Was the monkey put down ie killed?

She posted pictures of the bite marks that look pretty horrific. I assume she signed a release, but, here in the US the spa might still be liable due to ignoring the monkey's predilection to bite. "Every dog gets one bite" would probably apply to "pet" monkeys. Nevertheless, you are assuming a certain amount of risk when you go into the jungle in another country. Interesting in terms of the legal issues but a really awful thing to have happened on vacation.

Wow, that really sucks. I'm not sure what kind of justice she expects the US embassy to be able to help her get. I think the only thing she can do is sue the resort in a Belizian court. The monkey should be killed because it is a danger to other people.

Ok, lemme get this straight. We take an animal out of it's natural habitat, make it a "pet" and expect it to behave according to "human" standards, are shocked when it acts like an animal, then kill it as punishment. Makes no bloody sense to me.

These are pictures of me at Maruba. When we were there about five years ago there was a howler who was a real pain and this spider who was the sweetest thing you could imagine. She cried and pouted when I tried to leave her. It was heartbreaking. I hope this wasn't the same monkey.
Peter

Ooooo la la...

Never trust someone who keeps animals in captivity, the monkey is a wild animal and can't be blamed.

TQ ,I trust you are not checking out da' monkey.....

Such a shame. We were at Maruba, and Poncho came up to me with his arms up, and wanted me to pick him up, which I did, and he gave me little kisses. This was four or five years ago, so maybe he's gotten old and cranky, or maybe he was upset over something. I'm so sorry your experience was so awful. We rode the horses, and my husband almost got thrown off, but fortunately managed to hang on. I am pretty experienced on horseback, so I didn't think anything of it until we got back to the lounge and he told me how upsetting it was. I guess Maruba needs to take a long look at how they are treating their patrons. Please don't use Maruba as a model for the rest of Belize. There are so many positive experiences there, this is not the norm..

Monkeys are indeed wild animals and unpredictable. There is no such thing as a pet monkey, just an immature one. Same applies to racoons. The really bad thing about this, assuming it's been reported fairly, is the attitude of Maruba.

Well said.

It's worth noting that many tourists visit places like Maruba Spa specifically to interact with interesting/different/exotic/wild animals. They are often seduced by pictures, like the ones posted above, into thinking that this interaction is safe, harmless fun.

Although what happened to this woman is horrific and Maruba's reaction deplorable, hopefully it serves as a warning of the possible outcome of these 'adventures'.

Tip of the day: Don't blame the crocs when you feed them and they bite your face off. Please don't post, "Never trust a croc", now that would be a crock!

SIN

Where do can you read about this aside from myspace.com, anyone know?

RMT,

You can read more about it at the website of one of my local television station.

http://www.wowt.com/news/headlines/5518476.html

Yes, she lives in the same town as me so it got quite a bit of play on the news around here. Everyone I know made sure they let me know about this before I went down in February. Of course, these are also the people who warn me to stay out of the ocean for fear of shark and ray attacks.

PLEASE GIVE ME A RECORD OF YOUR BELIZEAN SPIDER MONKEY'S IMMUNIZATION HISTORY!!!! please.....

will they want licenses for every monkey in the jungle?

i spent a couple hours recently in a cage with a spider monkey. the first hour was great, lots of fun playing and enjoying petting and goofing around. and the last hour was too as long as i didn't try to leave. soon as i would try to leave the monkey went ape shit and would bare its fangs. bit me a couple times on the face. when it bit me i decided i didn't really need to leave. when a monkey goes bonkers, go with the flow of the monkey . don't try to force your agenda. your agenda goes out the window or cage as the case may be.

settle down, back to friends, all is groovy if you let them have their way. kissy kissy rub rub. when they get even slightly bored with you, their new toy, get the heck out FAST.

but until that moment, let them have their way and be ready. don't go against the monkeys wishes or you will get torn up. i had two small scrapes on my face, one bled for awhile. but once he did that i quit trying to get out from under him. he had me super wrapped up in arms legs and tail. i had no more damage to me as long as i let him call the tune.

as soon as he shifted his weight off me just slightly i bolted hard right and he hit the ground and i was out that door very fast. folks said they didn't realize i could move so fast.



i guarantee if push had come to shove i could have kicked that monkeys ass. big time. they aren't that big. if you don't mind beating up the monkey. but i didn't even consider that. grew up quaker, non violent, all that stuff. and my friend didn't want his monkey whipped either i bet.

Maruba Resorts Insurance in Belize paid for all
her medical bills and took her to the private hospital
for treatment while she was in Belize.

I think you should have spanked the monkey!

but...but...i thought all of latin america was a u.s. petting zoo...

this is one of the most pathetic reactions i have ever heard of. even by nebraskan standards.

"possibly DIE" from blood loss?

dear lord, how did you have the energy to write all this and go to the media and contact the embassy and get a lawyer?


"They are basically bullying me to the point of dropping my pursuit for justice."?

typical american sense of "justice"


"we're not safe by any means"

so? i recommend you stay home, disconnect all electricity, gas, don't eat any food you don't produce yourself...


"The US Embassy has also been contacted in Belize"

i'm quite sure they are rolling their eyes.



"But who's going to protect us (US citizens) that visit their country daily and basically with out us visiting and spending our money there - they wouldn't have a need for any fancy resorts."???

right. if only those poor third world people hadn't been colonized and shat on forever maybe you'd be the one with the spider monkey and they'd be the arrogant victim-pricks coming to visit.


WRITE THEM AND TELL THEM HOW WRONG THIS IS! IF IT WASN'T FOR PEOPLE FROM THE US VISITING THEM THEN THEY WOULDN'T EVEN EXIST.

actually, they would, and they'd probably be a hell of a lot happier.


i know a 70+ year old woman who went to galapagos with a group of similarly aged folks to take a multi-day cruise around the islands. the boat had been modified to carry more people than it should have and during the night it capsized. more than half the tourists on the boat died. everyone related to them sounded just like this person does and wanted blood.

and you know what they did? they decided as a unit not to do anything at all. suing the operators wasn't going to bring anybody back and they all knew it was just going to doom another group of families to worse poverty than they were already living in.

what an amazing response for u.s. citizens.

by the way, i get a lot of blood and tissue all over the place every time i shave.

don_felipe, you don't think your response is a tad bit insensitive? What if it were your mother/daughter/sister in the same situation? I don't commend what she's doing but sheeeeeeesh! She's allowed to be upset about it and voice her opinion.

Marty, too funny!!!! I think I'll just stay away from the monkeys.

no

This does appear to be an "own goal" by Maruba Resort. I'm quite surprised they haven't come here with their version of events. Or is this another example of the Belizean practice of ostrich behaviour - pretend nothing happened, publicly ignore it, and it'll go away?

Maruba - please say something.

They did log on to the "other" forum and tell everyone to look at their website for the real skinny!

sharon matola would be here with glee i would guess..

she Fell off the horse, hmmm didnt complain about the fall i guess..

Maruba told me this

Maruba Resorts Insurance in Belize paid for all
her medical bills and took her to the private hospital
for treatment while she was in Belize.

I had also wondered about the fall off the horse. The guide asked what she had done, and her friend quickly said nothing. Made me wonder.

Another three days and nothing from Maruba. Strange.

they are doing it their way andnot publically