After 13 years, the Ikea monkey has grown up – and his sanctuary is at capacity

Darwin knows what cameras look like – and how to avoid them. From inside his enclosure, the famous monkey in the Toronto Ikea parking lot spots us out of the corner of his eye and flops down under the table.

The now 13-year-old Japanese macaque has seen enough headlines to last a lifetime.

Darwin was just a baby when he was found wearing a diaper and shearling coat in a North York Ikea parking lot in 2012 and was confiscated by animal services. He has since lived at the Story Book Farm Primate Sanctuary in Sunderland, Ontario.

Executive Director Dana Lipa had just begun volunteering at the sanctuary when Darwin first arrived.

When he saw videos of Darwin circulating online, he noticed that he was walking on two legs – Japanese macaques are naturally quadrupedal. She said the video made her think the coat and diaper were too small for her body.

Lipa said she thinks Darwin’s upbringing among humans may have made him shy around strangers as an adult. “He probably doesn’t feel as comfortable being around people, because he was forced to be around people when he didn’t necessarily want to be around people.”

Tuesday marked the 13th anniversary of Darwin’s escape from the parking lot and the beginning of his life in his new home.

Lipa said these days, Darwin loves using his indoor swing and eating grapes. She is considering introducing Darwin to his neighbor, Chiquita – another Japanese macaque who calls the sanctuary home – to encourage companionship.

Story Book is the only primate sanctuary in Canada, and with 24 monkeys and lemurs, it has reached maximum capacity.

‘We have never had to say no till now’

Lipa said the sanctuary recently had to return two monkeys sent there because it did not have room for more.

“We’ve never had to say no until now,” he said. “There are not only two monkeys out there that need a home, but I know there are a lot more.”

When it accepts new primates, the animals often arrive at the sanctuary in need of immediate medical care.

“A lot of monkeys and lemurs lose their lives during the trafficking process,” says Lipa. “When they arrive, they are near death.”

As in Darwin’s case, primates are often sent to sanctuaries through animal welfare services.

Camille Labchuk, an animal rights attorney and executive director of the animal law advocacy organization Animal Justice, said the responsibility for the care, laboratory testing and other consequences of the exotic animal trade for exotic animals seized from zoos falls disproportionately on sanctuaries like Story Book.

The sanctuary says zoos in particular often send story books. Once an animal is surrendered, the sanctuary takes full financial responsibility for its care.

“Why is it that we are letting these businesses get away with creating problems and then failing to clean them up?” Labchuk said.

Number of animals at risk likely to be ‘hundreds of thousands’: lawyer

In Ontario, municipal bylaws ban the ownership of exotic pets – not provincial ones.

Labchuk said she wants the province to enact stricter laws to protect animals from the exotic animal trade. He said he estimates “hundreds of thousands” of primates, birds, reptiles and more have been trafficked into the province due to the exotic animal trade.

“Because there are no provincial restrictions on ownership or breeding, it’s open season,” she said. “And there are still people who would like to buy and keep monkeys as pets, even though the evidence is very clear that this is not appropriate.”

CBC Toronto has contacted the province for comment.

At Story Book, raising money is important to keep operations running. Lipa said the sanctuary is working on a million-dollar fundraising campaign to make room for more monkeys.

But she doesn’t want sanctuaries like Story Book to need to raise money or exist.

“None of these monkeys or lemurs asked to be held captive,” she said. “Part of sanctuary life is that they come here and die here because there’s nowhere else for them to go.”

“So we’ll do whatever we can for them while they’re here.”