Marshmallow monkey

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, the US-based animal rights group, is no stranger to controversy and has been accused of double standards in the past. Now it faces accusations of “cultural racism” after its open call to ban all Thai coconut products because some of the coconuts may have been harvested by monkeys . In a statement issued this morning… “PETA hopes that at today’s meeting, Thai Minister of Commerce Jurin Laksanawisit and the coconut industry will stop lying to the public and acknowledge the industry’s exploitation of monkeys. Our documentation is clear and unequivocal: Monkeys are kept chained, caged, and isolated for life simply because the industry won’t expend funds to mechanise coconut picking as other countries have done. “These animals, some of whom were seized from their natural habitat as babies, cannot play or be with their families: They are denied freedom and any semblance of a natural life, and the industry’s training methods are harsh ... » Learn More about Government defends “monkey business” after PETA call for boycott on Thai coconut products

Since March, the city of Lopburi has battled monkey riots , as the Covid-19 pandemic dried up tourism, and thus, the primates’ main food source. Locals, in an effort to appease beasts, began feeding them, largely a diet of sugary junk food , with predictable results. Police, armed with slingshots, say there’s little they can do to stop the sex-crazed macaques who’ve overrun the city. Now wildlife experts say the monkeys are literally eating themselves to death. Residents in the tourist town are afraid to leave their homes due to the vicious creatures, who have set up headquarters in an abandoned cinema and developed a taste for junk food. Mirror Online reported in June that around 6,000 monkeys were terrorising locals, attacking anyone who stood in their way. Some residents first thought the best way of calming the overzealous monkeys was to give them sweets and fast food, but this has just made the situation worse. Their new sugary diet has made hyperactive and made ... » Learn More about Lopburi police powerless to stop sex-crazed, junk food-addicted monkey gangs

Thai wildlife authorities seized an extremely fat macaque monkey, known as Godzilla, and have now placed the 3 year old monkey on a strict diet. Godzilla’s owner is a meatball vendor in Bangkok’s Min Buri district. Reports say Godzilla was often tied to the market stall, snacking on treats from passersby. Weighing 20 kilograms, Godzilla became somewhat of a local attraction. A local, concerned about the monkey’s health, made a complaint with the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation. Many have compared Godzilla to another obsese monkey called Uncle Fatty who died. Wildlife officials say macaque monkeys are classified under Thai law as a protected animal, giving them authority to investigate and seize Godzilla from his owner. A recent report from the department says the monkey has lost weight and is now down to 17 kilograms. Godzilla is now adjusting to a nutritious diet of bananas, cabbage, lentils, pumpkin, sunflower seeds and insect protein ... » Learn More about Bangkok market vendor’s obese monkey seized by wildlife authorities

It’s not only humans being affected by the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak ; monkeys in the southern province of Songkhla, usually dependent on food from tourists, are facing a shortage. Tourists from Singapore and Malaysia, normally abundant in Songkhla, are cancelling tours amid worries over the outbreak, resulting in far less daily food for the monkeys there. Local fruit vendors, taking pity on the starving critters, have begun giving them watermelon and tomatoes. Thai tourists tend to give them corn. “Health is quite a sensitive topic, especially when we are facing the global spread of a deadly disease, which has a psychological impact on potential tourism.” According to Asia One , the locals have asked the Songkhla municipality to take care of the monkeys, as they are one of the most popular tourist attractions generating income for the province. Thai tourism businesses are taking a beating from the effects of the virus. The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) ... » Learn More about No monkeying around: coronavirus fears mean monkeys in the South are going hungry

A reporter who visited the Bangkok home of an obese monkey before it was removed by The Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, is being treated in hospital after being bitten by the macaque. “Godzilla” found fame overnight after he was removed from his owner due to concerns about his weight. Godzilla had been living at a market in the Minburi district of the capital and weighs more than 20 kilograms as a result of passers-by feeding him a diet of junk food. The average weight of a fully-grown macaque is 10 kilograms. DNP officials, concerned that the monkey’s obesity could be life-threatening, decided to seize him from his owner on Thursday. The day before he was removed, a news reporter visited his home on assignment. Now medical staff at Paolo Hospital Phaholyothin say they’re worried about the condition of PPTV reporter, Natcha Norphong. It’s understood that on arrival at the home of the monkey’s owner, Natcha was initially reluctant to touch the ... » Learn More about Reporter hospitalised with mystery illness after being bitten by monkey

