Buddie arrived at Jungle Friends on October 4, 1999 when she was three years old. She is a true success story! She had been kept as a ‘pet’ until – as is common with ‘pet’ monkeys – she began attacking her ‘owners’. The last time she escaped her cage, the ‘owners’ said it was ‘a blood bath.’

Buddie weighed only 3 pounds when she came to Jungle Friends. Nearly every bone in her body could be seen. Within a few days, she crashed and nearly died. Buddie was diagnosed with diabetes; although she ate constantly her body was unable to process the food into the nutrition she needed. She was literally starving to death. For a year, Buddie received two insulin injections a day. After she recovered her health, she was successfully weaned off insulin and her diabetes is now being controlled by diet and exercise.

Buddie is one of the happiest monkeys here at Jungle Friends. The day she felt well enough to laugh was truly a miracle! Now Buddie spends her days running, playing, grooming and laughing with her best friend Connie (also diabetic) and the other monkeys in her group.

Monkey Movie! Wendell meets Buddie and Cosmo