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You Can End the “Pet” Primate Trade

On Tuesday afternoon, February 24, the United States House of Representatives passed the Captive Primate Safety Act (H.R. 80) by an overwhelming vote of 323-95. This legislation, championed by Born Free USA, prohibits the import, export, and interstate commerce in nonhuman primates if they are going to be kept as “pets.” Well done to all of you who wrote to Congress about this important issue!

The swift House action comes in the wake of the Travis the chimpanzee tragedy in Connecticut, where a pet chimpanzee attacked a 55-year-old woman and was shot by police as a result. Now, you can help us ensure swift action in the US Senate so the bill becomes the law of the land this year.

Keeping primates as pets involves enormous suffering and threats to human safety. Chimpanzees, macaques, baboons, and other species may have their teeth or fingernails removed to make them seem less dangerous. We can no longer allow animals to be mutilated in the name of companionship. Furthermore, nonhuman primates can carry harmful diseases such as Ebola, tuberculosis, and herpes-B. The bottom line is this: Wildlife belongs in the wild.

Please take one minute to send a letter to your United States Senators urging them to pass S. 462, the Captive Primate Safety Act, right away.

If you’re interested in more information about the Travis incident and what we’re doing about it, check out these recent articles in the Stamford Advocate and neighboring Journal News. And feel free to contact Born Free USA’s senior vice President in Washington DC, Adam Roberts, for updates on movement of the legislation

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I am extremely encouraged that the House of Representatives just passed H.R. 80, the Captive Primate Safety Act, to end the trade in nonhuman primates if they are to be kept as pets. I hope you will do everything in your power to make sure that the Senate passes its version, S. 462, right away.

I was horrified by the recent chimpanzee attack in Connecticut that left a 55-year-old woman in critical condition. We must do all we can to prevent tragedies such as this from ever happening again.

The Captive Primate Safety act is commonsense legislation, narrowly-crafted to address the trade in nonhuman primates as pets. These wild animals are potentially aggressive and dangerous and across the country both children and adults have been bitten by a variety of primate species.

Nonhuman primates require special care, housing, diet, and maintenance that the average person cannot provide. Many of these animals are euthanized, abandoned, or doomed to live in deplorable conditions.

Furthermore, nonhuman primates can carry potentially dangerous diseases such as yellow fever, monkey pox, Ebola and Marburg virus, tuberculosis, herpes-b, and Simian Immunodeficiency Virus (SIV), the primate form of HIV. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) asserts that the increase in macaque monkeys in the pet trade may constitute an emerging infectious disease threat in the United States.

I hope you will do everything you can to ensure that the clear policy of the United States Senate is that nonhuman primates are not "pets." Please pass S. 462 without delay.

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