Second child bitten by missing monkey

By Juana Summers

Published Sept. 28, 2007

Officials from the Columbia/Boone County Health Department and Columbia Police Department are looking for a woman and her pet monkey the monkey bit two children at the Paws in the Park celebration Saturday.

The celebration was held in Stephens Lake Park.

Deidre Wood, spokeswoman for Columbia/Boone County Health Department, said the department received a call that the monkey in question had bitten a 7-year-old boy on the finger.

An 11-year-old girl also received a monkey bite, according to a news release issued by the Boone County Health Department. Wood said both bites punctured the skin, but the children are fine.

Officials from the health department want to locate the monkey's owner, as well as the animal, in order to obtain a blood sample, Wood said.

"We want to see if there are any potential diseases," she said. "We need to find the owner and figure out what kind of environment the monkey has been kept in."

Wood said the monkey seen at Paws in the Park is most likely a macaque.

The Missouri Department of Conservation categorizes monkeys as dangerous and exotic animals and requires that the animals are both registered and licensed. If the monkey is not licensed, its owner could face charges.

A news release from the health department stated that monkeys can carry diseases, including Simian B Virus Infection, a variant of the herpes virus, and rabies.