# chimp nearly kills woman. *scary*



## irishlops (Feb 18, 2009)

sorry this is soooo long... i just heard 
on the news....
my uncle has a chimp or more so had. 
he breeds monkey and humanly cares 
for them. this did not shock me.. chimps
can change alot............
















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Chimp owner begs police in 911 call to stop attack By JOHN CHRISTOFFERSEN â 3 hours ago 
STAMFORD, Conn. (AP) â The frantic owner of a 200-pound chimpanzee that went berserk in Connecticut pleaded with police over the phone to help her stop the animal from mauling her friend, begging them to "Hurry, please! He ripped her face off."
Police in Stamford released 911 tapes of Sandra Herold's desperate call to police Monday as her 15-year-old chimp, Travis, was attacking 55-year-old Charla Nash.
The chimp can be heard grunting at times on the tape, as Herold cries, "He's killing my friend!"
The dispatcher says, "Who's killing your friend?"
Herold replies, "My chimpanzee! He ripped her apart! Shoot him, shoot him!"
After police arrive, one officer radios back: "There's a man down. He doesn't look good," he says, referring to the disfigured Nash. "We've got to get this guy out of here. He's got no face."
The chimp attacked Nash as Herold, 70, frantically stabbed her beloved pet with a butcher knife and pounded him with a shovel.
"He looked at me like, 'Mom, what did you do?'" Herold told NBC's "Today Show" in an interview aired Wednesday. "It was horrific what happened and I had to do what I had to do, but still, I'll miss him for the rest of my life."
Nash remained was in critical condition early Wednesday with major injuries to her face and hands.
Police said they are looking into the possibility of criminal charges. A pet owner can be held criminally responsible if he or she knew or should have known that an animal was a danger to others.
Police said that the chimp was agitated earlier Monday and that Herold had given him the anti-anxiety drug Xanax in some tea. Police said the drug had not been prescribed for the 14-year-old chimp.
In humans, Xanax can cause memory loss, lack of coordination, reduced sex drive and other side effects. It can also lead to aggression in people who were unstable to begin with, said Dr. Emil Coccaro, chief of psychiatry at the University of Chicago Medical Center.
"Xanax could have made him worse," if human studies are any indication, Coccaro said.
Investigators said they were also told that Travis had Lyme disease, a tick-borne illness with flu-like symptoms that can lead to arthritis and meningitis in humans.
"Maybe from the medications he was out of sorts," Stamford police Capt. Richard Conklin said.
Nash had gone to Herold's home in Stamford on Monday to help her coax the chimp back into the house after he got out, police said. After the animal lunged at Nash when she got out of her car, Herold ran inside to call 911 and returned with a knife.
After the initial attack, Travis ran away and started roaming Herold's property until police arrived, setting up security so medics could reach the critically injured woman, Conklin said.
But the chimpanzee returned and went after several of the officers, who retreated into their cars, Conklin said. An officer shot Travis several times after the animal opened the door to his cruiser and started to get in.
The wounded chimpanzee fled into the house and retreated to his living quarters, where he died.
Herold, a widow whose daughter was killed in a car accident several years ago, told the Today Show that the incident was "a freak thing."
She said Travis "couldn't have been more my son than if I gave birth to him," and rejected criticism that chimpanzees are inappropriate pets.
"It's a horrible thing, but I'm not a horrible person and he's not a horrible chimp." she said.
The unexplained attack was uncharacteristic of Travis, a veteran of TV commercials who could eat at the table, drink wine from a stemmed glass, use the toilet, and dress and bathe himself.
Don Mecca, a family friend from Colchester, N.Y., said Herold fed the chimp steak, lobster, ice cream and Italian food.
Travis brushed his teeth with a Water Pik, logged on to a computer to look at photos and channel-surfed television with the remote control.
Colleen McCann, a primatologist at the Bronx Zoo, said chimpanzees are unpredictable and dangerous even after living among humans for years.
"I don't know the effects of Lyme disease on chimpanzees, but I will say that it's deceiving to think that if any animal is, quote-unquote, well-behaved around humans that means there is no risk involved to humans for potential outbursts of behavior," she said. "They are unpredictable, and in instances like this you cannot control that behavior or prevent it from happening if it is in a private home."
Connecticut law requires anyone who owns a primate heavier than 50 pounds to obtain a state permit. But Herold was exempted from the law.
When he was younger, Travis starred in TV commercials for Old Navy and Coca-Cola, made an appearance on the "Maury Povich Show" and took part in a television pilot, according to a 2003 story in The Advocate newspaper of Stamford.


