Elephant and Chimpanzee Sanctuaries in St. Lucie County (Okeechobee: high school, live)

[TriMT7]

I read a while back that the Asian Elephant sanctuary was on track to open in Western St. Lucie County this year. Has anyone heard anything about its status? Will it be open to the public?


Also, what about the "Space Chimp" sanctuary in Ft. Pierce? Has anyone visited or volunteered? I would have loved to have volunteered at the Space Chimp facility while in high school, lol.

[J.R.]

The chimp sanctuary is alive and will - Save the Chimps.org However, it is NOT open to the public. The director (Dr. Noon) feels that the chimps have been exploited enough and she will not put them on display. Only a small number of the chimps are from the space program. Most are from a closed research facility in New Mexico where they were used to test everything from fire extinguishers to drugs. They do need and accept volunteers. If you go to the website you can get info there.

As for the elephants, I never heard any more after the newspaper report.

[ddlove01]

Very interesting, thanks for posting!

[LingLing]

[quote=TriMT7;7232292]I read a while back that the Asian Elephant sanctuary was on track to open in Western St. Lucie County this year. Has anyone heard anything about its status? Will it be open to the public?QUOTE]

Asian Elephant sanctuary is on track. Sick elephants from various zoos will be treated here. Breeding Asian Elephants is also one of their major tasks. It is not a rescue center. I forgot to ask whether it will open to public

[TriMT7]

Originally Posted by J.R.

The chimp sanctuary is alive and will - Save the Chimps.org However, it is NOT open to the public. The director (Dr. Noon) feels that the chimps have been exploited enough and she will not put them on display. Only a small number of the chimps are from the space program. Most are from a closed research facility in New Mexico where they were used to test everything from fire extinguishers to drugs. They do need and accept volunteers. If you go to the website you can get info there.

As for the elephants, I never heard any more after the newspaper report.

Interesting thanks! I understand the director's reasoning, but it's such a shame, the chimp sanctuary would have been a good attraction (to raise $$ for the project and help more apes), and it would have been a good place for learning and field trips for kids.

[TriMT7]

[quote=LingLing;7283941]

Originally Posted by TriMT7

I read a while back that the Asian Elephant sanctuary was on track to open in Western St. Lucie County this year. Has anyone heard anything about its status? Will it be open to the public?QUOTE]

Asian Elephant sanctuary is on track. Sick elephants from various zoos will be treated here. Breeding Asian Elephants is also one of their major tasks. It is not a rescue center. I forgot to ask whether it will open to public

Thanks, I am very interested to know, but have a feeling that it won't be.

[J.R.]

Tim, in addition to Dr. Noon not wanting to exploit the chimps, the way the sanctuary is set up, it is not really safe for the humans or the chimps to have large groups of visitors. The chimps are not fenced or caged, the are "watered in". They actually live on islands. The islands are connected to the "land side" with enclosed tubes. The chimps come thru the tubes to get fed and then wander back out to the islands which are designed to mimic a natural habitat. The theory is that chimps can't swim due to their body fat makeup - that theory is not fool proof. Chimps are VERY VERY strong and they can be violent. You have to remember that all of these animals have been horribly abused and therefore very unpredictable. Go to savethechimps.org I have not been on the website for years, but they may have pics of the islands.

[Kathryn Duncan]

I read somewhere that it is actually at the county line of Okeechobee County & St Lucie on the Okee side. I would like to know more about the project also. Looking for more information.

[J.R.]

They are not even close the the county line. You would need to call them and ask for an appointment to visit. They do not openly disclose thier location for security reasons.

[JerseyGirl78]

What a great website and organization - thanks for sharing