Monkeying around at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally

Sturgis city officials believe that including an exotic pet display at the rally would make for a unique attraction
Published: Aug. 11, 2023 at 9:47 PM EDT
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RAPID CITY, S.D. (KEVN) -During the rally, you expect to see interesting bikes, but exotic animals? That’s a whole different story.

By introducing exotic animals into the biking culture, this year’s rally has proven that the unexpected can lead to extraordinary experiences.

“They don’t mature until they’re five, so more maturity, and right now, she’s really good, she’s training little by little we’re trying to get her used to all this noise and this surrounding,” said monkey owner Ronda Wrightout

A domesticated lemur
A domesticated lemur(KOTA/KEVN)

Despite the roaring sounds of the bikes and the heat of the moment, these attendees are tamed for the excitement.

“For the most part, you just basically be their friend, and you got to understand that if it’s a wild animal, it may react the way that you don’t approve of whether you learn to live with it or not,” said lemur owner Wade Reeves.

Reeves said Sturgis City Officials believe that including an exotic pet display at the rally would make for a unique attraction.

“I didn’t even expect to do it, honestly, this is the first time I’ve ever done anything like this. At the end of the day, I didn’t do anything to make money or get rich these are my pets, and I was going to have to watch them one way or another down here so, why sit in the enclosure and watch them play with them,” said Reeves.