FOA holds title to chimpanzees

[Guest guest]

Friends of Animals, who are consistently critical of other groups'

efforts to reduce animal suffering rather than fighting for their rights,

now claim to " own " several chimpanzees. The group has allegedly

already spent in excess of $100,000 of donations towards legal fees to

recover animals rescued from a horrible sanctuary in Texas which FOA

purchased earlier this year. This is a complete waste of funds that could

be used to further the rights of animals. FOA is not arguing that the

chimpanzees are in poor conditions or being mistreated - simply that they

are the property of FOA and should be returned to the scene of their

earlier neglect. As long as animals are treated like property, they will

never have rights.

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http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/metro/stories/MYSA080707.03B.chimp_lawsuit

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3363e67.html

Primarily Primates suing La. sanctuary over relocated chimps

Web Posted: 08/06/2007 10:36 PM CDT

Cindy Tumiel

San Antonio Express-News

Another lawsuit fell into the hopper at the Bexar County Courthouse

on

Monday over a group of retired research chimpanzees from Ohio State

University that now live at Chimp Haven sanctuary in Louisiana.

Primarily Primates of San Antonio, which housed the chimps for

several

months last year, filed a lawsuit in state district court to force

Chimp

Haven to return the seven animals.

" We believe we hold title to them, " said Priscilla Feral of

Friends of

Animals, a national animal advocacy group that has merged with the

San

Antonio sanctuary. " Their designated place of retirement was

Primarily

Primates. "

The animals lived briefly at Primarily Primates in 2006 but were

transferred to Chimp Haven in the fall after the Texas attorney general

 

successfully

petitioned an Austin court to appoint a receiver to run the

sanctuary.

The receiver moved dozens of animals to other sanctuaries and zoos

around the country, saying that conditions at Primarily Primates

were

overcrowded.Primarily Primates and the attorney general settled their

 

dispute in

May,and the sanctuary's restructured board now is moving to reclaim many

 

of

the relocated animals.

Rick Dela Haya, spokesman for Chimp Haven, was unaware of the

lawsuit.

" That is absolutely news to me, " he said Monday.

When OSU moved the retired chimps to San Antonio, it pledged more

than

$300,000 so Primarily Primates could build enclosures for the

animals

and provide for their care.

Construction is nearly complete on two new chimpanzee enclosures,

Feral

said Monday. The plan is for the OSU chimps to live in a family group

 

along

with two other chimps that the receiver sent to a sanctuary in Oregon.

 

That

facility has gone to a federal court there in a bid to keep the

animals.

 

 

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