternative to Sabang when the roads are bad. They also have great food. Stay in the old simply cottages to the left I there’s any amount of wind, because it really howls out there.
i saw a show on t.v. about monkey owners, most were women filling their maternal needs. here in the u.s. they solve the monkey biting problems by having teeth taken out.
Please find a way to reintroduce the monkey to the wild, or get her a monkey friend. It is so cruel to keep a solitary monkey, and lead to mental illness (and possibly violent behavior to humans, check the web for reports). Please also give her a more natural environment to play in, at the very least, some trees, an enclosure with green things, though it breaks my heart to think of her living alone at any rate, under any circumstances.
If you start to think of how much dna we have in common with “lower level” primates, you may begin to understand how clannish monkeys are and how depriving them of touch, and the company of others like them, does damage and is cruelty.
Please have a heart, make a better life for this monkey.
Hello eilenn,
Thanks for your comment. Chunky Monkey gets a lot of human company as she is kind of like the communal village pet up there in the mountains in the Philippines. There is a large stand of bamboo behind the house that the monkey seems to enjoy. Many kids play with that monkey everyday and they develop friendships. Not as good as in the jungle probably but she seems to enjoy herself most of the time.
I don’t spend much time up there now days but when I call, the monkey seems to recognize my voice on the cell phone and makes sounds in return. It is rather comical. This monkey definitely recognizes individual people and the likes and dislikes seem to be the same.
I am not really sure how this will work out but it is kind of out of my control for now. You are right that these monkeys like companionship but she seems to like being around people. Occasionally she gets off her leash but seems to like to stay around.
dp
Amazing! I am planning to have a pet monkey soon. Thanks for sharing your observations and thoughts. How is she doing now?
Hello dwight,
Having monkeys in captivity is probably not the best idea. This one stays behind the house under a stand of tall bamboo and seems to be ok but would probably be better off in the wild.
It was kind of a fluke how this monkey came onto the scene. A local farmer was going to bring it to town to sell after raising it the first 6 months. He left her at the house of my girlfriend instead. She seems to be doing well but wild animals are best off in the wild I think.
cheers
dp
Hey dp,
i might be in a similar situation like you,
i bought a little baby monkey 2 weeks ago by a farmer in port barton. his mother died in a barb wire fence and the little monkey still clinged to his mother and was taked away from her. so i was asked if i wanted to buy this monkey for 700 peso. I didn’t think long about it, I always wanted a monkey, and fathered him happily. He’s really attached to my person and i can’t really go anywhere without him, he would always cling to me or another person, so we even decided that we don’t need a leash. Everything’s fine until a few days ago I met a ranger, who told me it’s illegal to raise a monkey and who wanted to take him away from me to put him in a santuary and release him into the wild later.
I refused. I won’t give my monkey away so easily. He’s having a good life with us and I can’t just give him away. So, I’ve been searching the web the last days if it’s legal to keep a pet monkey and if I need a license for him or not. I know many people here have pet monkeys, but that ranger keeps me worried. I’m just wondering if you know anything about the legal situation of keeping a pet monkey.
greetings
philipp
Hello Philipp,
I really do not know the legalities about keeping wild animals in captivity. If your monkey is not on a leash I suppose that he is technically free to go as he pleases and is still sort of wild.
Monkeys likely do better when they are in a troop with other monkeys for social reasons. As you mention there are quite a few monkeys kept as pets in the Philippines but they are better off in the wild in most cases. If your monkey is enjoying it at your place and is running free there might not be any reason to change things. I have heard that they can get to be a nuisance because they feel free to take anything out of your house whenever they want.
Please keep us updated about the situation – thanks in advance
dp
hi!
i too have a pet monkey with me for about 5 years now. her name is trixia. we have the same observations. girl monkey tend to hate women woth long hair and probably if she thinks beautier than she is.
she also hates being bullied.
but right now, im experimenting some ways how to discipline her.
i’m teaching her not to get food that is not given to her even if the food is right in front of her.
i’m teaching her not to leave the place where i put her.
i’m teaching her not to touch anything that does not belong to her so i can leave her in my room unattended.
i am still at the early stage of training. i hope it works.
Hey dp,
update about my monkey situation:
after almost endless emailing and telephoning with the PCSD I finally managed to get my monkey registered which they said, is sort of an exception.
At least, it’s not illegal now and nobody is able to take him away now.
I asked other people who own a monkey if they registered, but nobody else did which seems to be normal.
However, I need to travel around by times and need to take him along with me, and I don’t want to go through all this again and paying these 350 pesos for the registration just seemed fair enough.
About his behaviour: he is definitely growing up now and so makulit by times, especially likes to throw things on the floor, so it’s good to keep anything breakable out of his reach.
About his hygiene: he is wearing a sanitary napkin which suits him perfectly as a diaper, washing him and changing his diaper though is still something he doesn’t really like, but who does? using warm water though is much better than cold.
also, he likes men much more than women, in the beginning he is almost always scared of women, but attracted to men, maybe he’s bakla, but once he’s used to the woman, it’s better, but still rather prefers the company of a man in a scary situation, e. g. a dog.
About other monkeys: I think he is scared of other monkeys. There is another monkey in town, but he didn’t want to get close to him, also I heard that because he is so domesticized now, other monkeys would kill him. And yes, he is definitely spoiled now, having a good life, I don’t know if he would survive in the jungle now, that’s why I also really need to keep him.
All in all, it’s not easy by times to keep him, he’s like a little baby who can climb up everywhere and throw down everything, but on the other side, he is extremely funny, especially in his facial expressions and needs and gives so much love, that he is definitely a family member.
