PRIMATE RELATIONSHIPS:

THE RHESUS FACTOR

Written by: Karen D. Gill

We have two female rhesus that we adopted from their original families. Lucy arrived at our house at around two and a half years of age. Mindy at four years. We had Lucy for over two years before Mindy came to us.

Firsthand experience and research taught me rhesus are aggressive. Dominance is a very important issue in rhesus colonies. I knew that we might have a fight on our hands from the minute they saw each other. So I was prepared to do whatever was necessary to keep both happy and healthy.

Upon first seeing each other both girls seemed interested and non-aggressive. I put both of them on leashes and let them meet. They proceeded to give each other the biggest monkey hug I have ever seen. It seemed they both thought they were holding a baby, not realizing they were both about the same size.

After close to three minutes of hugging they started to become playful. Both of them would flash play faces and grab the other and bite. They were on a living-room chair while all this was taking place. They began to be easy and they hugged again. As soon as I stepped back they started to play again.

You could tell the play was starting to get rough. I compare it to two boys roughhousing. Each one grabs harder and try's to show they are stronger. I let them play for a while before separating them into their cages. Their cages are both in the same room but they cannot reach each other. They can see each other and vocalize frequently.

The next day we put them outside in the play area. I stayed outside the cage ready to step in if needed. They played, chased, and groomed each other. I saw a little more aggression from Lucy towards Mindy than reversed. Mindy would present to Lucy and lip smack if Lucy pushed the aggression to hard. After a few play sessions we could feel comfortable leaving them outside together without standing guard.

As the weeks went on Mindy was gaining weight and it seemed at the same time she felt the need to assert herself. We noticed during play times together Mindy would start grabbing at Lucy and would not back down as easy when Lucy chased her away. Lucy is extremely wary outside. She sits as high as she can inside the cage and you can tell she is scared of the noises she hears. She seldom plays or lets down her guard. I think the behavior made her react aggressively to Mindy's attempts at play.

I started to see more and more aggression as the weeks went on. One day I heard growls and shrieks so loud my heart skipped a beat. The girls were at opposite ends of the cage. Mindy was sitting on the ground and Lucy was on the branches. Mindy's posture told me she had been on the receiving end of the attack. I went into the cage and took her out and checked her over. I saw teeth's indentations on her back and rear. I knew we had to stand guard from then on.

I began to keep a water hose by when watching the girls. If Lucy started after Mindy she would get squirted. By this time they were seldom enjoying grooming each other. They would more or less ignore each other until Mindy wanted to play.

It didn't take long until there was another fight. Lucy caught Mindy so fast I couldn't stop it. Mindy was bruised by Lucy for the last time. I didn't put them together in the cage after that.

My dream was for them to spend allot of time together. For them to have allot of bodily contact and interaction. I could have let them fight it out and maybe eventually they would have settled the dominance difference. Maybe one of them would have been permanently disabled by the fighting. I made the choice to separate and limit contact. I feel it was the right thing to do with these two monkeys.

The only time they have contact with each other is when they are taken out. We let them go up to the others cage and they usually groom the other for a while. In the winter they're leashed one at a time and play inside. They will usually pick a fight if they stay next to the one inside the cage. Sometimes though they will groom until they both fall asleep.

They are very connected to each other. If one gets mad at something the other is mad. If one is outside the other cries. They seem to enjoy their relationship. I think the quality of their life is improved by having one of their own kind in the family.

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