Pet Chimpanzee Shot After Mauling US Woman

Pet Chimpanzee Shot After Mauling US Woman

uk.news.yahoo.com

A 175-pound pet chimpanzee has been shot dead by police after it mauled a woman in the US.

The victim, said to be in her 50s, suffered serious facial injuries and was taken to hospital in Stamford, Connecticut.

Stamford police Lieutenant Richard Conklin told reporters the woman, who was visiting a friend, was attacked for no apparent reason when she got out of her car

(visit the link for the full news article)

Now - not exactly what some would call ` ats breaking news` - but i actually have a question for everyone:

should the police officer be tried for murder?

there are many many people who believe certain species of animals should have rights - chimpanzee`s exibit all the traits to be classed as human - they have 98.7% of our DNA , have cognitive reasoning (which many people lack tbh) and have the developement of a kindergarten child.

so , look from another view - what did this women do , so the chimp fought back?- - its allready been shown that they `fight or flight` like homo sapiens do.


thoughts?

uk.news.yahoo.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

I think the owner is responsible. I understand what you're saying about chimps being so close to human, but they aren't human. Chimps are known for aggression especially when going through puberty.

The owner should
1. not be allowed to keep a chimp as a pet.
2. Be held responsible for anything the chimp does.


It was her fault. If the woman hadn't kept this monkey as a pet, this would never have happened. It's a shame about the chimp.



After reading the article it says owners told them the chimpanzee was toilet trained, could dress and bathe himself, eat at the table and drink wine from a stemmed glass.

They were trying to make this chimp a human, and they aren't. The cop did what he had to do.

[edit on 17-2-2009 by virraszto]

[edit on 17-2-2009 by virraszto]

You're allowed to keep a chimp as a pet in the US?!

Anyway...no, its fine that he shot a wild animal. It had attacked and possibly disfigured this poor woman, and it sounds like it was going to attack the cop.

Personally I have an extreme dislike of chimps. Chavs of the animal world, IMO, and something out of the uncanny valley, too. Creepy bloody things!

You do know that if it was a citizen who shot the chimp the authorities would most likely find a way to apply this to the circumstances.

After all the laws are only put in place to raise revenue and oppress the citezens of this country and it's states.

By what you're saying, the owner should be charged with wrongful confinement. A measurably intelligent creature, but lacking in the mental and emotional coping skills to deal with its "imprisonment" is torture that will almost inevitably lead to mental disorders. Perhaps what would be characterized in humans as psychosis. Likely anyone with children can speak of the difficulties experienced trying to even reasonably confine a human child of that age if they are feeling willful (By which I mean something like "Time Out" or sitting them in the corner). Imagine that same child with three times the strength of a full grown man, and twice the natural aggression.

Unfortunately this happens quite a lot. And not just with chimps. Elephants too are very prone to psychological disturbances as a result of confinement.

The idea that animals are born free and should remain that way isn't simply soft-hearted idealism or anthropomorphism at work. It's about the comfort of a living, feeling being that has thought processes and emotions that we may not understand or recognize, but that doesn't make them less significant. Especially to the animal itself.

[edit on 17-2-2009 by TravelerintheDark]

reply to post by Harlequin


huh?? tried for murder of a chimp? ok are you a vegeterian? otherwise you should be tried for eating cows and goats and chicken and tukey all which was killed because of you. and you paid for it.

if you are a vegeterian, you should be convicted for harming trees which are living organisms.

reply to post by Harlequin


Harlequin, interesting question.

I also liked traveler in the dark's comment......

Harlequin: "Is it murder?" Well, under current concept of the law...no.

A chimpanzee, whether a juvenile (and they're SO cute at that age!!!) or an adult who weighs as much as a Man....and has the strength of four men, and the mental capacity, despite its age, of a 4-year-old Human....is still not a hominid, though sharing certain DNA and chromosomal traits with Humans.....now, the quandry....IF a mentaly disabled Human withe the mental capacity of a four-year-old, but the pysical form of a 175-pound 25-year-old man mauled his mother....I see where you're going here....

And, Traveler.....well, you said it quite well.

Let's try this from another angle.....

Two Humans....Woman being abused by a man. Police Officer shoots and kills man. Murder? Not sure. Line of duty? Possibly better....

Another....man comes home, wife being threatened by a man....husband shoots and kills man. Home invasion? Plausible. Circumstances? plausible. Justifiable? Definately.

I hate to make this leap (no pun) but....scratch the surface of a Human, and you might find a wild animal ready to pounce....same with other species....Rotweillers that kill children....beloved pets to someone else, suddenly kill an innocent.

Every case deserves a fair judgement, that's all....

No it cant be defined as murder. And yes people can keep Monkeys in there homes. I know a lady right here in North Carolina that had 2 Monkeyes and was attacked by one of her own Monkeys in the middle of the night. The Monkey came into her room while she was asleep and tried to kill her. She still has that Monkey yet every now and then the monkey still picks the lock and gets out.

Very dangerous pets. But I have to say some folks are stupid. And Betty was stupid to keep the Monkey knowing it would still keep trying to kill her. Some day she wont be so lucky. And the monkey will kill her. So far Betty has had over 500 stitches from this Monkey. That is over a 7 year period.

reply to post by Harlequin


no way dude, secualy active male chimps (any chimp really) and not only extremely dangerous, but extremely unpredictabled,

theirs people who have been messes up real bad by chimps ..

just the other day on tv (i really wish i saw the program) , their was a guy who worked with chimps, he had 2 chimps he cared for from birth, one day they went crazy and started ripping him apart, even bit off and ate his penis.. one of the guys friends basicly saved him and the guy was very lucky to be alive! .


a crazy chimp is no different from a crazy dog, or crazy human .. when they snap and want blood they take it and not much will stop them except for a bullet..

its very sad, but true .,..they cop absolutely done the right thing!

