... and now one has died, after only 6 months at the sanctuary, Tibi was given a full medical report and no attention was paid to his condition and now Tibi is dead. We need answers, voices and a call for accountability. #ripChimpTibi

"It is their time to live" reads the slogan for Project Chimps.... is this how they should live? 

The link below shares several letters composed by (unnamed whistle blowers)  at Project Chimps, employees sounding the alarm early on when the deteriorating care of the chimapanzees at @Project Chimps became unbearable. 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K_oestEV8T481tK_p8kVZwK2WEiWKEKF/view?fbclid=IwAR2wv9dCw8x_y_9Xoy460MOqMzPFCp0zSKNYrDm8uJ7kq_KafADDM41cEKM    

Project Chimps is a Sanctuary where former lab chimpanzees were granted a place  far beyond the research labs, a place to live out their lives in the beautiful blue ridge mountains ... idyllic, peaceful and a place with great potential to assist in the healing of their wounds sufferered in a life of research lab,.

Unfortunately, it appears that things have gone south for these chimpanzees. Multiple allegations regarding animal welfare have come into the light. These allegations state and show that the proper, humane and ethical care for these chimpanzees is perhaps no longer in place. Crystal Alba is spearheading this deeper look into Project Chimps; she is an animal advocate, vet.tech and photographer, formally employed at Project Chimps.

Crystal Alba, writes;  

" I would like for everyone to know that I was fired from Project Chimps today for voicing concerns about animal welfare, the living conditions of the chimps, and inadequate veterinary care. It’s about to go very public, and I’m being blamed for it. I’ve worked there 3 years as a caregiver and veterinary assistant.There were actually 11 whistleblowers total, but I was the one fired and I will not be outing the others. They are made up of caregivers, aides, volunteers, and interns. For an entire year I fought to have welfare concerns addressed through every imaginable channel. And yet proper care continues to take a backseat at this facility, and when I spoke up I was terminated. One thing is certain, I will not be silent now. And once I’ve calmed down, I will be sharing all the details because this is not something that can be allowed to continue. I’ve spent three years documenting everything as part of my job and I will continue to use that documentation to be a voice for the chimps.I was not allowed to say goodbye to the chimps I worked with and fought for for 3 years. I will never see Noel again. I have nothing to lose now. Just to start, this chimp (Kennedy) had all his hair when he arrived here from the lab." 

documented negligent practices;

" 1. These retired research chimps only go outside for a few hours per week. More chimps are being added this year, thereby making habitat access even less frequent for each group.
2. A dog and cat vet has been in charge of their care for 3 years and he's only on-site twice a week. PC says they have a new vet prospect but haven't shared their name and this person hasn't even visited and doesn't have a contract.
3. No one on the PC management team has chimp experience. Only one board member has chimp experience.
4. Precious has kidney disease that is not being monitored and she gets no special dietary considerations or supplements.
5. Enrichment is not time-consuming and the chimps spend most of their day in a concrete building with nothing to do.
6. No nesting material or bedding is provided to the chimps outside of a handful of blankets for them to share.
7. A brand new building is infested with rats and has peeling paint, drainage problems, lack of sunlight, and unsafe doors.
8. Chimps with severe wounds are only given Ibuprofen (see last photo in this post as an example. WARNING: graphic)
9. No attempts are made to address stereotypic behaviors like plucking, coprophagia, etc. It's simply accepted as normal."

Let us not create "charities" that promote frictionless "win-win" solutions to problems, but disdain the hard, contentious work of democratic politics. These chimpanzees deserve proper care from experts in the applicable field, and the absolute best from us humans as we seek to restore and heal them from the damage they have already suffered.

We animal activist, caretakers, animal experts, scientist, vets, conservationist, stewards, volunteers, friends and citizens of the world ask that the allegations towards Project Chimps be met with honest transparency and verifiable resolutions. This for the welfare of the chimpanzees and in pursuit of an enlightened sanctuary culture.