Try being A Keeper at The Monkey Sanctuary Looe, we did!

• Jul 01, 2013
• Anne

During the open season The Monkey Sanctuary offers a Keeper for the Day Experience for those who have always wanted to know what it is like to be a primate Keeper.  Working closely with the experienced members of the Primate Welfare Team, the experience gives a great ‘behind the scenes’ insight into the keeper’s roles and responsibilities and how they become involved in important aspects of the monkeys’ lives.

My mentor for the day was Haley Dann and the first task was to get a pair of overalls and a pair of wellies very fetching they were too! We were then given an empty bucket, a bucket with soapy water and various tools to use.   Monkeys were then put into the outside enclosures while myself and Haley set about cleaning up the monkey droppings and getting rid of any old bits of food from the inside enclosures.  All surfaces had to be wiped down to make sure that everything is kept to a high standard.  We then reversed the process by cleaning the outside enclosures after the monkeys had been moved inside.

With that done fresh food was needed which we hid around the enclosures to make sure that the monkeys worked for their food and to keep things interesting for them.

The monkeys all have a different story but the one thing that they all have in common is that they have all been victims of abuse whether their pervious owners meant to or not.  Monkeys need the company of their own kind and the space to live and here at The Monkey Sanctuary at Looe they give the chance for these great characters’ to be what they should be!

Having spent the day on behalf of Crylla Valley Holiday Cottages seeing how valuable the work is in making sure these rescued monkeys can spend the rest of their lives living in comfort and without fear.  We decided to commit to a sponsorship deal and by choosing Billy the capuchin we hope to follow his progress over the coming year.