Project ChimpCARE: Evaluating the Care, Management, and Welfare of Privately Owned Chimpanzees in the United States
This conference presentation describes the basis and strategy of the work of Project ChimpCARE, a non-partisan group committed to improving the well-being of chimpanzees.
[Abstract excerpted from original source.]
“In the United States, chimpanzees are one of the only exotic nonhuman animal species found in accredited zoological parks, roadside attractions, and sanctuaries and used as companion animals and performers for television, movies, and advertisements. A lack of any federal legislation and ineffective state laws governing private ownership have led to a widely distributed population of chimpanzees that is difficult to quantify and that is often housed under minimum or completely unregulated circumstances. Project ChimpCARE aims to take a cooperative and multidisciplinary approach to not only quantify the number of chimpanzees across the United States but to also assess their current care and management and work toward sustainable solutions that meet the complex needs of this species. In this talk, the factors that have precipitated the current situation for chimpanzees in the United States and the collaborative approach Project ChimpCARE has employed to assess this population is described. During the first 6 months of site visits and investigation, over 250 privately owned chimpanzees (those not living in accredited zoos, research centers, or legitimate sanctuaries) were identified, including 129 companion animals or individuals in the pet-breeding industry, 86 at unaccredited animal attractions, and 44 in the entertainment industry. Factors such as sparse social experience and lack of appropriate maternal rearing distinguish this population from other chimpanzees…”