• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • About Towleroad
  • Towleroad on Social Media
  • Privacy Policy

Towleroad Gay News

Gay Blog Towleroad: More than gay news | gay men

  • Travel
  • Sports
  • Law/Justice
  • Celebrities
  • Republicans
  • Madonna
  • Books
  • Men
  • Trans Rights
  • Royals
  • Monkeypox
  • Joe Exotic leaves everything to fiance Seth Posey in new will
  • Kim Petras defends Sam Smith amid backlash: ‘We are going backwards!’
  • Qualified? Melania Trump Gave Advice In Situation Room During Killing Of ISIS Leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdad, Defense Department Whistle-Blower Claims

After life of trauma, Liberian lab chimps settle into retirement

Towleroad April 21, 2022 Leave a Comment

Published by
AFP
509566 origin 1
Sixty-five chimps who were once lab research animals are now living in freedom on river islands in Liberia — they are being cared for under a 2017 settlement

Marshall City (Liberia) (AFP) – Floating on a river boat near a Liberian island, vet Richard Ssuna watches intently as animal carers wade towards the shore hurling fruits and imitating chimpanzee calls as they go. 

The beach is empty, but the sound of rustling and chimpish grunts begins to fill the green undergrowth. Slowly, an ape knucklewalks out onto the beach to grab some food.    

He’s a high-ranking member of his troop, explains Ssuna, as more chimpanzees follow. The younger ones gambol and hoot in delight as carers throw them bananas, palm nuts and cassava. 

Sixty-five chimps are spread across six uninhabited river islands near the Atlantic Ocean, about 55 kilometres (34 miles) south of the West African country’s capital Monrovia.

But their joy in feeding belies a dark past. 

The chimps are the remainders of a group of about 400 ex-test subjects of a US-funded research project — and have survived decades of invasive experiments. Some of the animals underwent several hundred biopsies.

“They were traumatised,” says Ssuna, who’s also a director of Humane Society International (HSI), a rights group that now cares for the primates. 

Chimp testing in Liberia began 1974, when the New York Blood Center (NYBC) funded biomedical research related to hepatitis B and other diseases at a complex by the Farmington River.

During Liberia’s devastating 1989-2003 civil war, the chimpanzees nearly starved to death as the country imploded around them.

Research staff in the impoverished country had to dig into their own pockets to provide basic sustenance. 

The researchers retired many of the chimps to the river islands in the mid-2000s but their ordeal continued. 

For reasons that remain unclear, NYBC cut funding in 2015 — in a move that provoked global outrage — abandoning the apes on the tiny river islands incapable of supporting them.

Activists picketed NYBC headquarters in New York and Hollywood stars such as Joaquin Phoenix and Ellen Page signed a petition urging the blood bank to reinstate funding. 

Brian Hare, a US-based primatologist who launched the petition, wrote at the time: “Effectively they have left these poor chimpanzees to suffer from dehydration and starvation”.

‘Victim of torture’

Liberia is one of the world’s poorest countries, where 44 percent of the population lives on less than $1.90 per day, according to the World Bank.

Local staff at the research centre kept showing up to work to help the chimps when NYBC cut funding — at a time when an Ebola epidemic was raging in Liberia. Rights groups and US financial giant Citigroup also provided relief funds during the turbulent period.

Under pressure, NYBC eventually struck an agreement to split the long-term care costs for the chimps with the Humane Society in 2017, pledging $6 million.

NYBC did not respond to questions from AFP about why it withdrew funding. 

Years on, the former lab chimps now enjoy veterinary care and two daily meals. But many still bear the scars of their grim past.  

At another island, during morning feeding, Ssuna points to a grizzled ape who’s missing an arm. The vet says the animal is “essentially victim of torture.”

The chimp, named Bullet, lost the limb as a infant when poachers killed his mother and ripped him from her arms. He then ended up at the research lab.

The carers are trained to form close attachments with the chimpanzees and to be gentle, explains Ssuna, who says certain stimuli can trigger negative memories in chimps, as in humans.  

  • Bright future – 

None of the chimpanzees can be released into the wild, and are confined to the islands for life. 

They never learned to fend for themselves and there are also fears they would spread disease if humans came into contact with them. 

Keeping them fed is a serious operation.

Carers prepare about 200 kilogrammes (440 pounds) of food every morning, and 120 kilos (264 pounds) in the afternoon — amounting to about 10 tonnes a month. 

Care will continue until every ape on the islands dies, according to Ssuna.

He estimates that their lifelong care will last some 50 years. Many of the chimps are around 20 years old and have a lifespan of about 60. 

There are also a small number of babies. HSI plans to vasectomise the males to prevent further births. 

“The future is very bright, as much as we would like to leave them back in the wild,” says Ssuna back on the mainland after the feeding, standing near the rusted animal cages of the old research complex. 

“They’re in a better place.” 

Topics: Aaon, Men, Society, World More Posts About: Joaquin Phoenix, New York Blood Center

Related Posts
  • Gladiator sequel gets 2024 release date
  • Brendan Gleeson joined Joker sequel to work with Joaquin Phoenix
  • Joaquin Phoenix to Produce Documentary Featuring LGBT Teens On a Journey to Summer Camp: VIDEO
  • Kim Petras defends Sam Smith amid backlash: ‘We are going backwards!’

    Kim Petras defends Sam Smith amid backlash: ‘We are going backwards!’

