Pharmaceutical behemoth Baxter International is turning its back on 41 chimpanzees who were used by the company (known then as Immuno) for decades in painful hepatitis and HIV experiments. The "Baxter chimpanzees," as they are known, were retired from the experiments in 1999 and sent to a safari park in Austria. Now, PETA has learned that Baxter plans to separate the chimpanzees and send them to zoos in Hungary.
The Baxter chimpanzees have already endured much suffering: They were captured as infants in Africa and watched as their families were slaughtered. In Immuno's laboratories, they were confined alone in cages, some spending more than 20 years in solitary isolation. Used as laboratory tools, the chimpanzees were prodded, injected, and manipulated, leading to the animals' psychological trauma. Ten years after being retired from the laboratory, the chimpanzees continue to suffer from abnormal behaviors, such as eating disorders, excessive and compulsive masturbation, hair-plucking, and self-injury.
Chimpanzees are our closest primate relatives, sharing 98 or 99 percent of our DNA. They are intelligent, exhibit unique personalities, forge deep and lasting friendships, and experience profound suffering. Several recent scientific studies document that chimpanzees who have endured life in a laboratory will suffer from psychological trauma similar to that of humans with post-traumatic stress disorder. It's no surprise, but the chimpanzees who were placed in rehabilitation and re-socialization programs fared better than those who were simply allowed to languish in warehouses. Sending the Baxter chimpanzees to a zoo will threaten any psychological progress made by the animals and will cause greater stress, anxiety, depression, and trauma for the animals.
PETA is calling on Baxter—which posted $2.82 billion in revenues last year—to ensure that the chimpanzees are not separated and are not sent to a zoo or any such facility that will further threaten their well-being.
Please contact Baxter CEO Robert L. Parkinson Jr. and urge him to take responsibility for the Baxter chimpanzees.
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