Chimps in Captivity

There are a number of zoos housing chimps, and also a number of sanctuaries in Africa housing hundreds of chimps who are by-products of the bushmeat and live trade.  Unfortunately, chimpanzees can also be found in medical labs, where they are being used in medical testing because of their close relationship to humans.  Chimpanzees can be also be found in circuses, in facilities which train them for the entertainment business, and in private homes as pets (see Tengwood.org's 'illegal trade' page to read about this issue).  The population size of chimps in captivity worldwide is in the thousands; however, this only serves to point out the depletion that has been occurring for years in wild populations, mainly for human entertainment. Chimps are very intelligent and difficult to maintain in all captive settings they are found in.  They belong in the wild.