NEAVS Places Dozens of Animals
from Greenville Wildlife Park. Photo
album
NEAVS
has placed in sanctuary twenty-four animals from the Greenville
Wildlife Park (GWP), which closed its doors to the public on November
1. The placements were the result of a long investigation and
series of negotiations between NEAVS and the Park, during which
NEAVS advocated for permanent and humane homes for the Greenville
animals and an end to the buying, breeding and selling of exotics
and native wildlife by the Park.
Says Dr. Theodora Capaldo, NEAVS' President, "The result
of our work is that many animals were given the promise of a future
of permanent sanctuary. At their new homes, these former GWP animals
will not be exhibited or used for any form of entertainment or
profit and they will all be neutered. The animals we placed will
have the best care available in captivity. The final phase of
our work includes an agreement with the Park to spay and neuter
the few animals that remain. We need to guarantee that no future
generations of at-risk "surplus" exotic animals will
be exploited by the under regulated and often disastrous trade
in exotic animals and wildlife in the US. "As we go to press,
NEAVS President met (November 17) with: Dr. Clem Dussault, USDA
veterinarian; Dr. Michael Maki, GWP veterinarian and Acting President;
Dr. Geoff Clark, New Hampshire-board certified veterinary surgeon;
Dr. Hayley Murphy, Head Veterinarian for Zoo New England; and
in consultation with Dr. Marc Lloyd, Coordinator for the Veterinary
Medical Association's Team-1, for exotic animals. They established
protocols and timelines for the pending surgeries.
Since
the rescue of little Arthur and Phoenix (see NEAVS' Special Report,
Fall, 2002), NEAVS has made wonderful progress with GWP. NEAVS
became involved in the Park through its rescue of two young chimpanzees,
Arthur and Phoenix. The chimps had been purchased from the notorious
former Coulston research lab as "surplus animals" and
were being readied for a life of exhibition and entertainment.
A court case and settlement agreement allowed NEAVS to place the
chimpanzees at the Center for Captive Chimpanzee Care in Florida,
one of the finest chimpanzee sanctuaries in the world, where they
will be permanently protected from research, entertainment and
exploitation. During the course of the chimp rescue, NEAVS became
concerned about the living conditions of other animals at the
Park, where, for example, Duncan, a De Brazza monkey and highly
social animal, lived alone in an unnatural environment. We made
a promise to Duncan the first day we met him that we would be
back to ensure that he and other Greenville animals would be moved
to a sanctuary. NEAVS was also troubled by the buying, breeding
and selling that the Park, under the late Glen Eldridge's management,
had engaged in over the years. NEAVS approached GWP's board of
directors with a list of "Concerns and Solutions." The
GWP Board initially rejected the "total plan," but months
of on-going investigations and negotiations led to NEAVS placing
22 more animals and embarking on plans to spay and neuter nearly
all the animals that will remain at the Park. Said Capaldo, "We
are pleased that so many of our goals were accomplished. It made
all the difference to Duncan, a de Brazza monkey; Lucy and Ricky,
marmoset monkeys; Zorro, a skunk; Capone and Lakota, bobcats;
Muhane, a Bactrian camel; Nick and Nora, African porcupines; Roy,
Kim and Claire, three baby tigers; Tahoe and Savannah, cougars;
and Bonnie, Donald, Goofy, Jack, Jill and Riley, Patagonian cavies.
We are deeply gratified to have helped so many and we are delighted
that we made good on our promise to Duncan!"
NEAVS
placed the animals in sanctuaries approved by The Association
of Sanctuaries (TAOS) or some with dual accreditation by the American
Sanctuary Association (ASA). The placements included extraordinary
facilities such as Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation in Texas;
the Montana Large Animal Sanctuary; Safe Haven for Wildlife in
Illinois; and the Performing Animal Welfare Society in California.
Nick and Nora were placed in the AZA-approved Zoo New England,
which had been a tremendous help
to NEAVS by providing temporary housing for Arthur and Phoenix
during the court case. Their veterinarian is now helping with
organizing the spay/neuter surgeries at GWP.