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## JadeIcing (Feb 18, 2009)

Everyone here (I live pretty close to it.) is talking about it.


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## Luv-bunniz (Feb 18, 2009)

Meh, cant say I am suprised. One solution isnt there? dont keep a chimp unless you have the proper enclosure for it, they are not animals for handling or for pets. Tbh, if I had of seen that woman stabbing the chimp I would have gave her what she dished! It was the chimp owners fault.


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## Luvr of Wabbits and Polar Bears (Feb 18, 2009)

This is something I have heard of. I think 20/20 did a story on Americans keeping chimp's as pets and more than you think and have been hurt by them. There is a sanctuary where owners can take them to live as chimps and not pets.


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## naturestee (Feb 18, 2009)

Saw this. Apparently some news places have gotten hold of the 911 call recording, no way do I want to listen to that as apparently you can hear the chimp screaming in the background!

CHIMPS ARE NOT PETS. Most primates are not good pets. They're too smart and too strong for their size. A few years ago someone got most of his face bit off when he visited a chimp sanctuary to see an old pet of his. I saw a picture of him after he healed and wished I hadn't! Chimps are much stronger than a human of the sameweight (200lbs!)and are known to be violent.


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## BSAR (Feb 18, 2009)

This is really horrible. But it still doesn't change me wanting a monkey.
I really want a chimp but I can go with a Cappucian.


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## Luvmyzoocrew (Feb 18, 2009)

I think it is horrible, it is ashame that the animal had to be killed because someone decided to keep him as a pet until he snapped.


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## undergunfire (Feb 18, 2009)

I saw this on the news this morning, 911 interview, interview with the owner...and all.

I cried my eyes out. Not for the lady who was attacked (call me heartless), but I cried for the owner and her chimp. You can see he was her "son", hearing her story of her husband dying and losing her daughter in a car crash...made my heart just break for her more. Now she has to deal with what went wrong that day and losing her "child" of 14 years.

She was true when she said that even people can act this way...that people can snap at any second and murder/attack people. It should not be so shocking that a Chimp had the same reaction.


Ugh....I just feel so bad for the owner and the Chimp. It wasn't anyone's fault, it was just an accident.

:cry1:


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## EileenH (Feb 18, 2009)

_"But it still doesn't change me wanting a monkey.
I really want a chimp but I can go with a Cappucian."
====================================================_

It should. People's desire to have primates - be it a a chimp, a squirrel monkey, a capuchin, whatever - just feeds keeping them in the pet trade. A capuchin monkey is still extremely dangerous. I know people who have had severe nerve damage done from capuchin monkeys - one person had half their calf ripped off.

Unfortunately, I know this firsthand. Years ago, an ex of mine wanted a monkey & bought a squirrel monkey. Pretty quickly in, he grew tired of constantly being bitten; not severe bites, but bites nonetheless. I ended up taking over her care. I loved her so much, for 8 years. Just like the chimp lady, my monkey slept in bed with me, hung out with me all the time, I took her all over. She was wonderful, but I would be lying if I said it was all fun. Every person in my family was bitten throughout those 8 years. We actually got used to getting bitten; she was small so no real damage was done for the most part.

For 8 years, she lived with me. Went rollerblading with me. Went to the park with me. She rode in my car like a little passenger and would imitate me on the couch and sit like me. I could tell you for hours how close we were and you wouldn't be bored.

Then, the ex & I split up. Much like a child of a divorce, she was confused and unhappy. Primates form strong social circles, and we were the circle. So, his new girlfriends & any guy I brought home, ran the risk of being attacked. (Cuts down on your dates for sure). But I didn't care, as I took my responsibility seriously and just didn't bring guys home.

