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- [00:00]
A
Welcome back. And today we are speaking with Save the Chimps and they're doing exactly what their name suggests, Saving the chimps. Now they've actually been around for 25 years and have been able to rescue over 200 chimpanzees. That's a lot. It's coming from research labs, the pet trade industry and even the entertainment business. But maintaining a safe environment in a sanctuary really does take some work. I want to welcome to the show Anna Tavares who is the CEO of Save the Chimps. Can you kind of tell us about your sanctuary and the work you've done there?
- [00:30]
B
Oh, thank you so much for having me and your interest in sharing about Save the Chimps. The sanctuary is a beautiful place. 150 acres in Florida's Treasure Coast 12 island habitat is the home to large chimpanzee family groups. Our goal here and everything we do is, is aimed at offering them a life as close to the one that they would have in the wild as possible. That means for them having freedoms of choice, self determination, the ability to be indoors or outdoors. Here they have 24 hour access to the outdoor. They can spend time grooming with their social group or roaming their island with their best friends participating in enrichment activities or not. And that's super important. And again what we aim to do here.
- [01:29]
A
I did mention earlier that Save the Chance is celebrating its 25 year anniversary. That's amazing. You know, looking back, what are some of the organization's biggest accomplishments would you say? And how has that mission evolved over the years?
- [01:43]
B
It's really amazing what our founder was able to do to 25 plus years ago. Dr. Carol Noon, primatologist, in partnership with great ape advocate John Stryker. It's a really interesting, I think development. Carroll sued the Air Force on behalf of the chimpanzees that were retiring from the air force and one won the right to care for 21 of the chimpanzees. And I'd say that one of the most amazing accomplishments of the organization of course was that these chimpanzees were retiring from the US space program. The first chimpanzee to ever go into space or the first being ever going to space was a chimpanzee. And when they were retiring they went to this horrible place, the Colston Foundation. After we built our first island and the first 21 chimpanzees arrived, that Carlston foundation declared bankruptcy, contacted Dr. Karen Noon to offer Save the Chimps to rescue a few more chimps. And that's one of the most beautiful developments I believe in our history was that John Stryker and Carol Moon went to New Mexico to visit this place where 266 chimpanzees were living in Bel war possible situation. It was a true horror show. And after visiting, Carol asked John, how many do you think we can rescue? And John's answer was, how can we leave any of them behind? And that became known as the great chimpanzee migration and the largest chimpanzee rescue in history anywhere in the world. And brought them in ten at a time. It took us about close to a decade to build all of these islands and all of the habitats. And after that, became the largest chimpanzee sanctuary in the world. And it's amazing that many of them are here and thriving now.
- [04:01]
A
You really do have such amazing stories coming out of Save the Chimps. One of the newer ones is happening right now. The introduction of chimpanzees Limbani and Tuffy, their best friends. Can you tell us about them and why successful chimp interactions are such an important part of sanctuary life?
- [04:17]
B
Yes. Lambani is our youngest resident and he is amazing. He is charming, smart, strong. He is just amazing. But he was raised alone. He is now nine years old. He came here when he was eight from a zoo in Miami and he really had never lived with other chimps. So this is the case here at Save the Chimps. Chimpanzees are very social like us, and they learn from each other. They learn how to behave, how to thrive, how to survive from each other. And all of our chimps are very unique in their personalities, they likes and dislikes, but they have at least one thing in common. Most of them were taken from their mothers at birth and did not learn how to be a chimp. So it's amazing to see someone like Lambani who joined us at a young age and had never really been with other chimpanzees. Right now he's living with four other chimpanzees and that's. That process is amazing, but it's really special, the development of his relationship with Taffy. Taffy is a chimpanzee who's been here for about eight years and was raised as a pet and also did not learn how to be a chimpanzee. Was very much on its own. Has met other chimps but never touched another champ or allowed to be touched by another champ. And it's just beautiful to see the friendship between Lambani and Taffy. And the two of them are inseparable. They run around, they hug, they play, they Just, they're inseparable, and it's beautiful, and it's what the sanctuary is all about. The greatest gift that we give them, easy traffic.
- [06:22]
A
Oh, that's amazing. And you know what? People don't really realize this, but chimpanzees can live to, like, 50, 60 years old, and they actually require lifelong care. What does it take to provide a safe, enriching environment for over more than 200 chimpanzees that you have?
- [06:37]
B
Well, a healthy diet, super important. We have 2,500 pounds of fresh fruit, vegetables, leafy greens, giving daily to the chimpanzees, plus another probably 500 pounds of food that is giving through enrichment. They get three to five enrichment activities daily to stimulate them physically, cognitively and emotionally. In the wild, chimpanzees walk about six miles a day looking for food, solving problems, encountering challenges, and dealing with them. They would be super bored and not healthy if they were not stimulated. So that's the focus of our enrichment activities. And there is more. They get a lot of training to contribute with their daily care as well as their medical care, their health care. We train them to take injections and they know body parts if we need to see them, or to take their blood pressure or check their heart with cardias. And it's just incredible how smart they are. But this is all really important, and they are complex beings, and it's a combination of enrichment, nutrition, medical care, and a space where they can thrive. But definitely, again, the biggest gift we give them is each other and that companionship.
- [08:18]
A
Right? They almost sound like humans, which is so amazing listening to you talk about them. But as more research facilities kind of close and animal welfare standards continue to evolve, what challenges and opportunities do sanctuaries like yours face in caring for retired chimpanzees?
- [08:35]
B
Well, it's wonderful to say that in the case of chimpanzees, we're not importing chimpanzees anymore. And chimpanzees are both, in the wild as well as in captivity, are endangered species. So there is no use of chimpanzees by biomedical labs anymore here in the United States in the entertainment industry. Hollywood knows better. So you don't see chimpanzees in movies or commercials or TV shows anymore because they use cgi. It's the right thing to do. They know better now. And it's also cheaper. Unfortunately, there's still a huge challenge with primates and with being bred in the country and used as pets. So chimpanzees should not primates should not be used as pets. They are wild beings, intelligent, sentient beings, and should not be kept as pets. That's the challenge that we have. There's still about, I'd say, 100 to 150 chimpanzees in the US that are not living in appropriate conditions. And, and we, as well as other accredited sanctuaries in the country, are looking at the opportunity to rescue them and are actively engaging with these places where they are housed now and working with other animal welfare organizations to be able to give them a second chance at life and an opportunity to retire in a place where they can thrive.
- [10:24]
A
Absolutely. Anna, thank you so much for coming on the show and sharing all this with us. What a beautiful mission and what a beautiful thing that you're doing here for, you know, Save the Chimps. For, you know, listeners who want to support the sanctuary, visit, volunteer. How do we get involved?
- [10:40]
B
Thank you for asking. As you can imagine, it takes a lot to care for 215 chimpanzees in the right way. Anyone can support by making contributions and going to our website, www.cmt.savethechamps.org and making a contribution or signing up to become a volunteer.