Research chimps taken to refuge

• Article
• Comments ()
• Click-2-Listen
• Videos

By

KEITHVILLE, La. (AP) -- Chimp Haven, the north Louisiana refuge for primates formerly used in medical research, has gotten some new residents.

Seven new chimpanzees arrived earlier this month, on orders from a Texas court official who found they were being mistreated at a San Antonio animal facility. The seven are the latest in a string of new arrivals: Chimp Haven's population has jumped to 84 primate residents, up from 31 when it opened last fall.

"These special chimpanzees deserve a good home and to live out their lives among friends," said Linda Brent, president of Chimp Haven.

The refuge covers 200 acres of pine woods, about a dozen miles from the Texas border. Chimpanzees have indoor areas where they sleep. They exercise and socialize outdoors, roaming in an enclosure bordered by a moat on one edge -- chimpanzees dislike water -- and a towering concrete wall on the other sides.

Most of the residents are in their 30s, which is middle aged. The life span of a chimp is about two-thirds that of a human. The oldest, known as Grandma, is 54. She and others suffer from predictable woes of old age: arthritis, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Chimp Haven aims to offer the same things as a retirement home for humans.

"Chimps need good social support, good health care, exercise, diet, the whole thing -- just like humans," said Miss Brent, a behavioral primatologist.

The chimps raised in captivity appear to be learning the behavior exhibited by normal wild chimps, said Amy Fultz, a staff behaviorist. Some have begun climbing trees and building nests. Others have figured out how to find food on their own -- oak branches, grass, pine needles -- rather than relying on the fruits and vegetables they're fed every day.

Omnivorous wild chimps eat fruits and vegetables, but also work together to hunt small rodents and monkeys for food. Chimp Haven staffers have so far found no sign of hunting, even though armadillos, possums and other mammals probably wander into the area, Miss Fultz said.

The seven new arrivals had been living at Primarily Primates Inc., in San Antonio, after being used in cognitive research at Ohio State University.

Animal rights activists filed a complaint with the Texas attorney general over conditions at the San Antonio facility earlier this year. The state then seized the facility and an appointed caregiver ordered the animals sent to Chimp Haven.

Primarily Primates' representatives have denied the accusations and started a legal challenge to the process, trying to get the animals back.

Funding for Chimp Haven is primarily federal, via the so-called Chimp Act, passed by Congress in 2001. The legislation guaranteed up to $30 million in federal money for the facility if it cared for primates that were owned by the federal government or otherwise involved in federal labs.

However, the Chimp Act does not cover Chimp Haven's seven new residents -- their former Texas home was private, with no federal money.

Thus, a new fundraising drive: Chimp Haven last week created a "rescue fund," aiming to raise $675,000 for construction of a new housing area and another $35,000 for the chimps' annual food, health care and other needs.