Objective To study physiological data of food and water intake, urination, body weight, plasma glucose and glycosuria with streptozotocin(STZ) in rhesus monkeys, which was essential to establish animal model for diabetes mellitus(DM). Methods Seven rhesus monkeys were injected intravenously with different doses of STZ. Results The seven monkeys showed the same clinical features as those of diabetes mellitus patients at a different time and extent, such as polyphagia, polydipsia, polyuria, hyperglycemia, hyperglycosuria, body weight loss. The clinical characteristics were lightened and controlled by using insulin. Especially the clinical symptoms of mid-dose and high-dose of STZ were more obvious than those of low-dose in monkeys. The body weight of low-dose monkeys rose in a short time, then dropped rapidly. Plasma glucose and glycosuria of monkeys were increased with STZ injected, especially mid-dose and high--dose monkeys varied obviously. Conclusion The acute animal model similar to human DM was induced by mid-dose and high-dose of STZ injected. The course of DM animal model may be extended by using insulin treatment or low-dose of STZ, which is suitable for studying complications of DM.