September 4, 2007
This July the director of program management for HSUS's Animal Research Issues—Kathleen Conlee—visited the chimps at the Cleveland Amory Black Beauty Ranch in celebration of their 10-year anniversary at the sanctuary. All formerly used in laboratory research, these animals are the ambassadors for The HSUS's new Chimps Deserve Better campaign. Read Conlee's reflections on her visit below, and catch up on the rest of her chimp encounters here.
Meeting the stars of the Chimps Deserve Better campaign, Kitty, Lulu and Midge, was a must. After all, we had to celebrate their 10th anniversary out of life in laboratories.
Jennifer Ball, who works on the CDB campaign full time, and I started with a trip to the store to get treats for the anniversary celebration. I have to admit that meeting and buying treats for chimps is definitely a perk of our jobs. We got to the ranch and were excited to meet the chimps. I gave them a chimpanzee greeting by presenting the top of my bent wrist (a gesture known as a wrist-present), but honestly no one seemed to care. Then I thought to myself, ‘good for them—they aren’t desperately seeking attention as some human-raised chimpanzees do and aren’t being aggressive toward us.’They are content and laid back and have clearly adjusted to a calm life on the Ranch. It was actually heartwarming to see.
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| The HSUS |
| Midge Eats Watermelon at Anniversary Party |
We prepared their anniversary “cake,” which was a bowl made of watermelon rind filled with fruits, berries, soy yogurt, and nondairy topping (just a bit). As soon as they saw us with the cake, the food grunts began. I knew we could get these chimps excited about something, even in this hot weather! We locked the chimpanzees out and carefully placed various pieces of cake throughout their large enclosure to make sure everyone got plenty and no one could monopolize it. We let everyone in and the fun began. Lulu, known for loving food, was very methodical about eating every last bite and set out for seconds. Midge didn’t pass up a chance at seconds either. Kitty took her treat where she could overlook the whole enclosure and ended up with her face completely inside of the bowl. I’d say the watermelon cake was a hit.
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| The HSUS |
A few weeks after the celebration, a photo of Lulu
was displayed in New York's Times Square |
I had heard that Midge likes to play tag, something I’ve seen in other captive male chimpanzees. So I decided to play along since Kitty and Lulu don’t seem to like to amuse him with this game. He did seem to enjoy running away from me quite a bit and I was happy to oblige. Afterwards, they all had a chance to show off their new skills. Kitty Lulu and Midge have all been trained to cooperate with their caregivers in the case of emergency by shifting to different areas and showing body parts for inspection in case of an injury. They are only trained for what is really needed—nothing frivolous and no use of punishment, as training of chimpanzees used for movies and television often involves.
Finally, we had to say goodbye—after all there is a lot to do to help the nearly 1,200* chimpanzees remaining in laboratories. Kitty, Lulu and Midge will continue to help with our campaign.
Read the rest of Kathleen's journal: "Visiting Those We Protect."
*Updated Jan. 19, 2008
