Monkeys are fascinating animals with incredible abilities, making them popular pets. However, they may carry dangerous diseases that can be transmitted to people, such as herpes virus and hepatitis viruses and protozoa like Campylobacter and Entamoeba.
Thousands of monkeys are hosted as companions in people’s homes across the United States. They can seem harmless as babies, but they can become aggressive as they reach sexual maturity and try to assert dominance over their humans. They may also harbor deadly herpes B, tuberculosis and other bacteria, which can be passed to people through bites and scratches.
Most monkeys live in the tropical rainforests of Asia, Africa and Central and South America or on savannas. Some, such as geladas and Japanese macaques, live in mountains or rocky hillsides. They all require a large, secure enclosure, and they must have plenty of opportunities to exercise, especially outside in their natural habitats.
They eat a variety of fruits, nuts, seeds, leaves, flowers and insects. Some species, such as colobus monkeys and langurs have chambered stomachs that allow them to ferment and digest the leaves they eat. In addition, some Old World monkeys eat meat.
All monkeys are social animals that live in troops with several females and their young and either one male (hamadryas baboons, mandrills, most guenons and savannah baboons) or several (all other species). They have complex relationships within their troop and will fight to protect their territory from other males.