Thailand’s chunky monkey on diet

BANGKOK — A morbidly obese wild monkey who gorged himself on junk food and soda left by tourists has been rescued and placed on a strict diet of lean protein, fruits and vegetables.

Wildlife officials caught the chunky monkey — nicknamed “Uncle Fat” by locals — after photos of the animal started circulating on social media last month.

Wild monkeys roam free in many parts of Thailand, attracting tourists who feed and play with the animals. Most of the monkeys are macaques like Uncle Fat, and they typically weigh around 20 pounds.

Uncle Fat tips the scales at around 60 pounds.

“It was not easy to catch him,” said Kacha Phukem, the wildlife official who conducted the capture and rescue recently. “He was the leader of his pack, and when I tried to go in, I had to fight off a flock of them.”

The subordinate monkeys fed into Uncle Fat’s bad habits.

“He had minions and other monkeys bringing food for him but he would also redistribute it to younger monkeys,” said Supakarn Kaewchot, a veterinarian in charge of the monkey’s diet.

“After he ate food given by humans for a while, he developed a fat mass, which became a type of benign tumor,” Supakarn said. “He is now in critical condition where there is a high risk of heart disease and diabetes.”

Uncle Fat is believed to be 10 to 15 years old. To help him lose weight, his new diet is limited to 400 grams of lean protein, fruits and vegetables twice a day. Supakarn said she hopes that within a few months they can consider releasing him to the wild.

She said Uncle Fat is an example of why people shouldn’t feed wild monkeys unhealthy food.

SAKCHAI LALIT/AP A monkey named “Uncle Fat” who gorged on tourists’ junk food is being treated at a rehabilitation center in Bangkok.