Is It Illegal To Keep A Small Monkey In Britain?
There are three categories: 1. Many monkeys are covered by CITES and it is illegal to keep any of these as pets, regardless of whether they are included in the dangerous wild animals act (DWA) or anywhere else. These are internationally protected species. 2. If they are not CITES listed but covered by DWA then you can keep one as a pet provided you have a licence before you get the animal, otherwise it is illegal and the monkey can be destroyed immediately. 3. If there are still any species left not covered by either of the above, then you can have these without a licence – provided they are traded legally. In any case, if the animals are not obtained from a legal source, then they can be destroyed immediately (and probably would be, as without proper documentation they could have been imported illegally and if nothing else might pose a disease risk).
