Enriching Lives with Wild-Inspired Habitats

Enriching Lives with Wild-Inspired Habitats

Save the Chimps is home to more than 220 residents rescued from medical research, the entertainment industry, and the pet trade. We are committed to providing exemplary lifetime care for our residents. In the wild, chimpanzees live in groups of 15-120 group members in “fission-fusion” societies in which all community members know each other but feed, travel, and sleep in much smaller groups of six or fewer. By providing our residents with large 3- to 5-acre island habitats, the chimps can choose who to spend their time with and where. With this space and freedom, they have the opportunity to form friendships, alliances, and hierarchies that are vital to group-level stability and their own well-being.

Each resident rescued by Save the Chimps has their special moment. The moment the door to the island is opened, they can experience grass, trees, blue skies, and freedom, many for the first time in their lives. While our expansive islands offer them these freedoms, they were created over twenty years ago, and our goal is to update these habitats to create a more engaging environment that allows for increased activity.

New trees, engaging enrichment, shaded areas, and structures at Save the Chimps can help to enrich the lives of the chimpanzees in our care, providing them with shade from the sun when desired, places to climb, swing, nest, and brachiate, as well as the opportunity to enjoy companionship and new experiences.

Save the Chimps' 150-acre sanctuary consists of twelve family groups, each with a 3-5 acre island attached to a building. The residents have the space and freedom to choose where to spend their time.