Not all the Park's animals, however, were placed in sanctuaries.
In addition to the NEAVS' placements, some of the animals recently
placed by the Park itself went to a Class B dealer, who could
continue to breed or sell them and to a trainer/exhibitor with
known USDA and state violations. Greenville Wildlife Park, a New
Hampshire public charity and federally tax-exempt organization,
is currently under investigation by the United States Department
of Agriculture (USDA).
Suzanne Fournier, spokesperson for Friends of Greenville Animals
(FGA), a local and statewide group of citizens who formed because
of concerns about the Park, will continue to monitor any possible
future programs and/or potential buying, breeding and selling
of animals by the Park once NEAVS' involvement with the Park comes
to an end. Greenville Wildlife Park was once a menagerie containing
more than 120 animals of nearly 45 different species-where animals
were bought, bred and sold. The Park will remain under the vigilant
eye of FGA to make certain that the significant accomplishments
made by NEAVS will be maintained.
RESCUE HIGHLIGHTS
BABY
TIGERS:
THEIR LUCKY DAY
Through astute and effective investigations, NEAVS learned that
three GWP baby tigers were about to be transported "to Ohio,"
a state with many nefarious connections to the underground animal
trade. There is little good news in Ohio for exotics! Once there,
the babies would likely have been sold or auctioned to breeders,
dealers, circuses or roadside attractions. Instead-thanks to NEAVS-they
are now safe at the Performing Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) sanctuary
in California, where they will never be exploited or used for
commercial purposes. PAWS' founder, Pat Derby, was a former Hollywood
animal trainer, who founded the PAWS sanctuary in 1983 and has
worked since then to spare exotic animals the cruelties of the
entertainment industry.
DUNCAN:
PROMISES KEPT
When NEAVS' President first met Duncan, a DeBrazza monkey, he
was housed at the end of a long line of corn cribs, surrounded
by jaguars, leopards and hyenas, his natural enemies! Duncan was
completely alone and desperate for the company of other primates.
Our hearts broke for him. He had developed the habit of biting
on the bars of his cage, a stereotypic behavior that probably
provided some relief from stress. He would frequently be seen
reaching as far as he could through the bars of his cage to pluck
some little bits of grass that grew almost beyond his reach. Duncan
was well-liked by the people at GWP and so he was responsive to
people and we knew he would thrive in a good sanctuary situation.
We contacted Lynn Cuny of Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation in
Texas. She agreed to take Duncan. Now he is in the company of
other primates on open acreage with trees to climb! Soon he will
be introduced to other Guinon monkeys and will finally be able
to be among his own kind!
MUHANE:
AND THE EYE OF A NEEDLE
It may truly be easier to get a camel through the eye of a needle
than to get one from New Hampshire to Montana! NEAVS valiant rescue
of Muhane, a Bactrian camel, from Greenville and our subsequent
attempt to get him to a sanctuary in Montana was a difficult
challenge to meet. Kathryn Warrington, director of the Montana
Large Animal Sanctuary, and NEAVS literally made hundreds of phone
calls, trying to find a trailer tall enough for Muhane. We needed
a truck at least eight feet high and that was, indeed, a tall
order! When Muhane raises his head, he is well over ten feet tall.
But camels carry their heads slung low and so the minimum height
needed for him to be completely safe and comfortable was eight
feet, his height at the top of his humps. Finally we were
successful and Muhane had a safe trip to his new home in camel-like
luxury accommodations and with an expert driver at the wheel of
his enormous rig! He now lives on a 400-acre preserve and will
soon be joined by another rescued camel to keep him company. Although
unneutered male camels are often quite "ornery", Muhane
is a gentle and sweet boy who has responded exceptionally well
to his new human friends and his new animal companions. He will
be gelded at a later date so that he will not bring any new camels
into the already over populated world of captive exotics. We are
happy and grateful to everyone who helped get Muhane and take
him, literally, to greener pastures. By the way, Muhane was accompanied
by seven little Patagonian cavies who had heir own suite on board
the rig.
To help NEAVS
with rescues like this,
PLEASE donate to our Sanctuary Fund.
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