When good chimps go bad
Sure, we all think it'd be cool to have a pet monkey, but it's one of those ideas that's probably left in the realm of fantasy.
It's a hard lesson to learn, but one that a lady in Connecticut learned this week when her pet chimp nearly killed her.
The animal weighed 200 pounds, so maybe the trick is to get smaller monkeys.
The story ends badly for the chimp.
NEW YORK, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Police shot and killed a 200-pound (90-kg) chimpanzee that had once starred in television commercials after the ape nearly killed its owner's friend and attacked a police cruiser.
The victim, Charla Nash, 55, was in very critical condition from the biting and mauling attack on Monday, said Captain Richard Conklin, a spokesman for police in Stamford, Connecticut, a New York City suburb. Her injuries were life threatening, he said on Tuesday.
Owner Sandra Herold, 70, tried to stop her rampaging pet, Travis, by stabbing him with a butcher knife and hitting him with a shovel but the chimpanzee fended off the attack and then stormed a police car that had responded to the scene, Conklin said.
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About the Bloggers
Daily Breeze reporter Donna Littlejohn has shared her homes with a succession of wonderful, funny, and occasionally difficult canines -- Muffin, Fritz, Ellie, Mercy, Pilgrim and now Cowboy, an Australian shepherd-border collie, and Tess, a border collie. From strong-willed terriers to weirdly obsessed Australian shepherds, they've invaded her world with boundless energy, wet noses, muddy paws and soggy tennis balls. But they've really brought so much more than that -- like laughter and joy, some unexpected life lessons, and more than a few tears along the way.
E-mail Donna at donna.littlejohn@dailybreeze.com.
Josh Grossberg grew up with the usual array of animals: goldfish, dogs, hamsters, parakeets and turtles. He now owns the loudest dog in the South Bay(Video: Rocket the Dog) and is the least popular person on his block. He spends his free time in dog parks, pet shops and always has an extra plastic bag in his pocket just in case. He also has a cat.
E-mail Josh at josh.grossberg@dailybreeze.com.
How sad....When will people learn that these wonderful beings belong in the wild?
By the way, what ever happened with Moe, the chimp who escaped his cage and was running loose in the
local mountains?
Was he ever found? I know his people were looking for him for a while. Hope it worked out for all involved.
Patricia