Three rhesus monkeys on the loose reportedly awaiting publishing contract.
Given the small number of monkeys that escaped, it might take somewhat longer for the story of their adventures while on the run to be completed.
According to an article in yesterday’s New York Times, three rhesus monkeys are still on the loose after they escaped when a truck carrying 21 monkeys overturned on a highway in Mississippi.
The driver, who reportedly fell asleep, told sheriff’s deputies that the monkeys were infected with Covid-19, hepatitis C, and herpes. Before the deputies could ascertain that this was not true, they had shot and killed five of them.
How the driver got the mistaken idea that they were infected is not clear from the report, although there might be some connection with the fact that he fell asleep while driving (a serious problem for truck drivers as we know.)
I don’t often agree with PETA, but in this case their outrage at the situation is certainly understandable. They said:
“PETA calls on authorities to demand full necropsies and veterinary records for the monkeys killed in the crash in Mississippi and to make the results public, so communities for once will know the truth about the risks of sending terrified animals to crisscross U.S. highways in secret shipments,” said Lisa Jones-Engel, a senior science adviser for primate campaigns with PETA.”
The three monkeys on the loose have still not been caught as I write, but Sheriff Randy Johnson of the Jasper County, Miss. sheriff’s department told the Times that specialists from Tulane University—which had transported the monkeys to a unreported destination—had set up food traps to try to catch them.
My own hunch is that they will not return unless offered a book contract to relate their adventures while on the run, which can be expected to be completed at some indeterminate time in the future.
*******************************************************************************************************
To share this post, or to share “Words for the Wise,” please click on these links.