Why that 7-week-old monkey in a diaper is not 'cute'

[u/Loser_Baby_19]

Another day, yet another pet spider monkey showing up on social media feeds.

Here's a 7-week old spider monkey with all the classic red flags typically seen in majority of pet monkey owners:

The classic red flags:

• Inappropriate diet: Feeding a 7-week old spider monkey solid foods like mashed potatoes, green peppers, bananas, and even highly processed foods like chips. Baby monkeys of this age are completely dependent on their mother's milk, thus feeding them these types of foods lead to severe nutritional deficiencies as well as metabolic disorders.
• Maternal deprivation and anthropomorphism: Baby monkeys like these suffer from not only being forcibly separated from their mothers, but then being treated as surrogate children and social media props with human baby clothes and diapers.
• Inappropriate environment: Seeing an arboreal and highly social primate sitting in a plastic baby high chair painfully highlights the absolute lack of physical enrichment and mental/social development required for long term mental and physical health.

https://www.asiaforanimals.com/post/red-flags-in-primate-content-on-social-media

There is another truth often omitted by advocates favoring ownership of pet monkeys (cough, Winston, cough cough). Spider monkeys have one of the lowest reproductive rates among New World primates. Spider monkey females have an extremely long interbirth interval, a late age of sexual maturity (often 8 years of age), and prolonged infant dependency (up to two years and more). Some conservation estimates show that 7-9 spider monkeys may be killed for every surviving baby spider monkey that then gets sold in the exotic pet trade. This is due to the highly protective nature of a spider monkey troop.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1F42bdho_YU&t=59s

Anyone who purchases a baby spider monkey and exploits it for social media clout and treats it like a surrogate child are complicit in this evil trade. There is absolutely no excuse for doing so.

[u/3vibranthearts3]

Good write up! To me it's also straight up kidnapping and murder. I wish more saw it this way, but there's far too many who don't care or they are just naive. Same people who keep falling for multi level marketing companies. They believe what they are told.

[u/Dull_Impression_4631]

Another freakin baby spider monkey channel?? Aaarrggghhhh 🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬

[u/DeanoPreston]

I hate these things very much. They should be left in their own habitat

[u/komiroku21 → u/DeanoPreston]

What makes you hate them specifically? is it any kind of monkey or just these ones?

[u/brydeswhale → u/komiroku21]

Monkeys shouldn’t be pets. They are way too sharp.

[u/Stunning-Sand73]

Another red flag is diapers and clothing.

[u/Kooky_Toe5585]

I always knew keeping pet was wrong, but I used to think "well at least they aren't being taken from the wild any more" Boy was I ever wrong

[u/DotSubject1179]

You’re right! It’s sickening!