If you had a friend that had a 200 pound chimpanzee....

17 years ago

Would YOU be visiting her at home? I don't know. I love animals, but I've watched enough nature TV to know that chimps are incredibly strong and can be unpredictible, I would like to think that I would be smart enough to NOT go over there. But then, if the chimp had a great history and never had misbehaved, would I still think to stay away?

Have you been following this story about the chimp that nearly killed the owner's friend? It sounds truly horrible and almost unbelievable in its gruesomeness.

That poor woman who was attacked. I can't imagine the horror she felt and now the pain. And I feel badly for the owner, but my gosh.... what they say about keeping wild animals for pets has really come home to roost for her, now. She's going to regret this forever. It's all very sad and very shocking.

Your thoughts?

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Comments (46)

jannie
17 years ago
NO, I know that wild animals are never safe. That includes cute lion cubs, snakes, etc. There's a reason dogs and pets are called "domesticated". They can live with humans safely. Except for some Pit Bulls. . . my sister used to have a Pit Bull that was involved in a tragedy. It bit a child and had to be destroyed.
earthlydelights
17 years ago
i saw that story on nightline last night.

years ago our friends lived next door to a man that kept a bear. cute in the beginning, okay to look at from their back porch, but eventually the bear caused great harm.

you don't always know how a dog will react and they are bred to be house pets. i would never consider bringing a wild animal into my house and would be leary of visiting friends that keep them in their homes. heck, i'm bothered sometimes seeing how animals are in captivity in zoos.

maryanne
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grammahony
17 years ago
Oh no, I wouldn't go visit. 200 lbs is bigger than some men. I've also heard chimps are/can be mean.
Leslie
nodakgal
17 years ago
I saw this this morning on tv.
How awful for everyone! I don't understand why people get these animals and then try to keep them as pets? I mean its just not a good idea.
There was a guy and his wife here that had a bear a few miles away, they treated him like a baby, built a pen for him. He loved Mountain Dew I remember that. I am just wondering what happened to him? He was really big last time I drove by their country home. I have no idea if they still have him or not anymore....with livestock in the area I'd hate to see what he could do.
alisande
17 years ago
That story is as sad as it is horrifying. And yet the owner maintains that she would do it again if she could--even though she stabbed him repeatedly with a chef's knife. She believes chimpanzees should live freely with humans.

I guess she thinks it was perfectly reasonable to have to medicate him with Xanax, too. What a mess.
alisande
17 years ago
Oh, by the way, she said humans can be transfused with chimps' blood, and vice versa. I never heard that. I wonder if it's true. If no one knows, I'll look it up when I have more time.
maryanntx
17 years ago
I guess if we had been friends for many years and she had raised the chimp as a child for many years, and it had never showed any agression....I might not worry too much.
Of course I wouldn't do it now after hearing this story!
mrsmarv
17 years ago
Nope, no way, no how, uh-uh, no, no, no.
coral_ok
17 years ago
Our newspaper featured an article today about the birthday party for a chimp at the zoo. The zookeeper said that there would NOT be cake and party hats, because chimps are not little humans and we need to respect them for what they are. She also said that what we interpret as a smile could likely be a grimace of fear.
linda_in_iowa
17 years ago
The chimp owner sounds nutty to me. She thought of the chimp as her "son". Fed him lobster tails, filet mignon, he sat at the table with her and drank wine from a wine glass.
What a horrible tragedy for the victim, having her face destroyed.
I wouldn't visit a friend who kept a chimp in the house. When I was a kid we had neighbors who had a monkey who wore diapers. That little monkey was cute.
clubm
17 years ago
heard about that last night. The chimp must have gone beserk. they said she had gottten her hair cut, so the chimp may not have recognized her. No matter if he were a family pet, he was still a wild animal. Too bad for the lady, she was only trying to help her friend. I hope she survives.
marilyn_c
17 years ago
I don't believe in keeping animals like that as pets, and I wouldn't associate with anyone who did. That said, I am very cautious about other people's animals...even dogs. I don't pet other people's dogs until they get a chance to know me and vice versa. It never ceases to amaze me...the stupidity of people and how they handle animals.
cynic
17 years ago
Crazy people do crazy things. I hope she suffers the rest of her life over this to at least the square of what her friend will suffer, but she won't. She drugged the chimp and then lied about it. She's a nutcase that is an accomplice in a serious assault and should be prosecuted and jailed. Maybe put her in a zoo. She'd be happy and it'd serve her right. Let a nutty monkey rip her face off.
heatherinohio
17 years ago
No, I don't think that I would. Several years ago, my sister in law had a dog that absolutely hated me. I swear, when no one else was around this dog would come up to me and just glare at me & growl. She was super friendly to everyone else so no one believed me. :( So I very rarely went to visit.

