ALBANY, N.Y. (WTEN) -- New legislation could eliminate the use of primates for entertainment use. The bill would prohibit the Department of Environmental Conservation from issuing a permit that would allow primates such as monkeys, apes, chimpanzees, and orangutans from being used for entertainment purposes.
This legislation comes after a lawmaker said he saw that the Orange County Fair had monkeys dressed up, chained and forced to ride on dogs. It’s unknown how long this practice has been going on at the fair, but Senator James Skoufis says it must come to an end. "I guess whoever came up with that idea, thought, somehow that that constitutes entertainment meanwhile, the vast majority of good people look at that as animal abuse. This is an issue that speaks directly to just being humane to animals. It’s not a democratic or republican issue," he said.
The bill states that using primates for entertainment can cause severe physical and psychological harm to animals. That bill has not yet been voted on.
