Learn to live with monkeys

After reading yet another letter in the ZO (Monday, 28 April) of a resident complaining about Vervet monkeys, I would like to share my own experience with the little fellows.

I’m not an expert on monkeys, but seeing that I kept a pair as pets for two years, I know more than the average person whose knowledge stems from what he observes through the window while watching the Food Channel.

Monkeydoo and Pixidoo were their names and I got them two months apart when they were only a few days old.

They were given to me by a man in the rural area where I stayed, who hunted with dogs.

First I took them to an office of Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, but was met with a ‘Don’t make your problem ours’ attitude.

The head office in Pietermaritzburg was of no help either.

They refused to give me permits, but also could not tell me what to do with the monkeys.

Phone calls to so called monkey rehabilitation centres in Durban and the South Coast was also a waste of time.

So, I was stuck with them.

Ride on the boerboel

They were babies and needed a lot of attention.

I had to improvise slings in order to hang them over my shoulder because I became the mother which they lost.

They depended on me for everything and went into a terrible panic if I was more than an arm’s length away.

It was difficult to have a two monkeys hanging onto my shirt and still trying to work at the same time.

Yes, I had to take them to work and even into shops as they were totally dependent on me every minute of the day.

After school, my son took over and bottle-fed them their cat’s milk formula and purity.

As they grew bigger, they became less dependent on us and moved around in the house and onto the stoep.

Our Boerboel and cat accepted them as part of the family and often they could be found lounging on the dog’s massive back or tormenting the cat on the bed.

Their lives revolved around two things only; eating and playing.

Soon latches had to be fixed to cupboards and even the fridge because they showed great resourcefulness when hungry – and they were always hungry.

By looking at what humans do, they even learned to open Coke bottles, but always neglected to close them, which resulted in a lot clean-up work.

Zululand is a wonderful place

During the time we kept them, we came to love and understand monkeys, but the responsibility it entailed was enormous.

Our whole lives revolved around them and I will never recommend keeping monkeys.

When we first got the babies we were told by conservationist that the best is to kill them.

And as cruel as it sounded, it was about the only decent advice I got from them because to rehabilitate them is close to impossible.

They belong in the wild.

We eventually found a safe sanctuary for them in Limpopo and it was a sad day to see them go.

Now, years later my son and I still talk of them regularly and we both agree that we were privileged to have had them.

Coming back to the people who complain about the monkeys:

I, of all people know, how destructive they can get if they get into a food cupboard, but accept you live in an area where they occur and learn to live with it.

It’s a privilege to have them in our gardens which few people in other parts of the country have.

Zululand is a wonderful place to live in; where else can you sit outside watching the antics of monkeys and listen to the cries of fish eagles?

It will be a sad day when the only monkeys our children see are the ones on cartoon network.

And that day is coming!

My neighbour leaves his gated door open all day and never do they enter his house because his Jack Russell keeps a constant eye on them.

So, if you really want to, there are many ways to live in peace with nature.

Selfish people

But then I suspect that the ones complaining the most are those who think they are superior beings and have the sole right to every inch of the planet.

And dare a monkey, or any other animal, trespass on their exclusive living space – out come the catty or the pellet gun…

You will perhaps be better off living in a skyscraper where nothing can reach your sterile environment.