THE wildlife charity Born Free is calling for an investigation into the shooting of a Barbary macaque monkey at Edinburgh Zoo.
The animal was shot last Tuesday after it escaped from a cage in the quarantine area of the zoo and into the main public area.
The zoo was evacuated, and attempts were made to tranquillise the monkey, which was in quarantine to check for rabies.
When these failed, the animal was shot to avoid the possibility of it spreading a virus to other creatures at the zoo.
Born Free is now asking for an official investigation to determine how the animal escaped from the secure quarantine area. It also wants more details as to why the animal could not be tranquillised and why lethal force was deemed necessary. Will Travers, chief executive officer of the foundation, said: "The monkey was reportedly a recent arrival from Germany and was in quarantine at Edinburgh Zoo.
"One might expect that quarantine is the most secure and strictly monitored area of any zoo, and yet, at Edinburgh, a monkey managed to escape – how was this possible?"
Following the incident the zoo released a statement which said: "We informed the Scottish Executive Environment and Rural Affairs Department and Lothian and Borders Police. Both organisations were content that the situation was handled correctly."
The full article contains 224 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
