A Mississippi family was reunited with their beloved pet spider monkey after dozens of volunteers joined a 24-hour search and managed to track the pesky primate with thermal cameras and hunting dogs.
Cameron and Kaitlynn Cuevas, of Biloxi, adopted Kenzie two years ago when she was just six weeks old and the animal quickly became part of their family, the couple told WCAX.
“He’s with us every day,” Cameron Cuevas told the outlet while holding the diapered monkey. “Just like a baby. All he knows is us, our family and our three children. He is one of our children.”
Cuevas had three more children – all human.
The family had left Kenzie with Cameron’s mother and were devastated when she called at about 10am on Sunday to tell them the monkey had escaped into the woods outside.
“My body went cold,” Kaitlynn said. “I was shaking and I just cried. It doesn’t feel like it’s real. There is no way.”
The family made an appeal on social media to help find Kenzie. About 50 people responded and showed up to help, some carrying equipment like thermal cameras.
Kenzie escaped from Cameron Cuevas’ mother’s house on Sunday.Cameron Kaitlynn Cuevas/Facebook About 50 neighbors responded to Cuevas’ calls to find the monkey.Cameron Kaitlynn Cuevas/Facebook
Ben Ward, a local hunter, brought his tracking dog.
“I loaded up and went there,” Ward said. “There’s a group of people there already looking. We joined them and took the dog to the forest. They are unbelievable. Their abilities are amazing. Their noses, from what I read, are 10,000 times better than human noses.”
The Cuevas have been reunited with their pet spider monkey, who they adopted 2 years ago.Cameron Kaitlynn Cuevas/FacebookThe Cuevas said that Kenzie is like one of their own children.Cameron Kaitlynn Cuevas/Facebook
The search was called off around 2am after 14 hours of searching for Kenzie without a trace.
Ward returned to the search site at dawn and soon called Cameron with the good news.
“’We got him. He’s in your mother’s arms right now,” Cameron Ward told her.
The pet monkey had wandered back to Cameron’s mother’s house after his visit.
“She had a good shower, dried off & was sleeping soundly,” Kaitlynn wrote in a Facebook post after Kenzie was found. “He’s going to the vet here shortly to be checked out.”
“He’s tired, scared, weak but he’s home!” he added.
The couple thanked all the volunteers who helped.
“It took a team to bring him home, and we’re very grateful to the team that showed up to bring him home,” Cameron told WCAX. “He’s not going anywhere anymore.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