But, her world had changed. *She* changed. She became more aggressive, no matter what i did, no matter how much time I spent with her. 
One day, she flew into a rage (much like I suspect the chimp did). Being a small monkey (and I had gloves on) I was able to restrain her. But..the look in her eyes...broke my heart. She had pure and wild hatred in her eyes. I still see those eyes. I broke down and cried,knowing that I just couldn't make her happy any more.

I had become friendly with a primate sanctuary (as a long term care potentialin case I ever got sick or died, because I knew nobody else would take something like this on and I didn't want her euthanized if something happened to me) and they agreed to adopt her. But...I dragged my feet because she had my heart.

One night about a month later, while I was sleeping, she for no reason, flipped out & attacked me while I was sleeping. She ripped a big part of my thumb off. 15 years later, I still have no feeling in my thumb. I knew I had lost her.
I did place her at the sanctuary. I did not do it because she bit me. I will *N E V E R* forget the look of hatred in her eyes on that day I had described before. I did it because I knew I could not make her happy and I just wanted her to be happy.

It remains to this day, the worst day of my life, when I had to drive her to the airport. When it was time to check her in, the airline attendent said "Put it on the belt".
(_*It?......)*_ I had packed some of her favorite treats to keep her busy so she didn't notice when I walked away from her forever. She was chirping away happily and opening her snacks when I turned and walked away for the last time. My mind still shutsdown when I imagine what her terrormust havebeen when they loaded herinto the belly of a plane.. all the strangers..when the plane engines started...

She died within a year. Why? Because she was a wild animal, that I(well to be fair, my ex) tried to make a pet out of. So she was never domestic - never human - and also not a normal monkey. She fit in nowhere. She didn't understand social cues of other monkeys and constantly did the wrong thing, ending up with her getting bitten. Going from sleeping in bed with me, to such a different life..the stress eventually made her sick and she passed away.
I flew to the sanctuary and buried her. I visited there every year. I got engaged there. I am still friends with the wonderful people who work there. 
I still miss her every single day.
And I still regret every single day that I was part in messing up an innocent animal's life for nothing more than pure selfishness.

I have tried to give back; to make it "right". I became a licensed vet tech & a wildlife rehabber. I thought if I saved some wild animal's lives, it would help make up for what I did to her. 
It hasn't.

This story is stilldifficult for me to have to think about & rehash. Itell it to try and deter anybody from getting a monkey. There are so many animals that need homes. Leave the wild ones be - there is no reason to have a monkey, or any wild animal, other than a selfish need to be "different". It is nothing more than animal exploitation.

Please, be bigger than that.


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## undergunfire (Feb 18, 2009)

Gosh, Eileen....now I am doing more of this: :cry1:. The stories are just heart breaking. Maybe the story of this Chimp on the news will deter people from wanting pet monkeys, but hopefully it doesn't change people's minds about monkeys because I am sure they are wonderful animals when left "natural".

I am not saying the lady was correct in owning a monkey, but I am just heart broken by her obvious love for the monkey and their story. I am now brokenhearted for your story.


:sad:


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## Starlight Rabbitry (Feb 18, 2009)

This is a really horrible story. It is all over my local news channel. It is being thought that the chimp had Lyme disease and this was the cause of his outrage. 

I will say this though...*YOU DO NOT WANT TO LISTEN TO THE 911 RECORDING!!!* The chimp is heard throughout the recording and it is just horrible. I read the story and when they played it last night, I quickly changed the channel however, no matter what channel I watched, it was on every one.

Sharon


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## EileenH (Feb 18, 2009)

Amy,thanks.... It's still hard to think about, and this storyhas broughta lot of it back to me. My heartdoes goout to the woman too- her entire world has changed and will never be the same. It is so sad for her, but even more so for her friend, and for Travis, who had to die the way he did.


