Capuchin monkeys are among the most cognitively sophisticated New World primates. Their welfare in wild populations is threatened by habitat fragmentation, the pet trade, and use in entertainment.
Wild capuchin welfare is compromised by multiple human activities. Pet trade capture separates infants from their mothers — typically by killing the mother — causing acute trauma to a highly social species with complex long-term social bonds. Infant capuchins require years of maternal care and social learning from group members; isolated pet capuchins develop severe behavioural abnormalities and psychological problems. Entertainment capuchins — trained using aversive methods and kept in chronic social isolation — represent a particularly well-documented welfare harm. Research capuchins used in biomedical studies face restraint, social isolation, and repeated invasive procedures. Wild populations face chronic stress from habitat fragmentation that reduces foraging territory and prey diversity. Effective conservation must address both habitat protection and demand reduction for the pet and entertainment trades, with sanctuary support for animals already removed from the wild.