North Texas influencer wants her pet monkey back, but advocates have concerns
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Brandi Botello says the monkey is like her son, but an animal sanctuary alleges that she didn't treat him well. Screenshot: CBS11
A spider monkey is caught in a tussle between his owner and wildlife advocates.
Why it matters: The case has revived the debate over whether humans should be allowed to keep primates as pets.
The big picture: Texas allows residents to own many types of exotic animals, but the owner must have a permit.
- Irving residents aren't allowed to own any primates, Irving police tell Axios.
Catch up fast: Social media influencer Brandi Botello says Dallas police confiscated her Jorgie Boy this month after a car they were riding in was involved in a crash. Botello told NBC5 that she was intoxicated and had passed out in a passenger seat holding Jorgie Boy.
- She climbed into the driver's seat after the wreck and was arrested for DWI, she said.
- Dallas police handed the 2½-year-old spider monkey to Irving Animal Services, because Botello is listed as a resident in that city.
- Botello wants her monkey back, but an animal sanctuary that's now caring for him told the DMN he has severe health issues and won't be returned to her.
The intrigue: Botello's Instagram has photos and videos of Jorgie Boy wearing Cowboys clothes, wearing shorts and a chain, posing in a pajama set and going out with her around Dallas.
- An Instagram account for the monkey has over 5,000 followers.
- "I love him. I dress him up every day. I change his diapers, I shower him. … He's more than just a monkey to me; he's like my child," Botello told NBC5.
Yes, but: Funky Monkey Ranch, the Tarrant County sanctuary caring for the monkey, says he's malnourished and has severe metabolic bone disease. His health challenges include enlarged joints and a misaligned face and jaw.
- "He looks completely different than what a healthy spider monkey looks like," Funky Monkey Ranch owner Dwan Johns said in a Facebook video.
- She told the DMN that the sanctuary is giving Jorgie Boy baby formula, supplements and sun therapy, which will be followed by physical therapy.
- "Primates are not pets. People think monkeys are fun and cute, and they treat them like accessories," Johns told the newspaper.
What's next: Irving's Animal Services officers will need to do a "thorough investigation" before determining next steps, a police spokesperson tells Axios. Jorgie Boy will continue to live at the sanctuary until the investigation is completed.
- Botello said she will "keep trying my hardest" to get him back. "I'm devastated. I can't eat, I can't sleep, I can't sit still," she wrote on a GoFundMe page.