OPS Veterinary Needs
The Oklahoma Primate Sanctuary provides an enriched quality of life for over 100 animals at our facility in Newcastle, OK. As a sanctuary certified by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries, we are not open to the public and do not buy, sell, trade, display, or adopt out primates. Our focus is on providing life-long care in as natural a setting as possible where monkeys retired from research or rescued from the exotic pet trade can engage in normal behaviors.
In order to provide the best possible care for the animals at OPS, we operate an on-site clinic with oversight by Dr. Fryer, our attending veterinarian. We currently have an anesthesia machine, x-ray machine, hematology analyzer and chemistry analyzer. We need the ultrasound for soft tissue imaging like looking for abdominal masses, heart issues, etc. which the x-ray doesn’t work for. We need the patient monitor to better enable us to care for patients while under anesthesia. The on-site clinic is critical to the monkeys’ well-being because we can address issues very quickly without waiting for available space at a clinic. The monkeys normally have to be anesthetized before examining so anytime we need an ultrasound done (and that’s becoming more frequent due to our aging population) we have to knock them down and transport them to a clinic 45 minutes away. By the time the monkey gets there they are often waking up and have to be re-sedated which can be dangerous to their health.
The ultrasound and monitor will allow us to perform more in-house diagnostics, saving time, money, and most importantly – providing better health care for the monkeys.
Our annual cost for direct care, including nutritious food, enrichment, staffing, and veterinary services is over $283,000 out of a total operating budget of $356,000. The Oklahoma Primate Sanctuary is a federally registered 501(c)(3) charity celebrating its 25th year of providing outstanding care for primates.
All donations are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.
EIN # 73-1522989
