Haris Omar was born to pet monkeys of Kimana Tours, an animal survival service in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Haris, who is about seven-years-old, cannot live with his mother or father.
He lives in the lap of luxury, with beds, food, and toys for his mother to care for him, but he does not feel comfortable with it. He sleeps on a rotating bed in a room, with the people around him perching on a coffee table. The room is perpetually dark because he does not want to wake up the people sleeping on his bed. His dreams, as he told CNN Money, are “the most wonderful, amazing things, we’re all happy when he dreams.” He wants to be trained and there are people trained to guide him.
The tabloid TMZ reported that the city government wanted the monkey to leave his neighborhood “as quickly as possible.” They stepped in and kicked Kimana Tours out of the property. Now, Haris’ owner has threatened to sue.
Haris is part of a hot animal trend in Kuala Lumpur. The other monkeys here aren’t cute but a lot bigger, and the wild animals are extremely rare. They live in cages, and all around town there are signs saying, “you’re in good hands.”
They call it zapping the monkeys to make them fall asleep. The stunt is a favorite of street performers who use it to entertain crowds. Haris, who has been performing with his group for a year, fell asleep after the zapping. The city is trying to pass a law that forbids the zapping, but they are facing stiff opposition because the stunt is allegedly an important livelihood for many of the monkeys’ handlers and trainers.
On Feb. 7, the monkey and his owner were taken to a refuge for released.