Provided by Zootoo.com
WAUCHULA, Fla. -- When the cameras stop rolling and the lights turn dim, some former ape actors can face a fate worse than paparazzi scrutiny.
"Very often, they get out-placed to labs," said Patti Ragan, director of Center for Great Apes.
That could have been the path for the former stars of the movie "Dunston Checks In," the soap opera "Passions" and Careerbuilder.com commercials, had they not found a post-Hollywood home in the Center for Great Apes.
Hidden behind woods and orange groves in south central Florida, the 100-acre sanctuary has taken in 42 orangutans and chimps. Many are veterans of the entertainment industry, having appeared in movies, television shows and the circus.
"They're wonderful and intelligent. And everybody loves a baby. They sell products in commercials, and are entertaining in shows," Ragan said. "But the issue is they're only babies. You can't handle great apes as adolescents and adults, and get them to comply and do tricks."
Once they outgrow their usefulness, some ape actors are sold to scientific labs or to individuals as pets. The shift from the red carpet to an owner's house isn't always a smooth transition.
Some of Ragan's residents are former pets who outgrew their owners' homes and became too big to handle. The apes can live for 50 to 60 years, and in some cases outlive their caretakers.
Space is also a problem, which is why Ragan said many zoos don't take the animals in.
"If they have a shelf life for six, seven, or eight years, the zoos have the responsibility for the next 40 years," she said.
Because many of them grew up as a single pet or the only animal in a production, many apes never develop interaction skills with one another. Adjusting to a life with different animals can then prove challenging for the apes, which can become more territorial as they age, Ragan says.
Returning the animals to the wild is also not an option, since many were taken from that environment as infants and now lack the necessary survival skills.
The Center contains a dozen enormous, three-story, enclosures with climbing areas and room to roam. They're connected through a series of chutes that sprawl across tree tops, enabling the animals to socialize with one another.
Only a few animals are assigned to each habitat, as some require their own space to accommodate their size and need for solitude.
Ragan's penchant for primates was founded almost three decades ago, when she volunteered at the Miami Metro Zoo. After retiring from her personnel service business, she traveled to Borneo to work with an orangutan rehabilitation project for five months.
Ragan created the Center for Great Apes in 1993.
While the sanctuary relies on individual donations and grants to pay for the $15,000 a year required to care for each animal, it is not open to the public. Ragan said it would cost more money for zoning, refurbishing, retrofitting and infrastructure than the Center would raise as an attraction.
Private donor events give outsiders an opportunity to see the animals. Some animals with stage backgrounds break out into "performance mode" by doing back-flips or clapping. But Ragan said she and her staff ignore when that happens, and encourage more "natural" interactions and activities.
"These animals have performed for the public for years and we want to give them a chance to just be with each other," she said.
Contractors are currently building one new habitat on the property. Ragan hopes funding will allow her to add more soon, as 15 chimpanzees are on the waiting list for the Center.
For more information more about the Center for Great Apes, visit CenterForGreatApes.com.
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