Thai authorities sterilise monkeys as they turn aggressive amid lockdown

Thailand has reportedly started sterilising hundreds of monkeys in Lopburi province, which is famous for the macaque population, as the animals have been turning aggressive and hungry amid COVID-19 lockdown. According to an international media report, the city and its 2,000 monkeys have been a tourist attraction, however, with borders closed, the monkeys were reportedly seen wrestling food from terrified residents. While the tourist from around the globe typically used to feed them and pose with them for selfies, the monkeys seem to be not adapting well to the new normal. 

In a bid to slow the growth of the population, the Thailand authorities are reportedly catching, sedating and sterilising the monkeys. While speaking to an international media outlet, Supakarn Kaewchot, a government veterinarian, said that the animals are so used to having tourists feed them, they have now gone aggressive. Supakarn added that there were reports that the animals were fighting humans for food to survive, invading buildings and also forcing locals to flee their homes. 

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No threat to monkey population

The government veterinarian further added that unlike monkeys in the wild, the city monkeys usually do not hunt for food, which gives them more time and energy to reproduce and cause trouble. In a bid to keep the fast-growing population under control, the authorities reportedly place cages around the city with tantalising fruits in them. The captured monkeys were then transferred to an operating table, where they were sedated, shaved and marked with a unique reference number under their arms. 

According to the media outlet, the vets performed a vasectomy or a tubal ligation operation. They were then kept under observation for one night after which they were released back to their respective tribes. The Thailand government aims to sterilise 500 of the macaques over the next two months. Supakarn also reportedly said that the sterilisation would pose no threat to the monkey population, however, it will just slow down the rate of its urban growth. The government vet also added that the authorities were not doing the same procedure in the wild and it was just to keep the residents safe from the aggressive monkeys. 

(Image: Rep/Unsplash) 

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