Monkey see, monkey do. But for four days, Wendell, a brown capuchin monkey, had to rely on his hands and nose after he was found temporarily blind Wednesday at the Jungle Friends Primate Sanctuary.
Sara Smith, an assistant to the sanctuary director, said when sanctuary staff members tried to give Wendell a piece of popcorn, he was unresponsive.
“He went blind after he was self-attacking, which is a result of diabetic neuropathy,” Smith said.
On Monday, a veterinarian found Wendell’s blood pressure and glucose level were too high, causing his blood vessels to tighten and constrict his eyes, said Kari Bagnall, the sanctuary’s founder. Bagnall said sanctuary staff members worked through the weekend to remodel Wendell’s habitat to make it easier for him to move around because of his limited eyesight.
On Sunday, however, workers made a surprising discovery: Wendell regained his sight.
“When his blood pressure and glucose level went down, he could see again,” Bagnall said.
Now, sanctuary staff are watching Wendell’s glucose levels, so he won’t go blind again.
“If it does happen again, and his blood vessels rupture, it could be irreversible,” said Nicole Villella, a veterinary assistant who has cared for Wendell for a year.
Staff members will keep to fixing the habitat as a precaution.
“If that happens again, I don’t want him to be blind and then fall,” Bagnall said.
Wendell, a brown capuchin monkey living at the Jungle Friends Primate Sanctuary, was found blind Wednesday. Doctors determined high glucose levels cause Wendell temporarily blinded Wendell for four days. On Monday, the monkey regained his sight.