Everything is different, when you have a monkey :)
Greetings,
Philipp
Hello Philipp,
Thank you for the story about your monkey :)
interesting and funny – good that you got the registration
dp
thanks DP for this site…. i have a pet monkey too, that’s why i found your site. i also want to register my pet monkey. i want to ask philipp if where and how did he registered his pet monkey. hope he can reply… thank you!
by the way i’m from Iloilo City.
Hello Lee
I am not sure how to go about registering animals such as monkeys. I was kind of wondering about all those captive tarsiars that are kept for the tourists on Bohol Island 2. They also have snakes (pythons), lemurs and lots of unusual birds on display.
good question !
dp
Hi,
I’m the lucky guardian of two longtails. I’ve been trying to find a vet to do herpes B testing for me, but nobody here seems to want to bother with it. Any suggestions? Certification and rabies was easy, but everyone seems a bit bobo with regards to the herpes B.
Joe
Hello Joe,
Good luck with your pets ! I do not have and medical or veterinarian advice that I can offer about this. As far as I know this monkey lives n the stand of bamboo behind the house but I do not know about the current situation because I am out of the country at this time.
Moi Moi is usually on a leash but sometimes runs free – the monkey seems to enjoy being around people most of the time. They seem to have amazing memories and personalities and seem to bond well with some people and not with others.
Monkeys can become biters as they get older so pay close attention to what is going on. This one lives 17 kilometers off the road system high up in the mountains and is well known by all the kids. In this area the locals pretty well know how to act around animals and there has been no problems yet. Frankly they will have to solve their own problems as they come up. It is in a wild area – there are not even any police here as the army takes care of any problems.
In a sad case – one of our neighbor boys got bit on the foot by a cobra. He made it home with his sack of camote and died there about 45 minutes later at the age of 14. very sad but nothing anyone could do. It is a harsh life up there in the wilds
dp
Hi Philipp,
our pet monkey, we named him KIKO, who is very sweet, has the very same situation and character from yours. Im so much interested on how you registered your pet. Because i would also like to legalized our Kiko. We live now in the City. Kiko, by the way is already 1yr and 7mos. and just a week ago, he bit a 10 year old boy in the province who bullied him (Kiko has been in the care of my daughter’s boyfriend in Bataan for 2months now) and the carer was forced to pay for the 3 “anti-rabbies shot” which amounted to 1800pesos each shot.
Our Kiko hates that he’s being bullied, who wants to be by the way? so, please share me the procedure of registering our Kiko.
Thanks in advance.
arlene
Hello arlene,
I do not know the cost of registering the pet – sorry. Moi Moi just hangs out in the bamboo behind my place.
I believe , however , that you will always be liable for any damages your pet does regardless of whether it is registered or not. Monkeys are known to do a bit of biting sometimes. They also seem to remember who they like and who does not treat them well. Mine even recognizes my voice on the cell phone and gets excited to see me because I usually bring a few fruits and other stuff that she likes to eat!
dp
ps – Don’t forget to keep a water bowl full for your pet even if they tip it over often.
i just bought a monkey last saturday and it bonded with my mom cant carry it or hug it its just keeps on biting me when i try to carry it. she is a female 1 yr old and seems i dont know what to do with it can it ever be good to me
Hello JIR
Monkeys often are not ideal pets because they are meant to live in the wild in social groups of other monkeys. I have noticed that monkeys do pick favorites as far as human friends they choose to be friends with and they also have long memories. It is also best to let them come to you rather than push yourself upon them.
In general it is best not to keep a monkey as a pet and it is difficult to return one to the wild because they are not part of the social group that you might try to get them to bond with. They can actually be attacked by the group rather than welcomed into the troop.
good luck
dp
Your ignorance is really discouraging! I cannot believe people would even consider having pet monkeys. I study primates in the wild and I know that they are social creatures, like humans, and they need to be in groups with others of their own species. How would you like being raised in a group of gorillas tied to a chain? Your monkey’s mother was probably killed for bushmeat before the baby was torn of its mother’s dead body and sold to you.
With humans, nonhuman primates often turn violent (people get their faces bitten off with no prior warning) and they get very depressed in captivity. Your monkey would have a happier life in a sanctuary. There is no use returning him/her to the wild because it probably doesn’t know how to behave with others of its own kind.
Good luck. I am very sad for the monkey and wish him/her the least amount of emotional distress and its life.
Hello Julia – as mentioned in the story the monkey was taken care of by a neighbor in this village in the mountains for 5 months. The farmer was getting ready to take it to the city to sell so my girlfriend bought it instead, to keep in the mountains. I never really thought it would be a good idea to keep wild animals as pets but at least this one gets to run around in the bamboo behind the house in the mountains from time to time. Moi Moi does provide hours of entertainment but would have been better off in the wild as you say. I rarely get up to the mountains these days but Moi Moi gets excited when she hears my voice on the cell phone. Monkeys can be quite clever and have long memories. 2 and 1/2 years now and the pineapple farmers bring many treats. She still seems rather fond of me and the special K breakfast cereal I bring he he.
PS I have seem the mountain gorillas in Africa (Rwanda – Zaire now called DRC – truley amazing) and heaps of baboons in many other parts of Afica as well (South Africa and Botswana) and many other monkeys in Indonesia, Loas, Thailand and Timor. I often encountered Philippine macaque monkeys on varies islands in the Philippines – some in troops or small groups and others as pets.
I also find the Tarsiers of the Philippines and Sulawesi to be fascinating. There are still pockets of these tarsiers living up in the mountains in this area in Leyte as well. It is quite remote and rugged country. (where Moi Moi is from)
Have you ever been to the Orangutan sanctuaries in Malaysia? Sabah, Borneo in particular?
Good luck with your studies – what is your specialty?
dp
ps check out this story Phalanger orientalis (timor cuscus)
http://www.dutchpickle.com/east-timor/oecussi/kus-kus.html