Baby monkey is government property, says Madras High Court

Stating that a baby monkey, taken care of in captivity for 10 long months by a veterinarian, must be considered a property of the government under the provisions of the Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972, the Madras High Court on Thursday (November 14, 2024) refused to grant custody of the animal to the veterinarian.

Stating that a baby monkey, taken care of in captivity for 10 long months by a veterinarian, must be considered a property of the government under the provisions of the Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972, the Madras High Court on Thursday (November 14, 2024) refused to grant custody of the animal to the veterinarian.

Justice C.V. Karthikeyan dismissed a writ petition filed by Coimbatore-based veterinary surgeon V. Vallaiappan and allowed the monkey, which had suffered multiple dog bites in December 2023, to be treated at Arignar Anna Anna Zoological Park (AAZP) at Vandalur in Chennai, which has state-of-the-art facilities.

The judge recorded the submissions of Special Government Pleader (Forests) T. Seenivasan that though the veterinarian had custody of the monkey since December 4, 2023, it was still found to be suffering from paralysis of hind limbs and abrasion wounds when it was received by the Forest Department officials on October 26, 2024.

A radiography of the vertebra revealed old fracture of three coccygeal vertebrae and right distal tibia, and hemaetology revealed moderate level of anaemia. Therefore, a treatment protocol with daily dressing of wounds with collagen and topical antibiotics was carried out for the baby monkey twice a day, the SGP said.

He said the monkey was also made to wear infant diapers to avoid soiling and staining of body with excreta, and long acting parenteral antibiotics were administered once in three days. “Now, the monkey is eating well and has put on around 100 g of weight after it had come to the Vandalur zoo,” the law officer told the court.

He stated that the baby monkey was also being made to undergo physiotherapy through dry warm formentation and passive range of motion exercise twice a day, and that an expert committee headed by the Deputy Director of AAZP had been constituted to continuously monitor the health of the monkey.

It was also brought to the notice of the court that the monkey had begun to socialise with the animal keepers and hospital staff at AAZP without any fear, distress, or anxiety, and that it was moving actively around the treatment cell and cooperating with the staff for dressing and changing diapers.