Case 1
Dr. B., a Professor of Psychology at a large research institution, Ohio State University (OSU), has a long distinguished record of working with chimpanzees. In the 1970s, she taught chimps to communicate, first by using American Sign Language and later using graphic symbols. In the last decade, under her direction, two young chimps, Keeli and Ivy, have learned to count and to recognize simple written words. Another chimp, Bobby, has shown an uncanny ability to learn number sequences and even to fill in missing numbers in a sequence. She has learned that chimps can do simple arithmetic, behave similarly to preschoolers, and (along with humans) have the ability to perceive the knowledge state of a peer.
Dr. B., who has dedicated her entire professional life to the study of cognition in chimpanzees, has won international acclaim for her work and was named one of the top 50 women researchers in the nation by Discover Magazine in 2002. Her chimps have been featured on Discovery Channel. However, as funding to support the research center has been hard to come by in the last five years, the university decided to close the research center and send the chimps away. OSU abruptly seized the professor’s laboratory on February 28, 2006, changed all the locks, and hired a truck to send all 12 primates (nine chimps and three monkeys) to Primarily Primates, a controversial Texas sanctuary. The university gave the sanctuary a $324,000 trust fund for the animal’s care.
Dr. B. vigorously protested the decision. When a restraining order she filed failed to prevent the university from implementing its decision, Dr. B. chained herself to the center’s gate to prevent the transport trucks from leaving. Her efforts were unsuccessful and one of the chimps, 25-year old Kermit, died during the 38-hour transport in early March. Bobby was found dead in his enclosure on April 20. One of the monkeys escaped and was never recovered. Dr. B sued OSU to win custody of the remaining chimps. PETA also joined the suit on behalf of the remaining seven chimps and two monkeys and in June a Texas judge ordered that an independent trustee should oversee the $324,000 funding to ensure that it be used to house and benefit the remaining OSU primates.