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## naturestee (Feb 19, 2009)

I'm so sorry, Eileen. What a sad story.:tears2:

When it comes down to it, primates are wild animals that require the proper social setting. Humans are NOT the proper social setting. Psychological experiments on isolating monkeys, raising with fake mothers, etc. were voluntarily stopped by the testers because such horrible things happened, especially when the isolated monkey was put in with a group of properly socialized monkeys. They tended to be very violent, either to themselves or others and were also picked on a lot. Many died. 

I remember watching a show about monkeys and it went to a small (in number and size of the animals) monkey rescue. The amount of construction and constant care that was required to keep them physically and mentally healthy was enormous! Most of them had been former pets, often that couldn't behandled by their owners any more.

BSAR, if you're interested in having a primate, work at a zoo or primate rescue. IMO it's the only responsible way to keep them, both for them and for people.


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## MyLOVEABLES!! (Feb 19, 2009)

Im sorry Eileen..

that story made em cry..

i feel sorry for the owner having to stab the chimp.. and then bashing it with a shovel.. :'(

:cry2


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## irishlops (Feb 19, 2009)

*BSAR wrote: *


> This is really horrible. But it still doesn't change me wanting a monkey.
> I really want a chimp but I can go with a Cappucian.


thats what my uncle breeds! but they have a stroongg grip..... and teeth..h34r2


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## Bo B Bunny (Feb 19, 2009)

I hate monkeys


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## BethM (Feb 19, 2009)

I like monkeys.......In the wild, where they belong.

I feel worse for the Chimp in this story than his owner. It's widely known that chimps can be aggressive and unpredictable, people should know better than to keep them as "pets." This is going to sound harsh, but I kind of feel that anyone who keeps a chimp as a pet sort of deserves what they get when the chimp acts out towards them. 

I feel the same way about big cats. There's a zoo-type of place in Kansas that has big cats. I'm not sure the exact location of the place, but high schoolers from that area like to get their senior pictures taken with the big cats. Touching them, leaning up against them, etc. Every few years or so, someone gets seriously injured when a tiger bites or scratches. I don't understand how people can continue to think it's ok to do this, when all the evidence says otherwise. 

Everyone knows these animals can be dangerous. They are just being the wild animals that they really are. When they act out, it is not their fault. 

If that woman wanted a "child," maybe she should have adopted an actual human child, or gotten involved in a mentoring program, or something like that. Or, if she was set on chimps, she could have done some work at an AZA certified zoo where she would have been able to be involved, but safely.


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## EileenH (Feb 19, 2009)

Beth, you are correct. Though I am sure this woman loved Travis, it wasn't a normal relationship. I understand that she had lost her daughter & I think her husband; it sounds as if to her, the chimp was filling a void.

Andno animal - wild or not - should be sitting at the table, given house keys.._*given*_ _*alcohol*.._he ate steak at the table with utensils an drank wine out of a wine glass. 

BoBBunny, there's no reason to hate monkeys. They're wonderful animals - in their environment. 
It's not the monkeys that cause the problem. As always, it's the people that do the wrong thing for their own reasons, and the animal that pays the price.


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## Flash (Feb 19, 2009)

It was a terrible thing to happen to all involved. I can't watch it on tv it's so sad. Ellen I'm so sorry.

There was a chimp owned near my school and they would put him in a harness and tie him to a tree. When I took the shortcut I would see the chimp outside but my parents told me to stay away from him walk on the other side of the street. We heard about all his tricks but everyone stayed away from him that was during the 70's.


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## Luvmyzoocrew (Feb 19, 2009)

Eileen what a sad but great story for people to read and hopefully deter anyone from want to get a WILD animal as a pet. Eileen i am so sorry for the sadness but glad that it has made your feelings on this so strong and thank you for sharing such a personal story with us, I could feel the emotion in it and it couldnt have been easy to type and bring back all the feelings about her.

I really wish people would think before getting wild animals, so sad.


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## irishlops (Feb 19, 2009)

*Bo B Bunny wrote: *


> I hate monkeys


sorry i laughteed out loud at thet....
because we soet of came from monkeys. but travis is a chimpanze. not a monkey. he is classifed as an ape.:biggrin2:
but i know where you are coming from.:cry2


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## irishlops (Feb 19, 2009)

ps. im sorry eilieen for what happened. as some one sad it ois very brave and kind of you to share it to stop things like that happening


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## Bo B Bunny (Feb 19, 2009)

*irishlops wrote: *


> *Bo B Bunny wrote: *
> 
> 
> > I hate monkeys
> ...



