Page 32 - ARUBA TODAY

A32 FEATURE
Tuesday 18 June 2019
More research labs are retiring monkeys when studies finish

By CARRIE ANTLFINGER 2011 that concluded the
Associated Press use of chimpanzees in bio-
WESTFIELD, Wis. (AP) — Iz- medical research was un-
zle, Timon, Batman, River necessary.
and Mars spent years con- Cindy Buckmaster, chair of
fined inside a lab, their lives the Americans for Medical
devoted to being tested Progress, which represents
for the benefit of human research universities and
health. medical research compa-
But these rhesus macaques nies, said that besides fund-
have paid their dues and ing, researchers are con-
are now living in retirement cerned about sanctuaries
— in larger enclosures that standards, their financial
let them venture outside, viability and whether some
eat lettuce and carrots, dip sanctuaries’ ties to animal
their fingers in colorful plas- rights groups will cause
tic pools, paint, and hang them to badmouth the in-
from pipes and tires — in stitution.
relative quiet. “We really feel very grateful
More research labs are to them and we want them
retiring primates to sanc- to have wonderful lives
tuaries like Primates Inc., a after,” Buckmaster said.
17-acre (7-hectare) rural In this May 13, 2019, photo, Amy Kerwin stands outside the outdoor enclosures at Primates Inc., in “They certainly deserve it.
compound in central Wis- Westfield, Wis. Kerwin started the sanctuary, which took its first monkeys in 2018. But it has to be done well
consin, where they can live Associated Press and it has to be done prop-
their remaining years, ac- come close with the ani- al regulations dictate what some funding, often be- erly because we’re not go-
cording to the sanctuaries mals are making more ef- happens to them. Some tween $10,000 and $20,000, ing to put our animals in
and researchers. For some forts to give the ones who are sold to other studies to help care and create harm’s way.”
monkeys, it’s their first time can survive a retirement, when one study is done. space for monkeys. Since Some animal rights groups,
hanging out in the fresh air. rather than euthanization. The bill doesn’t address many of the primates have including People for the
“Just to see them look In 2015, a group of research- funding, one of the main only lived in labs, they don’t Ethical Treatment of Ani-
around in amazement. You ers, graduate students and hurdles to get primates into have the skills needed to mals, don’t support re-
know it was all very calm an ethicist created the Re- retirement sanctuaries. live in the wild. search but do agree with
and peaceful,” said Amy search Animal Retirement Currently, grants through Most primates in accred- retiring monkeys to sanc-
Kerwin, who worked for Foundation. It raises funds the National Institutes of ited sanctuaries are chim- tuaries rather than having
15 years to get the West- for labs to pay the sanctu- Health, which is the largest panzees, capuchins, and them euthanized.
field, Wisconsin, sanctuary aries to retire them. So far public funder of biomedi- squirrel monkeys, accord- Sanctuaries have been
off the ground after being they have given $33,000 in cal research in the world, ing to Erika Fleury, program around for decades but,
employed in a University of funding for three monkeys don’t include money for director for the North Amer- in 2010, more than a half-
Wisconsin research lab. who went to the Wisconsin retirement. That leaves the ican Primate Sanctuary Alli- dozen came together to
There were approximately sanctuary. labs and sanctuaries to ance, or NAPSA, an advo- create NAPSA.
110,000 primates in re- A visit to the Peaceable find the tens of thousands cacy group for captive pri- Currently, there are eight
search facilities in 2017, ac- Primate Sanctuary in Indi- of dollars per monkey, per mates. They come from re- member sanctuaries, with
cording to the most recent ana helped convince Rep. year needed to care for search, the entertainment about 775 primates. Mem-
data available from the Jackie Walorski, R-Ind., to them. industry or private homes. bership requires the sanc-
U.S. Department of Agricul- author a bill introduced Monkeys are finished with Chimpanzees are no lon- tuaries be USDA licensed,
ture. While most research last month, along with Rep. studies at different ages ger used in most research. accredited by the Glob-
facilities need primates to Brendan Boyle, D-Penn., and some can live for de- The NIH announced in 2013 al Federation of Animal
be euthanized to examine that requires federal agen- cades. Some can also it would stop supporting Sanctuaries or certified by
their tissues, technological cies to develop a policy leave with lingering issues, them in research and that the Association of Zoos &
advances, such as brain allowing animals no longer like compulsive behaviors they should be moved to Aquariums, among many
scans, mean fewer mon- needed for research to be caused by boredom. sanctuaries, with funding. guidelines. There are 31
keys need to be put down. adopted out or put in sanc- That’s why many sanctuar- It pointed to a report from other, nonmember sanctu-
Plus, researchers who be- tuaries. Currently, no feder- ies require the labs to send the Institute of Medicine in aries in the U.S. and Cana-
da that have primates but
have a variety of standards,
according to NAPSA.
Besides requiring high stan-
dards for sanctuaries, NAP-
SA is also upping efforts with
researchers to encourage
them to ask for retirement
funding upfront.
An NIH spokeswoman
wouldn’t respond to
whether the agency would
consider adding money to
grants for monkey retire-
ment care, only saying in a
In this May 13, 2019, photo, River, left, and Timon, both rhesus statement that the animals’
In this May 13, 2019, photo, Bella the vervet monkey looks at the macaques, sit in an outdoor enclosure at Primates Inc., in owners are responsible for
camera at Primates Inc., in Westfield, Wis. Westfield, Wis. ongoing care.q
Associated Press Associated Press