    Published by BANG Showbiz English Kim Petras thinks the world is “going backwards” with its attitudes toward sexual expression. The 30-year-old singer teamed up with her fellow pop star for ‘Unholy’ and following the backlash over …Read More »
  • Qualified? Melania Trump Gave Advice In Situation Room During Killing Of ISIS Leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdad, Defense Department Whistle-Blower Claims

    Qualified? Melania Trump Gave Advice In Situation Room During Killing Of ISIS Leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdad, Defense Department Whistle-Blower Claims

    Published by Radar Online mega Former First Lady Melania Trump was reportedly present for one of the Situation Room’s most important chairs during the killing of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi — going so far as …Read More »
  • 2023 Grammys Red Carpet: See Photos Of Lizzo, Doja Cat, Shania Twain & More!

    2023 Grammys Red Carpet: See Photos Of Lizzo, Doja Cat, Shania Twain & More!

    Published by OK Magazine cbs The biggest night in music has arrived! The 65th Annual Grammy Awards kicked off with a fabulous red carpet, with celebs going all out for the Sunday, February 5, show, which …Read More »
  • Fans Go Off On Shania Twain’s Confusing Grammys Outfit: ‘Supervillain Convention’

    Fans Go Off On Shania Twain’s Confusing Grammys Outfit: ‘Supervillain Convention’

    Published by OK Magazine Francis Specker/CBS ©2023 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. Shania Twain made a statement at the 2023 Grammy Awards. On Sunday, February 5, the country star, 57, sported a white and black outfit — with …Read More »
Previous Post: « Alec Baldwin’s lawyer says state’s ‘Rust’ shooting probe clears actor
Next Post: Barack Obama’s 20-Year-Old Daughter Sasha’s New Boyfriend Revealed! Meet Her 6’5″ Hunk Clifton Powell Jr. »

Primary Sidebar

Adjacent News

  • Ron DeSantis retaliates against Florida venue that hosted drag show in December

    Ron DeSantis retaliates against Florida venue that hosted drag show in December

  • Beyoncé Could Make Music History at the 2023 Grammy Awards

    Beyoncé Could Make Music History at the 2023 Grammy Awards

  • Behold: The new GOP culture wars | Opinion

    Behold: The new GOP culture wars | Opinion

Good Trash: Going to Read It Somewhere, Y'know

  • Dennis Rodman On If He’d Ever Get Back With Ex-Girlfriends: “I Tried Madonna, I Tried Carmen Electra…”

    Dennis Rodman On If He’d Ever Get Back With Ex-Girlfriends: “I Tried Madonna, I Tried Carmen Electra…”

  • James Gunn Seemingly Confirms The DCU Will Finally Have Gay Superheroes

    James Gunn Seemingly Confirms The DCU Will Finally Have Gay Superheroes

  • Vanilla Ice Admits He Rejected Madonna’s Proposal Before They Split: ‘I Thought The Guy Was Supposed To Do That’

    Vanilla Ice Admits He Rejected Madonna’s Proposal Before They Split: ‘I Thought The Guy Was Supposed To Do That’

RSS Partner Links

  • Mary J. Blige Delivers Incredible Performance of 'Good Morning Gorgeous' at Grammys 2023
  • Madonna Introduces Grammy Winners Kim Petras & Sam Smith
  • 65th Annual Grammy Awards 2023: Open Thread
  • Viola Davis has earned EGOT starts with Grammy Award for memoir audiobook narration
  • Bowen Yang Nails His Latest Inanimate Object (Wait ...)
  • Trump: All Negative Polls Are Wrong, 'Our Poll Numbers Are Excellent'
  • Open Post: Hosted By An Ohio Animal Shelter That Will Name A Litter Box After Your Ex For Valentine’s Day

Most Recent

  • Joe Exotic leaves everything to fiance Seth Posey in new will

    Joe Exotic leaves everything to fiance Seth Posey in new will

  • Kim Petras defends Sam Smith amid backlash: ‘We are going backwards!’

    Kim Petras defends Sam Smith amid backlash: ‘We are going backwards!’

  • Qualified? Melania Trump Gave Advice In Situation Room During Killing Of ISIS Leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdad, Defense Department Whistle-Blower Claims

    Qualified? Melania Trump Gave Advice In Situation Room During Killing Of ISIS Leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdad, Defense Department Whistle-Blower Claims

  • 2023 Grammys Red Carpet: See Photos Of Lizzo, Doja Cat, Shania Twain & More!

    2023 Grammys Red Carpet: See Photos Of Lizzo, Doja Cat, Shania Twain & More!

  • Fans Go Off On Shania Twain’s Confusing Grammys Outfit: ‘Supervillain Convention’

    Fans Go Off On Shania Twain’s Confusing Grammys Outfit: ‘Supervillain Convention’

  • Viola Davis achieves EGOT status at Grammy Awards

    Viola Davis achieves EGOT status at Grammy Awards

  • Pope Francis says laws criminalising LGBT people are a ‘sin’ and an injustice

    Pope Francis says laws criminalising LGBT people are a ‘sin’ and an injustice

  • Megyn Kelly RIPS Don Lemon Over Kaitlin Collins Fight, Says She Would’ve Had Him FIRED If He ‘Screamed’ At Her

    Megyn Kelly RIPS Don Lemon Over Kaitlin Collins Fight, Says She Would’ve Had Him FIRED If He ‘Screamed’ At Her

Most Commented

Social

Twitter @tlrd | Facebook | Instagram @tlrd

Footer

Copyright © 2023 · Log in

×