An unsuitable life
The adult marmosets, six-year-old Minnie and five-year-old Miko, came from breeders in Slovakia and were transported to Croatia to be kept as pets. The intention was to resell them via classified ads by their owners.
The primates were initially taken in by Vedran Lončarić, who wanted to save them and find them a better home. However, Minnie and Miko were living in facilities that Mr Lončarić, as their caretaker, acknowledged were inadequate.
Although they were fed daily and received basic care, they lacked the stimulation, enrichment, and specialised care that such a complex species requires to maintain good physical and psychological health. As a result, both showed signs of apathy and excessive inactivity.
Eventually, working with the organisation Animal Friends, Mr Lončarić managed to contact AAP to find a permanent solution that would ensure their well-being.
A new opportunity for Minnie and Miko
Minnie and Miko will remain together in quarantine at our rescue centre while undergoing necessary veterinary check-ups. Their story represents a second chance for these two common marmosets and serves as a reminder that the effective protection of wild animals in Europe requires clearer, more consistent, and prevention-oriented regulations.
Lack of international regulation
The EU remains one of the world’s largest markets and transit hubs for wildlife. In 2023, over 600,000 live animals were seized, including at least 574 species listed under CITES, the global convention on wildlife trade.
A lack of clear documentation initially hindered Minnie and Miko’s international transport and caused a previous rescue attempt to fail, delaying their arrival in Spain by several months.
However, close collaboration between the relevant Spanish and Croatian authorities, the Croatian organisations involved in the case, and AAP made it possible to resolve the animals’ administrative paperwork and pave the way for their transfer. Thanks to this, Minnie and Miko were finally able to travel to Spain and receive specialised care tailored to their needs.
Video: Minnie and Miko arrive at AAP Spain.
A problem beyond a single case
For AAP, the difficulties encountered during this rescue reflect a structural problem affecting all of Europe: the absence of harmonised rules regarding the keeping of wild animals as pets.
"Although European legislation regulates aspects related to the trade and movement of certain species, each country maintains different approaches regarding which animals can be kept as pets, which ultimately has real consequences for animal welfare"
The need to move towards Positive Lists
AAP believes that cases like this reinforce the need for the European Union to drive more coherent regulation regarding the keeping of wild animals. We advocate for the adoption of Positive Lists – a system whereby only those species whose keeping is compatible with animal welfare, public health, human safety, and biodiversity protection may be kept as pets.
" We need a preventive system that is harmonised across the European Union. Positive Lists make it possible to prevent wild animals with complex needs from entering the pet trade and to reduce the administrative and welfare issues we repeatedly see during exotic wildlife rescues."
