Animal rights charity urges zoo boycott over great ape welfare
The charity, which is headquartered in the UK, said more than 300 great apes are in UK zoos, with 43 in the north west of England. In Chester Zoo, 18 chimpanzees, seven Northwest Bornean Orangutans and eight Sumatran Orangutans are kept, while four Western Lowland Gorillas and six Northwest Bornean Orangutans are at Blackpool Zoo.Born Free Foundation has released a report that argues the keeping of great apes in zoos is an "archaic, unethical, and damaging practice".The broadcaster and naturalist Chris Packham, has backed the charity's campaign and said "all the evidence to prove radical change is now imperative is here, great apes mustn't be imprisoned for our entertainment any longer".
The charity has alleged animals in captivity such as chimpanzees and orangutans suffer chronic stress, obesity, heart disease and poor mental health.It claimed captivity has caused "catastrophic results" ranging from "stillbirths to obesity and heart disease".Chris Lewis from Born Free said keeping the "complex beings for our entertainment can no longer be justified on the basis of science, welfare, or animal and public safety".Dr Pullen invited the charity to visit the zoo to witness why "global bodies" like the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), "stand behind us".She said: "The great apes here live in specially designed habitats and are cared for by a team of primate experts who know the physical, emotional and social needs of every individual."Blackpool Zoo's spokeswoman said: "We fully support the continued evolution of best practice in the welfare of all animals. "Bornean orangutans and Western lowland gorillas, which we care for here at Blackpool Zoo, are critically endangered."The Born Free Foundation was co-founded in 1984 by actors Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna with their eldest son Will Travers. The couple became inspired to champion animal rights and conservation after appearing in the award-winning movie Born Free in 1966.The movie was a biopic of conservationist Joy Adamson, who raised a lioness called Elsa in Kenya after her husband George, who was a game warden, shot its father.
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