TV Chimp attacks & gravely injures woman.

PattyCake

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Omy, how can this happen? I knew chimps could get vicious and uncontrollable but to this extent?

They say he was recently placed on Xanax too? Who made this idiotic decision?
You think maybe he's depressed for being in a world that isn't his own habitat?

I edited my title because I mentioned the fact that she was partially eaten. As sick as that is, can anyone enlighten me if this is normal attack behavior of animals like that?

Scary to think we share 97% of DNA with this creature.

Wild animals do not belong with people as pets - ever.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,494067,00.html
 
I have been hearing this story for 2 days already, and I still can't believe it. They said he was smart enough to open doors to the house, the cars, and even stole the keys to the car where he intended to drive away. Unreal.

I also heard that this chimp had been in trouble before. from www.7online.com:

Police have dealt with the animal in the past, including an incident in 2003 when he escaped from his owners' vehicle in downtown Stamford for two hours. Officers used cookies, macadamia treats and ice cream in an attempt to lure him, but subdued him only after he became too tired to resist.

At the time of the 2003 incident, police said the Herolds told them the chimpanzee was toilet trained, dressed himself, took his own bath, ate at the table and drank wine from a stemmed glass. He also brushed his teeth using a Water Pik, logged onto the computer to look at pictures, and watched television using the remote control, police said.
 
Just like the link says PattyCake, wild animals do not belong with people as pets...ever.

I feel sorry for the woman that was attacked and I feel sorry for Travis too. Even in the pic he's in a cage.
 
This is so upsetting to me on so many levels. I am very sorry for the woman who was attacked and understand she was a victim here. I also feel very sorry for the owner who witnessed her friend being attacked and had to stab her beloved pet and ultimately see him killed. I am sure the entire scenario is extremely traumatizing for her.

I am also very sorry for Travis too. Chimps, or any wild animals, should not be kept as pets. They are not meant to live in the confines of our artificial world and they will not be happy in it. If a person does have a wild animal they really need to immerse themselves in understanding that animals behavior, psychology, instincts and how to interact and react with them when necessary to try and avoid tragic situations. Chimps are extremely territorial for one, They are also incredibly social and like to live in big groups with other chimps. They are also extremely intelligent animals in a pragmatic sense but they also have a very high emotional intelligence as well and need a lot of interaction, stimulation and most of all he needed to be with other chimps - no wonder he was on Xanax.

When animals attack it is almost always for reasons other than being viscious for the sake of it. It was most likely a situation where Travis felt threatened or felt his family was threatened and/or he was being territorial. Chimps in the wild have very specific boundries they stay in and they protect those boundries fiercly and if they perceive a threat coming in those boundries they will attack. I think his owner is right - he did not recognize this woman when she got close to him and he attacked her. Not in this case as this attack was completely unprovoked but in a lot of cases like this it is the stupidity, superiority complex and sheer ignorance of humans that are the catalyst for animal attacks and almost always the animal is blamed. The tiger at SanFran Zoo for one example.

The situation is sad all the way around. I hope this poor woman will recover and not bear obvious signs of this attack. Chimps are incredibly powerful animals and it is a small miracle she even survived.

RIP Travis.
 
I just saw something on TV the other day about how dangerous chimps are. They said that they attack the face and neck, then the genitals.
 
Such a tragic story all the way around. I will pray for the recovery of both ladies attacked. RIP Travis, it could not have been a happy existence for him.
 
I just feel sad for all parties involved here - including the wild chimp. He should not have been held captive. And while I do have compassion for the people who were injured - people should realize that you can never expect to humanize or domesticate a wild animal. I'm sorry to say this, but the owner is at fault for not recognizing this. Owning animals like this should be illegal.

I really hope the women recover, however, they're both going to be emotionally and physically scarred for the rest of their lives, and the poor chimp is dead.
 
Did any of you see the Animal Planet series Escape to Chimp Eden? A fellow was rescuing chimps and taking them to his sanctuary. He would release them if they could be rehabilitated. Otherwise they spent their days with him and his crew.

These guys are really strong and one of the crew was feeding one through the bars and the chimp bit off her finger in one bite. It was horrible and she just had a moment of inattention. There was a behaviorist that would warn the staff when they chimps weren’t in a good mood and they wouldn’t go near the chimps until they had spent time there. It was a very interesting program.

The series isn’t on any more, but God bless him for getting these chimps out of the horrible surroundings they were in and try to make life better for them.
 
Very sad, I'm an animal lover and hate to see things like this happen.
 
Goodness..the 911 call was just released...it's coming up on nightline....it's horrible!
 
The owner gave him XANAX in tea to calm him down! He had been mad all day and when a friend tried to help - he ripped the friend's face off!
 
This is so upsetting to me on so many levels. I am very sorry for the woman who was attacked and understand she was a victim here. I also feel very sorry for the owner who witnessed her friend being attacked and had to stab her beloved pet and ultimately see him killed. I am sure the entire scenario is extremely traumatizing for her.

I am also very sorry for Travis too. Chimps, or any wild animals, should not be kept as pets. They are not meant to live in the confines of our artificial world and they will not be happy in it. If a person does have a wild animal they really need to immerse themselves in understanding that animals behavior, psychology, instincts and how to interact and react with them when necessary to try and avoid tragic situations. Chimps are extremely territorial for one, They are also incredibly social and like to live in big groups with other chimps. They are also extremely intelligent animals in a pragmatic sense but they also have a very high emotional intelligence as well and need a lot of interaction, stimulation and most of all he needed to be with other chimps - no wonder he was on Xanax.