PHOTOS: Phuket Hotnews On December 10, a report emerged that a tourist had been bitten by a monkey on the popular To Sae Hill viewpoint in Phuket Town. The video shared on social media shows that the man was bleeding a lot from his arm before another man helped attend to the wound to stop the blood. A volunteer who takes care of monkeys on the hill said that this is not the first time that the local monkeys had attacked people, especially tourists because the tourists wither don’t know, or follow the warnings and suggestions on the signs installed on many spots on the hill in four languages; Thai, English, Chinese and Russian. The volunteer also mentioned that people shouldn’t feed the monkeys with their hand directly but place the food on the ground for the monkeys to pick up. Also, people shouldn’t touch the monkeys because they can get scared and frightened, which might lead to an attack. A member of the To Sae hiking club, Krich Thepbamrung, who witnessed the incident, ... » Learn More about Russian tourist bitten by a monkey on To Sae Hill, Phuket town

THALANG: Phuket police have charged a 62-year-old man in connection with the poaching and killing of protected wildlife on Toh Sae Mountain. Ging Phollom, from Tambon Sri Soonthorn, Amphur Thalang, was arrested following a tip-off by members of the Toh Sae Mountain Walkers’ Club. He was found in possession of a monkey corpse, a live monitor lizard and a live turtle. Police said Ging was also carrying a knife. Pol Capt Sombat Thanawut, chief of patrol, Phuket Town police, said he received information from the Toh Sae Mountain Walker Club on December 30 that three people were attempting to capture monkeys in the area. The information led to the arrest of Ging. Ging faces a maximum penalty of four years’ jail and a 40,000 baht fine. The 150 members of the Toh Sae Mountain Walkers Club have become the unofficial guardians of about 300 monkeys who live on Toh Sae, regularly feeding them and keeping an eye out for poachers. Keep in contact with Thaiger by following our Facebook page . ... » Learn More about Poacher Pays For Monkey Business

PETCHABOON: When the abbot of a temple in Tambon Taboh preaches about the need for love and social harmony, he has a good example to point to right on the temple grounds: an orphaned monkey and a crippled dog who grew up together and have become loyal, inseparable friends. Phrakhru Arun Pacharakij, Abbot of Pa Reirai Buddhist Temple in Petchaboon’s Muang District, said the female monkey, named Somsri, is a one-year-old Crab-eating Macaque. She was brought to the temple as a newborn by villagers who discovered her alone in the jungle after her mother had been shot. “When Somsri was brought here she was completely helpless. We bottle-fed her a mix of sweetened condensed milk with warm water,” the Abbot said. About the same time, the Abbot’s mother brought to the temple another animal worthy of considerable pity: a newborn pup that could not use his back legs. Named Book, the light-colored pup was raised together with the monkey. Now, about a year later, the pair do everything together. ... » Learn More about Monkey’s best friend

BANGKOK – In response to leading supermarkets in the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States of America (USA) removing Thai coconut products from their shelves amid allegations that mistreated monkeys were being used to pick coconuts in Thailand, the Deputy Prime Minister and Commerce Minister, Jurin Laksanawisit, insisted that the country’s industrial sector does not use monkeys to harvest coconuts. Mr. Jurin said manufacturers of Thai coconut products will be invited to a meeting tomorrow (July 8) to discuss ways to clarify the situation to foreign traders. In addition, foreign ambassadors to Thailand, who have questions about this issue, will be invited to visit the actual farms. Mr. Jurin said the issue had already been clarified in the past. Images and video clips of monkeys picking coconuts up tall trees, are only a reflection of Thai culture to promote tourism. These days, monkeys aren’t used to harvest coconuts on an industrial scale. In 2020, Thailand produced 788,000 ... » Learn More about Thailand continues to deny claims that monkeys are abused or involved in industrial scale coconut harvesting

When news broke last week that John Woo was joining forces with the late, great Stan Lee, you could practically hear the internet salivating. The director behind such Hong Kong cinema classics as Hard Boiled and Face/Off taking on a live-action version of Monkey Master, an unreleased 2016 comic series co-written by the Marvel supremo – the very thought of it is a hugely exciting prospect for any fan of the superhero genre. Woo, who turns 75 in September, is earmarked to produce the project, alongside – among others – Lee’s co-writer on the series, Sharad Devarajan. There’s no word yet on whether Woo will return to the director’s chair too, though he would be a prime candidate to take the job. His last effort was 2017’s breathless contemporary thriller Manhunt ; since then, he’s been quiet – both as producer and director. The source material loosely deals with the Chinese legend of the Monkey King, a mythic figure featured in the 16th-century classic Chinese novel Journey to the ... » Learn More about John Woo takes first stab at superhero genre with Stan Lee’s Monkey Master