A baby chimp has big needs after his natural mother rejected him at birth.
Now the baby is adjusting to his new home in Sarasota, Florida.
NESTLED AGAINST THE CHEST OF BIG CAT HABITAT FOUNDER, KAY ROSAIRE, ELI THE
CHIMPANZEE GREETED OUR CAMERA..BUT HELD ON TO FAMILIAR ARMS.
"What's that?"
"He's excited, he's excited. Are you excited. "
ELI, JUST FOUR MONTHS OLD, JOINED THE BIG CAT FAMILY IN SARASOTA A FEW WEEKS
AGO.
ROSAIRE SAYS HIS OWNERS WORK WITH ADULT CHIMPS IN CALIFORNIA BUT NEEDED HELP
WHEN ELI'S MOTHER REJECTED HIM AFTER BIRTH...A COMMON PROBLEM AMONG FIRST TIME
CHIMPANZEE MOTHERS.
"He's a very good eater, you're a very good eater. He's starting to crawl
already. At this point they're ahead of human babies. "
ROSAIRE AND HER STAFF, INCLUDING ELI'S FULL TIME NANNY..WITH YEARS OF BABY
CHIMP EXPERIENCE..OFFERED TO HELP.
ONLY A FEW ACROSS THE COUNTRY CAN TACKLE THIS TASK WELL.
"Because...raise their own baby chimp?"
"They do grow up to be quite large. A male chimpanzee can easily be 200 pounds.
Not to be handled by people who don't know what they're doing definitely."
ROSAIRE HAS DEVOTED HER LIFE TO HELPING ANIMALS.
SHE SAYS THIS YEAR HAS PROVED TOUGH WITH SOME OWNERS FACING FORECLOSURE AND
SOME IN OVER THEIR HEADS.
"We just agreed to take two cougars in desperate need. If we don't pick them up
before July they will be euthanized."
AS FOR ELI..HE LIKES TO VISIT HIS 5-YEAR-OLD FRIEND KEIRA.
THE TWO MAY WATCH TARZAN MOVIES..A FAVORITE..TOGETHER SOMEDAY.
nats: monkey
UNTIL THEN...HE DOWNS ABOUT FIVE BOTTLES OF INFAMIL BABY FORMULA A DAY AND NAPS
AND PLAYS INSIDE THE AIR CONDITIONED TRAILER HE CALLS HOME.
See More Baby Chimp Video
Chimps on Youtube
Learn About Chimpanzees
Email
Facebook
Google
Twitter
Favorites
More
Advertisement