Caravan Insurance

Mechanics working on a van have found a monkey imprisoned inside, the Irish media has reported.

The van, believed to be part of a travelling show from abroad, had stopped at a garage for routine repairs in the Irish county of Laois when the creature was discovered.

It had been trapped in a filthy cage for upwards of a week without daylight, food or water and was deeply traumatised and dehydrated.

The mechanic contacted the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ISPCA), which has launched an enquiry into how the animal ended up in such a state of neglect.

The monkey, a young female, was rushed to a nearby monkey sanctuary, where she has responded well to treatment and may well end up living for the foreseeable future.

After receiving veterinary treatment, rehabilitation and aromatherapy, latest reports describe her condition as "boisterous".

She has been named "Barbara" after the wife of the ISPCA officer who rescued her, according to a report in the Irish Independent.

Barbara will live on a small island by a lake with ten other abused monkeys.

The issue may become a police matter if, as is suspected, the vehicle turns out not to have any van insurance.