A Texas influencer is under investigation over spider monkey seizures

The Dallas-area influencer who had hair spider monkey who was taken from her on Saturday after a drunken car accident An investigation is underway after the monkey was found to be malnourished, officials said Friday.

Brandi Botello’s spider monkey, named Jorgie Boy, was taken from her after the crash that left Dallas police arresting the driver on charges of driving under the influence.

Irving, the Dallas suburb where Botello lives, prohibits the ownership of wild animals therefore, the monkey was transferred to the animal control department, authorities said. Eventually it was moved to an animal shelter.

Irving police spokesman Delaney Brey said the city’s animal services department is leading the investigation into Botello.

Brey said the department is investigating “the care of the animal and the condition it was in when it was transferred.” Police have said the monkey was diagnosed with rickets, described as ‘a bone disease caused by inadequate nutrition’.

No charges related to the animal have been filed against Botello. Charges won’t be determined until the investigation is complete “because there is a difference between neglect and cruelty,” Brey said.

It is unclear how long the investigation will take, Brey said.

According to Texas lawIf someone is convicted of animal cruelty, they are prohibited from owning animals for five years, Brey said, but noted there are different levels of charges, from misdemeanor to misdemeanor.

“At the end of the day, it was illegal for her to have (the monkey) in Irving, period,” Brey said. Normally, in these cases, owners don’t fight to get their animals back because they would have to move to another city.

Botello did not respond to multiple requests for comment on Friday. The Irving Animal Services Department also did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the investigation.

Dallas police have not identified the driver in the single-vehicle crash, but Botello said NBC Dallas-Fort Worth she was the one arrested with a DWI. She said it was a male acquaintance who was driving and that she only climbed into the driver’s seat after the crash.

She told the station she was drunk and asleep in the passenger seat holding Jorgie Boy when the crash occurred.

Jorgie Boy legally in the shelter

Dwan Johns, the owner of Funky Monkey Ranch, a shelter near Fort Worth, confirmed to NBC News on Friday that it is now legally owned by Jorgie Boy.

“I immediately added him to my USDA license here at our ranch. So he is legally here where he will reside,” Johns said.

She added: “Luckily we were available to record him.”

Johns said the monkey weighed 6 pounds, which is less than half the weight of an average spider monkey, and had metabolic bone disease caused by poor nutrition and elevated liver and pancreas levels.

Botello, who did that 43,000 Instagram followershas launched a campaign of sorts to reunite with Jorgie Boy, reposting on Thursday a number of Instagram stories from followers who posted with the hashtag “#FreeJorgieBoy.”

Monkey could have been euthanized

In a video shared with the Funky Monkey Ranch TikTokJohns acknowledged the sympathy Botello has garnered and said she wanted to share the “reality” of the situation.

She said she received a call from Irving Animal Control on Saturday saying they had seized a monkey but “didn’t know what to do with it.”

Because Irving has a zero-tolerance policy for wildlife in the city, Jorgie Boy would be euthanized if Funky Monkey Ranch or another shelter did not have room for him, Johns said.

She said in the video that these cities are not trained in the safe care of wild animals like Jorgie Boy, and if the monkey had, for example, bitten someone, they should have been tested for rabies, which would require Jorgie Boy to be euthanized.

Johns said she determined “within five seconds” of seeing Jorgie Boy that “that animal has severe special needs.”

She said his head and feet are out of proportion to his body and his growth has been stunted “due to animal neglect.” Jorgie Boy is the size of a 1-year-old monkey, even though he will be 3 years old in February. He also had minor broken bones, which were not the result of the car accident, Johns said.

A primate veterinarian checked Jorgie Boy on Monday, Johns said.

“Unfortunately, he was forced to live a lifestyle that was detrimental to his health,” Johns said. “He grew up spending his nights in nightclubs, partying around drugs and alcohol, not eating a healthy diet that a spider monkey would eat, and not being exposed to proper enrichment and play time.”

Long road to recovery

The shelter will receive sun therapy with Jorgie Boy twice a day for the next six weeks, after which he will return to the vet for more X-rays to see how his bones are healing. Johns said they hope to then begin physical therapy.

It could take more than a year for Jorgie Boy to reach the point where he is strong enough to play with other monkeys again, Johns said.

Johns said she shared the story to let people know that when they were asked to take in Jorgie Boy, “it wasn’t to try to take someone else’s monkey, it was to prevent a monkey from being euthanized. “

“We are doing everything we can to save him, nurse him back to health and let him live a happy life,” Johns said.

“I just want to make it clear that if you take an exotic animal under your care, it is your duty and your responsibility to do the right research, find the right veterinarian who specializes in that exotic animal and provide you with everything what they need,” Johns said. “And if you don’t do those things, you are the cause of animal neglect and cruelty.”