IF she/anyone had a 200 pound ANYTHING - I don't think I could bring myself to visit. I'm pretty good at sending cards, maybe I'd just do that? :)
jel48
17 years ago
I thought this thread was a joke thread.... until I opened it. Now I have to go look the story up.

found it...

Here is a link that might be useful: 200 Pound Chimpanzee
susan_on
17 years ago
I don't wish the lady any harm. It must have been legal, although very ill advised for her to have such a pet. I'm sure she is distraught over what happened to her friend, and I don't wish anyone any harm.

I've been at the office all day, so I haven't heard any updates, but last I heard the victim was still as risk of dying. I hope people realize the dangers of having such a pet, and that laws are created and/or tightened to prevent this kind of thing from happening again.

To answer the OP, no, I would have been too nervous to visit a home with such a large animal. And I'm sure I would have googled it and found out what has now been publicized-that a chimpanzee of any size is 3 times stronger than a man of the same size. And that information would have kept me away.
minnie_tx
17 years ago
I wouldn't visit even if it was a 2 or 20 pound monkey.
lydia1959
17 years ago
I think I'd be afraid to visit anyone who had a 'wild' animal in their home. This is just a sad story all around.
User
17 years ago
Big animals including dogs scare me. I'd probably be leery, but then again, trained chimps are cute. I avoid people with big dogs that are just "a baby." I don't want that baby to bite me and I don't like to be pressured into petting an untrained animal either.
lynn_d
17 years ago
It would not keep me away from visiting a friend but I would be cautious. I agree with the sentiment that a chimp can turn, it seems they usually do. If I'm remembering correctly it has to do with sexual maturity. In general, I agree with not trying to keep a wild animal, it just brings heartbreak for all involved and the animal always ends up paying a horrible price.

My heart breaks for the gal that was attacked and also for the owner. When I heard her interviewed this morning and she said that after she stabbed him the chimp looked at her as if to ask what did you do mom, I had tears in my eyes for her.
ont_gal
17 years ago
to answer your question....yes,I would visit her..PROVIDING the *animal* was caged.
Pieonear
17 years ago
This story keeps changing.

Yesterday on the news they were saying the owner had given the Chimp some Xanax because he was nervous or jittery. Tonight on the news she was interviewed and kept repeating she had never given it to the Chimp.
susan_on
17 years ago
The news reports say the victim's condition is critical, but stable now. It also said that the xanax was put in the chimps' tea, but did not dissolve, so there apparently wasn't any in his system.

Here is a link that might be useful: Chimp attack update
roseluver
17 years ago
My mother, bless her soul, had to have a monkey. She thought them to be so cute. All went well for about a year, one day when she let him out it just went wild, tore up the whole house, drapes; knocked stuff off of dressers, etc. She had to call 911 for help. I don't remember what happened to the monkey, but it didn't live with her anymore. Wild animals do not belong in homes.
sable_ca
17 years ago
I would not step onto the property of someone who had a full-grown wild animal, ever.

The victim may not be in pain. Her medical team may be keeping her in a semi-coma. An attack similar to this occurred a couple of years ago in California. A childless couple had a mature chimpanzee whom they'd raised from birth, and finally the state forced them to give him to a wild animal refuge, after some incidents when he was too obstreperous. They visited him there regularly. One day two other chimps, not their own, escaped from their cages and attacked the husband, taking off a good part of his face, hands, feet, private parts, and causing other grievous injuries. He was kept in a medically-induced coma for months, during the initial very painful surgeries. He's back home today and says that they don't regret a thing.

This chimp's owner is a seventy-year old widow who lost her only daughter in a car crash some years ago. IMO she was very stupid to keep this chimp, but OTOH I have compassion for her. I don't think that jail would be appropriate. She will suffer for the rest of her life, as will her mauled friend.
wildchild
17 years ago
It's pretty well known that Chimps and Monkeys are very unpredictable once they reach adolescence so I would expect it to be properly secured or leashed when I visited.

As a teen I used to hang at this guy's (see link) yard where he kept wolves and an adult mountain lion.

I also knew someone else who had a full grown mountain lion in his backyard but I never met her (the lion).

Here is a link that might be useful: Wolf Teacher
Jasdip
17 years ago
She was a little over the edge, regarding this chimp though.
They slept together and BATHED together, and she let the chimp brush her hair.
Am I the only one who thinks there's something wrong with this picture???
maybee_gw
17 years ago
The thing of it is...I might not have thought to stay away since she had had it so long......I would certainly think twice "now", but don't know that I would have before this happened....
Granlan_TX
17 years ago
If you had a friend that had a 200 pound chimpanzee....

I wouldn't like or respect that 'friend' and would do what I could to protect the animal and change the laws regarding ownership of such animals.

And I would NOT visit either...grrrr!
grittymitts
17 years ago
Agree with jasdip. Private citizen ownership of any wild animal should be illegal IMHO. Imagining what could happen if they escaped in a natural disaster makes my blood run cold.
Suzi
majaco
17 years ago
I can't imagine anyone having a 200# chimp in their home and NO i would not go visit. Some people have dogs in their home that I won't visit.
kframe19
17 years ago
Would I visit?

