Center for Great Apes explained

The Center for Great Apes is an animal sanctuary for great apes located east of Wauchula, Florida. Founded as a nonprofit organization in 1993, the sanctuary has about 70 orangutans and chimpanzees who were formerly used in entertainment, scientific research, or the exotic pet trade.^[2] The sanctuary sits on 100 acres of land in rural Florida, southwest of Orlando.

The sanctuary is a founding member of North American Primate Sanctuary Alliance (NAPSA)^[3] and is accredited by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries. As such, it is not open to the general public as an attraction or zoo.

The backstory of six of the chimpanzees at the Center for Great Apes was featured in the TV documentary series Chimp Crazy. As a result of a People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals lawsuit, they were removed from a facility in Missouri and sent to the sanctuary in 2021.^[4]

The Center for Great Apes is the only accredited orangutan sanctuary in the United States.^[5]

Notable residents

• Bubbles, former companion of Michael Jackson.^{[6] [7]}
• Bella,^[8] star of the CareerBuilder 2004 Super Bowl XL campaign.^{[9] [10]}
• Sam "Sammy"^[11] starred in the movie Dunston Checks In.^[12]
• Sandra was declared a "non-human person" in Argentina after spending 20 years at Buenos Aires Zoo.^[13]
• Sunshine^[14] was born in England where her mother was owned by singer Tom Jones’ manager.
• Bo^[15] and Joe,^[16] formerly at CW Exotics facility featured in the Netflix series Tiger King.
• Marco^[17] is the oldest and smallest chimpanzee at the Center for Great Apes.
• Jonah^[18] and Jacob^[19] are twins. Jonah starred with Mark Wahlberg in the 2001 film Planet of the Apes and with his twin brother worked in the original “Trunk Monkey” commercials.
• Mari^[20] the orangutan, is one of several apes taken care of by the Center for Great Apes who have special needs. Mari lost both arms as an infant before arriving at the sanctuary.
• Knuckles,^[21] a chimpanzee, had cerebral palsy.
• Allie^[22] has Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy (CIDP), a condition that, in Allie's case, prevents the use of her legs or feet.

Further reading

• "Super Bowl commercials: What happens to those CareerBuilder chimps?" (February 7, 2011) by Patti Ragan Christian Science Monitor
• News: Wauchula Center a Sanctuary for Chimpanzees, Orangutans. White. Gary. January 17, 2009. The Ledger. November 8, 2019. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20191108190509/https://www.theledger.com/article/LK/20090117/News/608124008/LL/. November 8, 2019.
  • • Snap Judgement (Dec 24, 2020) The LookBack Special with Glynn Washington Snap Judgment (Season 11 – Episode 6) Zoo Nebraska with Glynn Washington The Week (Jan 8, 2015) Charity of the week: Center for Great Apes
• Sierra Magazine (April 2020) Weekly Roundup
• New York Times (September 10, 2001) "Protecting Actors, Great and Small; As Hollywood Uses More Animals,Concerns Grow About Their Welfare." by Rick Lyman
• People Magazine (November 2021) "8 Rescue Chimps Take 2,600-Mile Trip to Reach the Safety of Their New Florida Sanctuary Home" by Kelli Bender
• Watauga Democrat (Aug 2021) "Work of Great Apes on display at Turchin Center" By Makaelah Walters
• Sarasota Magazine (Dec 2018) "Southwest Florida’s Center for Great Apes Celebrates Its 25th Anniversary" by Dyllan Furness
• One Green Planet (2016) Why Car Dealership Ads Featuring Footage of Captive Orangutan Are Anything but Cute by Lauren Kearney
• Phys.org (2020) "Showbiz apes find peace through painting in Florida retirement" by Leila MacOr
• National Geographic (April 7, 2020) "This ‘hand-washing’ orangutan went viral—but the story isn’t true" by Natasha Daly
• CNN (Nov 9, 2019) "Sandra the orangutan, freed from a zoo after being granted ‘personhood,’ settles into her new home" by Alaa Elassar
• Christian Science Monitor (April 13, 2017) "Rescued chimpanzees and orangutans: This woman’s lifework is caring for them" by Gregory M. Lamb
• New York Times (June 15, 2015) "Changing Perspectives Propel Chimp Protections" by James Gorman
• The Lane Report (2013) "Big Ass Fans makes major donation to Center for Great Apes Animal Sanctuary"
• Christian Science Monitor (Feb 2011) "Super Bowl commercials: What happens to those CareerBuilder chimps?"
• Reuters (Nov 2010) Caged chimpanzees move to spacious new home in Florida
• Live Science (August 14, 2008) Curtain Call For Hollywood's Orangutans By Greg Soltis

