Uncle Fatty and Godzilla: Monkey who ‘ate himself to death’ and primate at fat camp in Thailand
Thailand is home to hundreds of thousands of monkeys, but most will not be known by name, wear tank tops or gorge on plentiful diets of junk food.
Enter Uncle Fatty and Godzilla, the legendary chunky monkeys whose lives of indulgence have earnt them fame, but have also had devastating consequences for their health.
Cruelly kept on a lead and raised on a diet of junk food, Godzilla’s weight ballooned to more than 20kg, and he became a major tourist attraction at his owner’s market stall in Bangkok.
He soon drew comparisons with Uncle Fatty, another popular overweight primate, who had tipped the scales at 27kg and was believed to be between 10 and 15 years old.
Both forced into fat camp, the primates were able to shift some of their weight on strict diet regimes. But after returning to the wild, and having not been seen in years, Uncle Fatty is now widely believed to have eaten himself to death.
Living in the wild near a tourist hotspot floating water market in Bangkok, Uncle Fatty had been enjoying a lavish lifestyle.
The elderly monkey was popular with locals and tourists alike, gobbling any food that he good get his paws on.
But the abundance of food offered to him by visitors, which included sugary melons and sweetcorn as well as extremely unhealthy human food like milkshakes and noodles, meant he piled on the pounds.
With macaques normally weigh between eight and 10kg, the 27kg beast was the same weight as three of his kind.
He left officials no choice but to intervene, and he was taken for a health check.
They decided to send the chubby chap to monkey ‘fat camp’ to try and reduce his weight to a more acceptable 8kg.
In 2017, Thai primate conservation group ‘Monkey Lovers’ said that Uncle was not sick – he was just fat – and wanted him returned to his friends.
Organiser Kawinoat MongKholtechaphat said at the time: ‘Uncle has got fat because he has just been eating everything that people give to him.
Godzilla (pictured) was kept by a stallholder in the Min Buri district of Bangkok, where visitors gathered to see the monkey and attempt to feed it
Uncle Fatty (pictured) tipped the scales at 27kg and was believed to have been between 10 and 15 years old
‘He’s not sick, he just needs helps. He likes eating and there are lots of visitors and tourists who give him food all day.’
Kawinoat said that Uncle played an important role in the community of monkeys that roam free around the market in the Bang Khun Thian district.
He added: ‘He’s a leader to the younger monkeys. He teaches them important things, how to survive.
‘He’s old now and likes to sit around eating a lot. We want the monkeys to stay roaming free outside where they are happy.’
The National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation later transferred Uncle to a Nakhon Nayok wildlife rescue center some 100 miles away, where he could receive regular check-ups.
Godzilla was compared with the late Uncle Fatty (above), a long-tailed macaque who is believed to have eaten himself to death
Uncle Fatty was a wild monkey whose bulk increased after gorging on junk food from passersby in Thailand in 2017
He was put on a strict diet and made to run and swing around with other animals to lose weight.
But tragically, having not been seen since June 2019, it is now believed that Uncle Fatty ate himself to death.
While Uncle Fatty’s body was never found, experts say it is likely that the elderly animal has died because monkeys isolate themselves when they know they are weak, so that others won’t see them dying.
Debate remains on whether the aged animal died from his junk food binges or from old age.
Officials at the time blamed tourists, who they suggested ‘killed him with kindness’ as he was offered food on a constant basis.
Wildlife official Phuwanak Krumnoi, who helped to collect the primate, said Godzilla was ‘critically obese’ when he was discovered and urgently needed to be put on a diet
Former owner Emsan was allowed to visit Godzilla while he was being cared for, but officials ultimately planned to release him back into woodland, allowing him to interact with other monkeys
The chunky monkey’s body has never been found.
Soon after, footage of Godzilla, an equally large primate, emerged from another market in Bangkok, this time kept as a pet by a stallholder.
The three-year-old shot to fame after a video of him tied to a stall in the Min Buri district of Bangkok went viral.
Shoppers regularly crowded over the stall where the monkey sat attempting to feed him, sparking fears that the huge animal would suffer the same fate as his wild relative.
His diet consisted of fruit and nuts, as well as unhealthy sweets and sugary syrup drinks.