No. Chimps scare the living hell out of me.

Pound for pound an adult chimp is something like 5 times stronger than a human, and the older they get the shorter tempered they get.
rosemaryt
17 years ago
I also can't imagine having a 200-pound chimp in the house. The owner said it wore diapers. From a purely hygienic point of view, ick.

Apparently, attacks like this are not unheard of. I don't think I'd visit someone who had a 200-pound chimp running around.

That aside, this is all very sad.
marlingardener
17 years ago
Grittymitts is absolutely right--ownership of a wild animal should be absolutely illegal! Very few people are trained/capable/emotionally able to deal with wild animals, and those folks mostly work for zoos.
Here in Central Texas an animal control officer confiscated a Bengal tiger--kept in a too-small cage, infested with worms, and underweight.
We had a neighbor who swore his "dog" was half wolf. We thought it looked more like an underweight coyote, but the poor animal was kept on a short leash in the Texas sun. I finally called animal control, who fined the owner.
I feel sorry for the chimpanzee who was expected to behave like what it definitely was not--a human.
Terri_PacNW
17 years ago
She used him to make money. He was a "hollywood"/commercial actor..He was extremely trained...so why couldn't she train him to use the toilet???

I think he was all good..until he got to a certain age..Apparently adolescent/adult chimps become very demonstrative in the wild when it's time to "become" master of their domain..Why did anyone related to the raising or care of this guy think any different?

She just didn't think..........
evatx
17 years ago
Nope. I barely tolerate dogs & cats, so can't imagine a 200 lb. animal!
czech_chick
17 years ago
I would never visit anyone who keeps a wild animal in their home! Here is an excerpt from a NY newspaper...

DAILY NEWS (NY) STAFF WRITERS

Thursday, February 19th 2009, 2:12 AM

Woman mauled by ape in critical condition after surgery
911 tape captures chimp owner's horror.

The shocked family of the chimp attack victim said Wednesday a team of doctors is working feverishly to save her life as the extent of her horrific injuries was revealed.

Paramedics say Charla Nash, 55, lost her nose, eyes and jaw as the crazed simian ate her alive in the driveway of her friend's Stamford, Conn., home Monday.

His voice shaky, her twin brother, Mike Nash, thanked the four teams of specialists who performed more than seven hours of surgery.

"The team of doctors and staff battled around the clock to stabilize Charla," he said inside Stamford Hospital.

Charla Nash was listed in critical but stable condition yesterday, and her vital signs were improving, doctors said.
Chemocurl zn5b/6a Indiana
17 years ago
Maybe the owner of the chimp could sue whoever sold or gave her the chimp. She could then hand over all the $$ to her friend who is clinging to life.
shay13
17 years ago
Some close family friends had a chimp, they got him as a baby. I remember as a young girl, how cute he was in his diapers and with his baby bottle. He was a lot of fun to play with even as he got bigger. We spent a lot of time at their house with him and we even took him with us when riding horses. Years went by and during college I went back to visit this family and their chimp. By this time he was an adolescent and beginning to show unpredictable behaviour. They eventually moved him from out of the house into a heated/airconditioned cage outside. He got to the point that only the father of the family could control him. The chimp continued to get more violent every day and eventually they had to put him to sleep. I wasn't scared at the time to be around him, but knowing what I know now, I wouldn't even think about being around one, even if it is so called "domesticated".
kframe19
17 years ago
"so why couldn't she train him to use the toilet???"

Chimps of any age cannot be toilet trained.
teresava
17 years ago
I'm surprised at so many of you who knew people that had monkeys as pets?? Who knew??

I don't 100% trust a dog or cat, they're an animal! They don't ever lose their instinct. I'm certainly not going to trust a huge chimp that's much stronger then me! You want me to meet him-send me a picture!
gemini40
17 years ago
I would not be visiting.
dorothy_oahu
17 years ago
NO way! I watch enough Animal Planet to know better than to be around wild animals.

The victim was just transfered to a Cleveland Clinic to keep her stabilized. What a terrible thing to happen to her.

Here is a link that might be useful: Transferred
deemarie5500
17 years ago
Not only would I not visit a chimp; I seldom visit friends who have any animals. I'm just not comfortable around them. Some of my friends will invite me and offer to put dogs away when I visit, but I do most of the entertaining or we meet for dinner, etc. away from our homes.
margad
17 years ago
This took place very close to where I live. It is very scary to think about. The poor woman was taken to our local hospital and then transferred. I think they are talking about a face transplant. That poor woman. I wonder if the woman who owned the chimpanzee cares more about losing him than she does about her friend.
bobbie56
17 years ago
Not now!!

If you had a friend that had a 200 pound chimpanzee....

Comments (46)

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