Notes and References

1. Web site: CENTER FOR ORANGUTAN AND CHIMPANZEE CONSERVATION INC Form 990 2015. ProPublica. 18 September 2017.
2. Web site: August 29, 2024 . About . August 29, 2024 . The Center for Great Apes.
3. Web site: FAQ - Primate Sanctuaries . 2023-06-16 . Primate Sanctuaries . en-US.
4. Web site: July 29, 2021 . Victory! After Years of Dedicated Effort, PETA Secures a New Life for Exploited Chimpanzees . August 29, 2024 . People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
5. Web site: August 29, 2024 . Homepage . August 29, 2024 . The Center for Great Apes.
6. News: Michael Jackson's Pet Chimp is Living Out His Twilight Years in Florida. Furness. Dyllan. February 2, 2016. New Times Broward-Palm Beach. November 8, 2019. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20170706235753/https://www.browardpalmbeach.com/music/michael-jacksons-pet-chimp-is-living-out-his-twilight-years-in-florida-7554952. July 6, 2017.
7. Web site: Michael Jackson's Famous Chimp, Bubbles, Is Selling Paintings to Get By. Mufson. Beckett. June 28, 2017. Vice. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20190602065109/https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/59pmj5/michael-jackson-famous-chimp-bubbles-selling-paintings. June 2, 2019. November 8, 2019.
8. Web site: Bella . 2023-06-16 . Center for Great Apes . en-US.
9. News: Super Bowl commercials: What happens to those CareerBuilder chimps?. Ragan. Patti. February 7, 2011. The Christian Science Monitor. November 8, 2019. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20130508184502/https://www.csmonitor.com/Commentary/Opinion/2011/0207/Super-Bowl-commercials-What-happens-to-those-CareerBuilder-chimps. May 8, 2013. Opinion.
10. News: For CareerBuilder Chimps, Sadly, the Joke Is On Them. Royce. Brenda Scott. February 13, 2011. The Huffington Post. November 8, 2019. live. https://archive.today/20191108190210/https://www.huffpost.com/entry/apes-in-advertising_b_822404. November 8, 2019.
11. Web site: Sammy . 2023-06-16 . Center for Great Apes . en-US.
12. Web site: All the Animals From Your Favorite Childhood Movies Are Dead. Sokol. Zach. April 22, 2015. Vice. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20190729144854/https://www.vice.com/en_uk/article/qbx44d/these-1990s-movie-animals-are-all-dead-999. July 29, 2019. November 8, 2019.
13. News: Orangutan Sandra granted personhood settles into new Florida home. November 7, 2019. The Guardian. November 8, 2019. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20191108092235/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/07/sandra-orangutan-florida-argentina-buenos-aires. November 8, 2019.
14. Web site: Sunshine . 2023-06-16 . Center for Great Apes . en-US.
15. Web site: Bo . 2023-06-16 . Center for Great Apes . en-US.
16. Web site: Joe . 2023-06-16 . Center for Great Apes . en-US.
17. Web site: Marco . 2023-06-16 . Center for Great Apes . en-US.
18. Web site: Jonah . 2023-06-16 . Center for Great Apes . en-US.
19. Web site: Jacob . 2023-06-16 . Center for Great Apes . en-US.
20. Web site: Mari . 2023-06-16 . Center for Great Apes . en-US.
21. Web site: Knuckles . 2023-06-16 . Center for Great Apes . en-US.
22. Web site: Allie . 2023-06-16 . Center for Great Apes . en-US.