Emsan kept the monkey as a pet – illegal under the country’s wildlife laws – and let him snack all day while he ran his stall selling meatballs. Passing shoppers would also stop and feed the monkey fruit, nuts, sweets and sugary syrup drinks
Godzilla also became well-known because of the tight-fitting t-shirts he was dressed up in by his owner.
In one video, the monkey was seen flopping onto a cushion while visitors rubbed his back.
He was also spoilt with lots of toys according to officials, including a plastic water bottle which he hurls away in one clip.
Godzilla’s former owner Manop Emsan said the monkey’s parents were killed by a car when he was a baby and a previous owner had abandoned him.
He kept the monkey as a pet – illegal under the country’s wildlife laws – and let him snack all day while he ran his stall selling meatballs.
Shopkeeper Manop said he adopted Godzilla after he was abandoned by the stall’s previous owner.
Uncle Fatty was considerably larger than average-sized macaques, two of which are pictured with the obese monkey above
Uncle Fatty was later sent to ‘fat camp’ but was last seen in June 2019 before going missing and is now presumed dead
Manop insisted that he feeds the monkey and treats him well, but was unable to keep his weight under control.
‘The rescue team found Godzilla when he was very small. And since he grew up being fed by humans, he does not know how to find food on his own in the wild,’ Manop said.
Wildlife officials visited the market in the Min Buri district of the Thai capital on March 25 2021, and Godzilla was carried away in a cage.
He was sent to fat camp by wildlife officials a day later, to try and get his extreme weight under control.
Navee Changpirom, forest chief at Thailand’s Department of National Parks, said: ‘Godzilla’s weight still exceeds the normal standards of most common macaque monkeys, which is no more than 22lbs (10kg).
Godzilla’s former owner Manop Emsan said the monkey’s parents were killed by a car when he was a baby and a previous owner had abandoned him
Wildlife officials visited the market in the Min Buri district of the Thai capital on March 25 and Godzilla was carried away in a cage
‘He also has behavioural problems, because he has too many toys from his previous owner.
‘He is very possessive of them, guarding them like treasure and not allowing anyone to easily take them. If anyone tries to pick them up, he will grab them back immediately.’
Changpirom said: ‘We received a report from someone who was concerned about the health of the monkey.
‘Our investigation then found the owner. He said that he brought the monkey home and took great care of it like one of his family own members. He and his family fed the monkey so well that it became fat.
‘Sometimes marketgoers would find the monkey cute and would also feed it. The monkey became a favourite attraction at the market.’
Wildlife official Phuwanak Krumnoi, who helped to collect the primate, said Godzilla was ‘critically obese’ when he was discovered and urgently needed to be put on a diet.
The three-year-old podgy primate was taken to fat camp after videos emerged of him chained up at a market in Bangkok, Thailand, where he had been living for more than two years
While at fat camp the monkey was allowed to eat live crickets – which he would chase around his pen – along with dill, lettuce, bird worms, carrots, peanuts, long beans and sunflower seeds
Former owner Emsan was allowed to visit Godzilla while he was being cared for, but officials ultimately planned to release him back into woodland, allowing him to interact with other monkeys.
Devastated Emsan said at the time: ‘Godzilla is like a son to me. He’s part of the family. He won’t eat if he’s not with us, he becomes moody and sad. I’m worried he won’t survive.’
However, Changpirom said: ‘The monkey was handed over to the National Park team to take care of him and prevent him from gaining more weight.
‘We have to remind people that if they find a wild monkey they should never keep them. The correct step is to call the local police and wait for officials to collect the animal and give proper care.’
Godzilla weighed almost 19kg when he checked into the wildlife centre in Chachoengsao in central Thailand, but managed to shed some of the weight through a strict diet.
He was allowed to eat live crickets – which he would chase around his pen – along with dill, lettuce, bird worms, carrots, peanuts, long beans and sunflower seeds.
He dropped to 17.2kg after just a week in the camp, and staff aimed to get his weight down to 10kg with a regime of daily walks before releasing him back into the wild.
There have been no updates on Godzilla’s health since 2021.
Thailand is home to hundreds of thousands of wild monkeys including gibbon, macaque, langur and loris, that roam free and are popular with tourists.