Monkey Missing After Pa. Fire Found Safe

May 20, 2014
Bug escaped after a fire at East Coast Exotic Animal Rescue.

May 20--A missing monkey from the East Coast Exotic Animal Shelter was found on May 19 at a home in Fairfield.

Keith and Sherri Bell discovered the monkey on their back porch between 6:30 and 7 p.m. Keith was able to keep Bug, the 10-year-old Capuchin monkey, happy on the back porch with a bowl of cat food while his wife Sherri called the local police.

Representatives from the animal shelter arrived within seven minutes of the call to take Bug home.

"It's kind of funny," Keith said of the experience. "We knew the monkey was missing, and I had just made a joke about the monkey probably looking in the windows at us. Then the dog started barking, there was this bump sound and there was the monkey."

Though Bug was initially hesitant to get into his cage, Keith said, a woman from the shelter gave him a gummy bear and he crawled onto her lap.

"We are very happy he was found," Keith said. "He seemed pretty scared at first."

Melissa Bishop, a 15-year volunteer with the rescue, said Monday evening that Bug is home safe.

Bug had escaped from East Coast Exotic Animal Rescue after a fire destroyed the building Saturday.

Rescue owner Sue Murray saved Bug and another monkey, named Whooey, from the fire Saturday. Murray handed Whooey to Bishop's daughter, Courtney, who put her in a car.

Bug, however, got scared while in a temporary cage, and escaped. Rescue workers spotted him behind the shelter Sunday afternoon but were unable to capture him.

Bug was born at the rescue shortly after his parents were rescued from a research facility about 10 years ago, Bishop said. The baby monkey, however, soon fell ill because of neglect from his mother.

That's where Bishop and two other rescue workers came to the rescue. The trio -- Bishop, Murray and rescue worker Sue March -- raised Bug by hand, bottle-feeding him and taking turns babysitting when the other "moms" were busy.

"It was like having a medically challenged newborn," Bishop explained.

At the shelter, volunteers spoiled Bug. He enjoyed meal worms and fresh fruit, like mangoes and strawberries, and plenty of attention from his caretakers.

In short, Bug was never prepared for life in the wild.

Bug could have fallen prey to any number of predators in the wooded area around the shelter, from snakes to dogs, Bishop said. The chilly nights also had his caretakers worried.

Meanwhile, volunteers continue to care for the other animals that were rescued from the shelter. Some, like the big cats, are still in their enclosures, which were unaffected by the blaze. Animals that were in the building, including birds and snakes, are either in the care of veterinarians or volunteers.

Continuing to provide for these animals has been a challenge because the rescue no longer has electricity, Bishop said.

For now, workers are preparing food on a nearby picnic table and storing it in a single refrigerator powered by a generator.

Rescue dog a hero

The blaze started when an electrical malfunction set fire to an apartment on the property, said Fairfield Deputy Fire Chief Adam Jacobs.

Rescue owner Sue Murray's son, Scott Murray, lived in the apartment with his fiance, Shaleigh Merryman. The couple was asleep when one of their dogs, Sadie, a pit bull mix they'd rescued only about four months ago, woke them up.

Bishop said Scott Murray was able to break out windows from the upper floor of the property and save some animals by tossing them out the window.

Scott Murray called Bishop around 3 a.m., she said, and just yelled "Fire!"

"I knew I had to get down there right away," Bishop said. At one point, firemen stopped the family and volunteers from going in to the building, fearing unsafe flooring, but Melissa said she begged and found one firefighter who stood over her and protected her so she could grab the last two animals inside: Reece, a coatimundi, and Spencer, another of the rescue's monkeys.

But some things could not be saved. Two cats died in the fire, Bishop said, and there were other losses that, while replaceable, are devastating.

Scott Murray and Merryman are to be married in just over a week. Merryman's wedding dress, the wedding rings and their passports are all gone, Bishop said.

She added that the couple plans to honeymoon in Punta Cana, Mexico, but not only is Merryman's passport missing, so is all of the identification she would need to get another.

"We don't even know where to start," Bishop said.

Numerous people, however, have volunteered to help the couple. David's Bridal is working with Merryman to have her dress replaced free of cost, and numerous brides have offered to donate their own dresses.

The Red Cross is sheltering the couple at a nearby hotel. The rescue, however, is working on setting up a camper on its property so the couple can care for their two large dogs, Bishop said.

In the meantime, Sadie the dog is doing well and being showered with new toys and treats for her role in saving her owners.

"She's awesome," Bishop said. "She's being spoiled to death."

How you can help?

Word of a GoFundMe online fundraising campaign, organized by Tracy Barnhart Sheaffer of the Fayetteville area, also has spread on social media following the fire. Those who want to contribute to East Coast Exotic Animal Rescue's expenses are able to do so at www.gofundme.com/9ajrus.

People can best help the shelter by donating money, Bishop said, noting that workers have had to throw away donated food because they had no place to store it.

Still, even though the shelter cannot use everything it receives, Bishop said she has been amazed by the outpouring of support from the community.

"If it hadn't been for these people, I would probably be clinically insane right now," she said.

Daily Record/Sunday News journalist Joan Concilio contributed to this story.

Read more

East Coast Exotic Animal Rescue building burns; some animals saved

Visit the East Coast Exotic Animal Rescue's website.

Copyright 2014 - The Evening Sun, Hanover, Pa.

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