I don't believe in evolution.

I still don't like apes or monkeys! :biggrin2:


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## EileenH (Feb 19, 2009)

At least we know you won't be getting one as a pet!


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## Bo B Bunny (Feb 19, 2009)

Nope!

ewwwwwwwww nasty


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## irishlops (Feb 19, 2009)

*Bo B Bunny wrote: *


> *irishlops wrote: *
> 
> 
> > *Bo B Bunny wrote: *
> ...


if you cant beat them, join them! lol. no, you have your choices... i still like them,... but not really as pet/:biggrin2:


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## NZminilops (Feb 19, 2009)

Any animal (and a lot of humans) can suddenly turn like that.

I wont even own a dog after seeing what they can do to people. Been attacked too many times, and seen too many nasty dog attacks. Usually from pets that have been wonderful for years, then suddenly turn, and get bloodlust.

Primates are amazing animals, I think they need to stay in their own environments though.

I don't see that this owner was any worse than us on here, we say our rabbits are our babies and let them get away with a lot of stuff. And some people grieve as though they lost a child, when they lose a bunner!

A lot of people here have also expressed their opinion that they'd save their rabbits before they'd save their family members, if the house was burning down. Obviously choosing animals before own family members!

P.S wasn't it a man mauled? The article says "he" and "his".


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## irishlops (Feb 19, 2009)

im unsure....if it was a he or a she. yes we do with our bunnys


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## EileenH (Feb 19, 2009)

It was a woman; the cops thought it was a male because her face apparantly was not on anymore when they got there.

NZminilops, I know what you mean. All of us here are crazy for our animals, rabbits or otherwise. But, no matter how bad one of our rabbits are, they don't have the capacity to kill anybody (except perhaps the one in irishlops avatar!). It's a whole different level of danger that Travis's owner was not skilled with or prepared for. 

It's one thing to let our pets get away with minimal stuff, a whole other thing to treat them as a human. And the potential for danger always has to be considered. I let my cats push me around. If I was the owner of a bobcat (not that I ever would be!), I wouldn't treat it the same way. 

And of course! We all grieve very hard when we lose one of our pets. I am sure this woman's heart has been ripped out of her chest. I am just surprised that after 15 years of owning a chimp, and after this attack, she is still claiming they are wonderful pets. I learned my lesson that what I did was not fair. After all these years, I would have hoped she would have learned about normal chimp behavior and realized what keeping him as a pet took from him.


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## Floppy Puff-Puff (Feb 19, 2009)

What shocked me more than the attack itself was the owner of the deceased chimp spending more time prattling on about how good he was rather than expressing concern for her 'best friend's well being.

I heard the 911 call on the Adam Carolla show, and it got a chuckle out of me. Not because I find a woman being disfigured by an ape funny, but rather, the bewilderment of the operator as well as the quips Adam threw in.

Does anyone recall the man that was disfigured by his chimp a couple of years ago? Apparently they turned it over to one of the few sanctuaries that takes chimps, and when they went to visit him on his birthday, he flipped out and mutilated the man's nether-regions.

When will people learn?


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## LuvaBun (Feb 19, 2009)

I think this is a tragic story all round - in the end, all involved suffered!

Eileen, your story was so moving. I think it would help a lot of people considering taking any wild animal as a pet, to know what you went through. And kudos to you for all your doing to help animals now.

Jan


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## Bo B Bunny (Feb 19, 2009)

You know, we discuss that a lot of people get mini-horses thinking they are like a dog. They are not like a dog and they THINK they are big horses. If they aren't treated right, they can be dangerous just because they are being themselves.


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## trailsend (Feb 19, 2009)

This is a horrible situation. I heard the 911 call and it was awful. Not the way I wanted to start my morning. 