When animals attack it is almost always for reasons other than being viscious for the sake of it. It was most likely a situation where Travis felt threatened or felt his family was threatened and/or he was being territorial. Chimps in the wild have very specific boundries they stay in and they protect those boundries fiercly and if they perceive a threat coming in those boundries they will attack. I think his owner is right - he did not recognize this woman when she got close to him and he attacked her. Not in this case as this attack was completely unprovoked but in a lot of cases like this it is the stupidity, superiority complex and sheer ignorance of humans that are the catalyst for animal attacks and almost always the animal is blamed. The tiger at SanFran Zoo for one example.

The situation is sad all the way around. I hope this poor woman will recover and not bear obvious signs of this attack. Chimps are incredibly powerful animals and it is a small miracle she even survived.

RIP Travis.

You said everything I wanted to say but I'm sure you said it better. I also regret the horrible injuries that the woman suffered and I pray she recovers. People should never keep wild animals as pets, period. Even my sweet kitty will bite the crap out of me when I pick at her and the beast in her comes out. The same thing happens with circus elephants when they are kept in artificial environments until one day they nut up completely and go on a rampage. Humans think we have the right to use and abuse animals in any whay we choose, but nature will have her way in the end. Not a thing we can do about it, either. That poor chimp must have been so frightened and confused.
 
You said everything I wanted to say but I'm sure you said it better. I also regret the horrible injuries that the woman suffered and I pray she recovers. People should never keep wild animals as pets, period. Even my sweet kitty will bite the crap out of me when I pick at her and the beast in her comes out. The same thing happens with circus elephants when they are kept in artificial environments until one day they nut up completely and go on a rampage. Humans think we have the right to use and abuse animals in any whay we choose, but nature will have her way in the end. Not a thing we can do about it, either. That poor chimp must have been so frightened and confused.

Bold by me.
:mad: Oh but there is Gracenote, we can shoot and kill them if they 'harm' us in OUR environment that we've forced them to live in.....

(YES I'm angry that this poor wild animal was forced to live in human conditions, eat human food, drink human WINE even ... yes, he was allowed to have a glass of wine at dinner.)
 
Bold by me.
:mad: Oh but there is Gracenote, we can shoot and kill them if they 'harm' us in OUR environment that we've forced them to live in.....

(YES I'm angry that this poor wild animal was forced to live in human conditions, eat human food, drink human WINE even ... yes, he was allowed to have a glass of wine at dinner.)

Oh....this is so wrong on so many levels! Yes, I have compassion for the victims, but they are in part to blame! Never, NEVER, NEVER should a wild animal be expected to live within the social confines of humans! They are WILD animals and can not be expected to behave or act like humans! This chimp had apparently "acted out" before (i.e. acted like a any confined chimp would). First of all, he should have never been allowed to live with this family to begin with. Secondly, after the first violent outburst when police were called in 2003, this chimp should have been removed from the home!! And don't get me started on the Xanax dosage! We all know what it can do to some humans, and if you aren't on a monitored and regular dosage, it will screw with you and your behavior!!! If this woman was giving Travis Xanax only when he was uncontrollable - well, THAT WAS A HUGE PROBLEM! I'm so mad right now I prolly need to stop typing. This is just TRAGIC! Now the poor chimp is dead - WHY? - because he was acting like a CHIMP and not like a human! Yes....I PISSED!
 
Omy, how can this happen? I knew chimps could get vicious and uncontrollable but to this extent?

They say he was recently placed on Xanax too? Who made this idiotic decision?
You think maybe he's depressed for being in a world that isn't his own habitat?

I edited my title because I mentioned the fact that she was partially eaten. As sick as that is, can anyone enlighten me if this is normal attack behavior of animals like that?

Scary to think we share 97% of DNA with this creature.

Wild animals do not belong with people as pets - ever.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,494067,00.html

humans scare me more, sorry to say.
 
Did any of you see the Animal Planet series Escape to Chimp Eden? A fellow was rescuing chimps and taking them to his sanctuary. He would release them if they could be rehabilitated. Otherwise they spent their days with him and his crew.

These guys are really strong and one of the crew was feeding one through the bars and the chimp bit off her finger in one bite. It was horrible and she just had a moment of inattention. There was a behaviorist that would warn the staff when they chimps weren’t in a good mood and they wouldn’t go near the chimps until they had spent time there. It was a very interesting program.

The series isn’t on any more, but God bless him for getting these chimps out of the horrible surroundings they were in and try to make life better for them.


I loved that show. I still follow up on the chimps through their website.

It's sad that one of the main chimps there was Cozy. He was a "pet". He will never be able to be released to the wild and really doesn't get along too well with the other chimps because he's had no socialization.

What a blessing this man is to take these animals and try to give them a life that half way resembles the life that God intended for them.
 
Apparently this chimp never gave any indication of being anything but gentle until now. BTW, I am new and I hope I am doing this correctly. I agree wild animals should not be kept in homes for people, this is a perfect example. If you watch the news tape of the 911 call the owner is screaming that the chimp has "pulled her friend's face off" as it continues to harm the friend. It also seems the DEP did not enforce rules and gave the owner a free run with this chimp. Seems that city might be somewhat responsible in this case. Sympathies to the poor woman who has to be suffering horribly now in critical condition. Things like this can and should be avoided by human's using some simple common sense, IMO. ETA, The owner should have never given the chimp xanax, I really believe this is what set the animal off.
 

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