Monkey Business

I certainly hope no one is inspired by “Welcome to the Monkey House” (by Linden Gross, Sept. 14) to purchase or smuggle into the United States any exotic pets such as Dick Shawn’s Bahian monkey.

Wild animals make exceptionally poor pets. Monkeys, for example, are very destructive and can catch almost all human diseases, many of which can be fatal to them. Many monkeys and other exotics have particular dietary needs that cannot be met in most households. Worst of all, this Bahian monkey is not common at all but an endangered species.

There are many stringent regulations to follow before these animals may be brought into this country, and slipping them into one’s pockets, as Shawn said he did, is behavior that ought not be encouraged.

Gloria K. Kahn

Culver City