Eileen I appreciate you sharing your story- I could read through your words how hard it was and has been. It breaks my heart when I see ads for monkeys for sale and people keeping them as pets - so many people have absolutely no idea what they are doing. They are not pets. The sale of monkeys (spider, etc.) seems to be becoming more popular and I just can't stand it. How many of those "pets" are getting everything they need? They are just not meant to be in captivity especially not a house!


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## irishlops (Feb 20, 2009)

*EileenH wrote: *


> NZminilops, I know what you mean. All of us here are crazy for our animals, rabbits or otherwise. But, no matter how bad one of our rabbits are, they don't have the capacity to kill anybody (except perhaps the one in irishlops avatar!).


thats true and yes my rabbit is dangerous.....h34r2


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## BethM (Feb 20, 2009)

*irishlops wrote: *


> *EileenH wrote: *
> 
> 
> > NZminilops, I know what you mean. All of us here are crazy for our animals, rabbits or otherwise. But, no matter how bad one of our rabbits are, they don't have the capacity to kill anybody (except perhaps the one in irishlops avatar!).
> ...


All 3 of my rabbits have nipped or bitten me at some point. Tobi has bitten hard enough to break the skin, and can be aggressive when she feels threatened, so I approach her with care. However, it is unlikely that she could chew anyone's face off. 
I also don't hold their behaviour against them, they're just communicating in the way they know.


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## irishlops (Feb 20, 2009)

omg! i have bonded with caramel, but i dont think well enough....
growls at me so i back off. leave food and water and hay, then back off. she bits, shakes! and then looks at me like she is sorry i bleed to death! lol
eyore.. big soppy bundle of fluff.... but those teeth dont harm me.. its his clawa.... 2 days ago he 14cm slash across my arm.....
but i agrree with you. they cant shout ******* *** at you so you have to learn there behaviours.
ps, caramel is grieving for a passed bonded mate, and 3 of her kits a few weeks ago. so i think i let her off with more than i should....lol


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## Happi Bun (Feb 22, 2009)

I have to comment on this. Supposedly the owner of the the chimp has given him alcohol and anti-depressants in the past. I feel so sorry for the lady attacked and the poor chimp who was stabbed by his owner with a butcher knife and then shot by police but still managed to drag himself into the house to die in his cage. For God's sake kill him quickly if it had to be done! 

The owner knew the dangers of keeping an animal that large. Travis (the chimp) trusted his owner to look out for him, yet he died a horrific death. After all, she was the one who thought it was fine to keep a chimp and treat it like a human child. 

Sorry, this whole tragic story just really gets my blood boiling.


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## Blaze_Amita (Feb 22, 2009)

when i first heard the report on the radio and the 911 recording i thought it was a joke until i read more and heard more about it later on. i don't mean to be so odd(mean or coldhearted), but i found it rather entertaining that there are actually people in the world that are that stupid and stubborn. i mean i've heard of people keeping their dogs even if they attack and bit people(or their other livestock) We, as in my parents and I, don't tolerate it. my dog is the most laid back thing you could find(except around other dogs) and she runs from my rabbits. She's 77 puonds of husky/lab mixed she's got hunting instincts cause she's killed other dogs that came at her or me. 
But this chimp. it amused me, it really did. stubborn stupid people. We can't get away from them


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## Happi Bun (Feb 22, 2009)

Blaze_Amita, I'm not quite sure what you are getting at?


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## Raspberry82 (Feb 28, 2009)

It's hard to say one way or the other why the chimp freaked out, but if it did have Lyme Disease, there are multiple "co-infections" that a Deer Tick can infect you with along with Lyme Disease. One known as Bartonella aka Cat Scratch Fever can cause severe agression, mood swings, and bursts of rage in humans who are treating it. And for some people even Lyme Disease can cause aggression or severe mood swings and anger totally uncontrollably.

I tested positive for both Bartonella and Lyme Disease 2 years ago. The Bartonella caused severe mood swings for me and (although I have never had a temper ever in my life) I had a bad temper on the days of treatment for it and my temper would be provoked at the slightest thing. Of course I never got violent or anything  . But in a confused animal who cannot communicate what they're feeling I bet this would be extremely scary to feel!!!


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