Having a chimp as a pet is like having a human child as a pet,its disgraceful,a chimp just born is far more aware of its surroundings than that of a human baby,and like people have said has unbelievable strength.Doesnt mix well together.

I saw a chimp rip the fingers off a young kid when i was little, the kids father thought it would be a great idea to lift his kid clear of the zoo's safety rail to stroke the chimp.

I think the chimp in this latest case should have been shot as a dangerous wild animal, then again i would like to see the police carry tranquiliser guns in the back of the car for these situations, rather than just shoot the thing dead.

Many times police are the first on the scene at incidents involving dangerous animals, but i think maybe the chimp could have been taken to a zoo or something.

CX.

[edit on 17/2/09 by CX]

No conspiracy here.

Apes gone wild should be put to sleep - period.

Originally posted by dgtempe
No conspiracy here.

Apes gone wild should be put to sleep - period.

What about if they have been forced to live in an environment which is not natural for them? Is it their fault?

Thats like saying, if you put a kid in the wild and he/she doesn't cope and turns nasty....shoot them.

I've been to incidents where there have been dangerous animals involved, and i must admit if any of them had been in the proccess of mauling someone, i'd have shot it.....especially if it was something like a chimp that i probably wouldn't be able to control.

Depends on whether it was mauling the person when you arrive at the scene or if it has already occurred. If it had done the damage then was sitting there, i'd like to think you could get the person away from it and to safety, and the animal could be taken away to a zoo or something.

Bottom line is, don't be suprised when an animal turns one day, especially if it's something as dangerous as a chimp.

CX.

Sounds more like self defense on the police side.

Another article:

Ms Herold and two police officers were also injured in the attack.

The unidentified victim remains in a critical condition with severe injuries to her face and hands. The incident may come as a shock to Ms Herold who ensured that the 16-year-old was well-trained and accustomed to human interaction.

So I don't think the big question here is if it's murder or not, the question on my mind is why would you make an animal act like a human?

Travis was able to draw his own bath, brush his teeth and log onto a computer to look at photos.
He enjoyed drinking wine, watering plants and watching baseball on television.
In his younger days Travis appeared in a Coca Cola advertisement. Stamford police Lieutenant Richard Conklin said the attack was out of character for the chimp. "He's been raised almost like a child by this family," Conklin said. "He rides in a car every day, he opens doors, he's a very unique animal in that aspect. We have no indication of what provoked this behaviour at all."
Conklin said the chimp had been ill from Lyme disease, "so maybe from the medications he was out of sorts. We really don't know".

reply to post by Chadwickus


"Travis enjoyed drinking wine"

-------------------------------------------

Maybe he was just a mean drunk.

Most people (myself included) don't know the extreme strength a chimp has.

"In tests at the Bronx Zoo in 1924, a dynamometer — a scale that measures the mechanical force of a pull on a spring — was erected in the monkey house. A 165-pound male chimpanzee named "Boma" registered a pull of 847 pounds, using only his right hand . A 165-pound man, by comparison, could manage a one-handed pull of about 210 pounds. Even more frightening, a female chimp, weighing a mere 135 pounds and going by the name of Suzette, checked in with a one-handed pull of 1,260 pounds"

With strength like that, even if the probability of an unprovoked attack is next to nothing, you just cant risk it. There would be nothing even the strongest of men could do, to prevent massive destruction.

The chimp does have a very close relative of the Pan species called Bonobo. They are much more peaceful and live in a matriarchal society.

Check it out.

en.wikipedia.org...

Peace

Forget the NWO.
Forget the War on Terror.

The Pet Chimpanzee is coming.

Greeting

ps: ... there aren't many people I would trust ... this planet is a teeming place of violent schizophrenics

[edit on 17-2-2009 by TheWriter]

Originally posted by Harlequin

should the police officer be tried for murder?

there are many many people who believe certain species of animals should have rights - chimpanzee`s exibit all the traits to be classed as human - they have 98.7% of our DNA , have cognitive reasoning (which many people lack tbh) and have the developement of a kindergarten child.

thoughts?

Reality check... This chimp was attacking a woman in the face. Do you know the strength of a chimp's bite? Have you ever seen a chimp bite off another chimp's hand?

If the owner can not ensure his pet is suitably safe from a social environment, then surely he takes the risk of both endangering himself, the public and the animal. I mean you could put a bow tie on a very placid alligator, but it wouls STILL be an alligator. You could train a bear to use the toilet and occasionaly fetch in the paper, but it's still a bear.

How on earth can you talk about trying a cop for murder, for shooting dead a dangerous animal? What was he supposed to do? Get out his magic chimp flute and lure into a false sense of security with some rather moving notes and then smother it with a magic chimp blanket?

Seriously, the cop no doubt saved her life.

Would you have been taking this avenue of thought for a spin if the offending animal would have been a mountain lion or a snake?

Edit: all in all, it's a moving story, i feel sorry for the people injured, the cop, the owner and the chimp.

[edit on 17-2-2009 by mr-lizard]

[edit on 17-2-2009 by mr-lizard]

I live in Connecticut and this is all over the news. There is a law on the books banning exotic animals as pets in Connecticut but the woman had the chimp before the law and it was "grandfathered" in. The attack happened because the woman who normally wears her hair down, had her hair pulled up and the chimp didn't recognize her. The chimp being a territorial animal, attacked the woman. Hartford Courant

Originally posted by Harlequin
should the police officer be tried for murder?

No, but he should be given the head & cape and be provided with the phone number of a local taxidermist. It's an animal, of course he shouldn't be charged with anything whatsoever.