Distressed! Sydney baboon escapes castration and recapture, to undergo sterilization with 'wives'
According to a report by The Daily Mail on February 26th, Australian male baboons escaped with two 'wives' before castration surgery.
On Tuesday evening, the baboon and his two wives escaped from the institute at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Camperdown, subsequently being recaptured. Their escape triggered a widespread police chase.
The three baboons escaped from a truck when taken to the hospital, wandering outside Sydney’s busiest hospital for over an hour before being recaptured by animal carers and police in the hospital car park.
New South Wales Health Minister Brad Hazzaard announced the latest update on the fugitive baboons, with their escape making headlines around the world. The Minister revealed that the male baboon actually has 6 wives.
Hazzaard tweeted that the 15-year-old baboon will undergo scheduled vasectomy on Thursday. He added that the three baboons are currently well and resting, and will reunite with their family (4 other female baboons) after tomorrow.
The three baboons enjoyed a lavish breakfast on Wednesday morning, consisting of bananas, chillies, apples and bread.
Green Party Senator Mehreen Faruqi announced on Tuesday that she will move a motion in the Senate to recognize the existence of Sydney baboons, emphasizing the harm and suffering caused by primate research.
She tweeted that the government must invest in ending the use of primates in research methods and techniques.
Currently, a petition calling for the federal government to end medical experiments on primates has gained 66,000 signatures.
The petition was initially launched several years ago by the Australian Institute of Humane Research. The Institute’s CEO Helen Marston said in a statement that while the industry is a confidential one, most of the research funding comes from taxpayers through the National Health And Medical Research Council.
Helen said: “This is not only a cruel and unethical industry, but also a massive waste of valuable resources. The funding and time could be better spent on methods and techniques applicable to human research, rather than a flawed human model (primates) that is prone to producing erroneous data.”
Hazzaard said that the 15-year-old baboon had two wives accompanying him during the surgery to ensure his comfort.
Hazzaard said: “These females are his wives, and they accompanied him during the vasectomy surgery.”
Hazzaard noted that the baboons were used in hospital medical research. He said: “The research includes issues of reproduction, kidney disease, gestational diabetes and a range of other research areas. After the research is completed, they will return to their habitat in Western Sydney.”
