SAVE THE CHIMPS SANCTUARY

Marc, Late, Kaleb, Tina, Kayla, and Katina departed for Florida on August 4, 2011 after STC staff spent an anxious 24 hours monitoring Tropical Storm Emily, which was predicted to possibly be hitting Florida at the same time as the chimps’ scheduled arrival.  Everyone in the sanctuary was alert to try to avoid that both arrived at the same time. But chimpanzees have guardian angels and Emily dissipated before approaching the Florida coast, and the migration went off without a hitch!

The chimps arrived very early in the morning on August 6th. They rested and got their bearings over the weekend. On Monday, Marc, Late, Tina, Kayla, and Katina were released out onto the island for the first time.

Marc led all of them out to explore the island. When it started to rain, they came back indoors, except for Marc who preferred to stay outdoors enjoying his new-found freedom. There are chimpanzees who like to run in the rain and enjoy the sensation of the water on their bodies. When he was hungry he entered the enclosure to have his favorite dinner: pasta!

Kaleb, a former pet chimp, got along famously with Thoto, Shakey, Millie, and Scarlett, and went out onto the island with them on Tuesday. He was quite bold and immediately began to explore his new surroundings, climbing platforms and running across hills.  Thoto even gave him a big hug, as if he were saying “Welcome home, friend.” 

Soon these six brave chimps will be joined by the rest of their family: Lisa, Pam, Comet, Tyra, Katherine, Wally, Mandingo, Oliver, Dwight, and Ace. They are counting down the days to leave behind the bad memories of their lives in former lab of Coulston Foundation, where they suffered what few humans have already suffered in their lives.

Related article: Stop Using Chimps as Guinea Pigs, by Roscoe Bartlett, Republican representative in the Congress from Maryland. Read here: http://www.savethechimps.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=news.details&ArticleId=204&returnTo=did-you-know

Related news:
https://www.projetogap.org.br/en-US/noticias/Show/3853,an-example-of-compassion