Travis The Chimpanzee
Posted: Wednesday, February 18, 2009
by Gary W. Halsey Sr.
All Season Karaoke and D.J.
I was listening to the news about the story of Travis the Chimp that went berserk on his owner's friend yesterday, and had brutally beat her to within an inch of her life and I quote "Ripping her face off". I'm not to sure about what everybody else thinks, but number one, let me say, that I feel just absolutely devastated about what happened to 55-year-old Charla Nash. But where the responsibility lies is with the owner. People have no business "Owning" wild animals no matter how "human like" they seem to appear or how docile they may seem, they are WILD ANIMALS! Why did this happen? Travis the Chimp was wild and was set off by the change in Mrs. Nash's appearance. She had gotten a haircut, and it changed her looks dramatically, and he reacted with an unpredictable response, and charge at Mrs. Nash. A 200 lb. chimp, was attacking this woman!
I remember when my wife once owned a raccoon, and I will tell you, a raccoon belongs in the wild as well because after a certain age, there wild instincts kick in, especially when it is time to mate. Even when they are fixed. Her raccoon was on the ground on a leash, and there was a loud noise, and this raccoon reacted by flying up her ex husbands arm, with its claws severing her husbands artery, and had to go to the emergency room to repair the damage on his arm. Wild animals are NOT TO BE TRUSTED. They are WILD! Because of someone irresponsibility of owning a wild animal, is the reason why this happened, and if Mrs. Nash should survive this ordeal, whom by the way is in critical condition, Sandra Herold will forever have to look at her friends face, and know, that her animal did it. What a shame.... I truly do feel sorry for her, but I cannot set aside the fact that this animal was indeed a wild animal, and just doing what it instinctively does.
Why don't we, as humans, with supposedly a higher intelligence, and we have been told over and over again by the experts, that wild animals are un-predictable in nature, and are WILD, Why then do we still insist owning them? My heart goes out in prayer to Mrs. Nash, and her dear friend Mrs. Herold, because they are both in for very tough times. I also feel bad that the chimp was shot for something that is his basic instincts after all he is an animal. It's all good owning one of these wild exotic animals as long as everything is going okay, but the minute they return to their basic instincts they (the animals) are the bad guys.
It was a disaster in the making, and I for one, feel sorry for all. I think the laws ought to get allot tougher, that no one, and I mean no one, other than zoo's that have trained professionals handling these animals, are the only ones that can "house" these wild creatures. They, the wild animals, "are what they are"...Wild! This writer thinks that they should remain that way.
We hear about people that are moving out to the country, next to the mountains, even in the mountains, (more and more folks are doing this), and they are attacked by cougars, bears, bitten by poisonous reptiles, you name it, it is because we are forcing them to attack, we are in THEIR territory, and we humans know this, yet we question WHY this happens? There is not question in this writers mind, "it is what it is", leave the wildlife alone and respect the environment, and know that is where these animals live, and they are running out of "living space", I believe in these cases, that man is his own worst enemy...
Why don't we, as humans, with supposedly a higher intelligence, and we have been told over and over again by the experts, that wild animals are un-predictable in nature, and are WILD, Why then do we still insist owning them? My heart goes out in prayer to Mrs. Nash, and her dear friend Mrs. Herold, because they are both in for very tough times. I also feel bad that the chimp was shot for something that is his basic instincts after all he is an animal. It's all good owning one of these wild exotic animals as long as everything is going okay, but the minute they return to their basic instincts they (the animals) are the bad guys.
It was a disaster in the making, and I for one, feel sorry for all. I think the laws ought to get allot tougher, that no one, and I mean no one, other than zoo's that have trained professionals handling these animals, are the only ones that can "house" these wild creatures. They, the wild animals, "are what they are"...Wild! This writer thinks that they should remain that way.
We hear about people that are moving out to the country, next to the mountains, even in the mountains, (more and more folks are doing this), and they are attacked by cougars, bears, bitten by poisonous reptiles, you name it, it is because we are forcing them to attack, we are in THEIR territory, and we humans know this, yet we question WHY this happens? There is not question in this writers mind, "it is what it is", leave the wildlife alone and respect the environment, and know that is where these animals live, and they are running out of "living space", I believe in these cases, that man is his own worst enemy...
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Top-level comments on this article: (6 total)I couldn't agree more Gary. I used to be an animal student and my class was based at a zoo, so we got to learn a lot about the animals in our immediate environment and of course some hands of experience.One thing we learned was that these animals are dangerous as are many other animals that people and visitors to zoo's are often allowed to pet, ie elephants. There are a lot of injuries to keepers and near misses to members of the public re these giant (friendly in the eyes of the public) beasts.Well thank you for reading the article CB, I loved your last article!!! Yeah, this really kind of "ticked" me off. Over and over again we are told to beware of these animals because they are wild....and people just keep ignoring the warnings by experts. It's not fair to the animals. I am a animal lover, and I love to see how they live in their natural habitat, but it doesn't mean I want one!! Not this guy.......I will respect them, and keep my distance. If God wanted me to be one, with one.......He would have made me a chimp!! Lol!!!! Thanks again for reading my article, it means alot to me coming from you.....Your fan, and friend in pen.......Gary..
Great piece Gary!! I couldn't agree more!
Thank you Laura, it was nice reading your article yesterday.....another hit!!!! I appreciate your stopping by to read this, and I echo what I told CB. I won't be going out to buy a cobra anytime soon....lol.....it's always nice to hear from you guys , as you are some of my favorite writers, and your opinion and comments flatter me....again, thank you for taking them time to comment......Your fan and friend in pen,......Gary.
Good article, Gary, and very true. I live in the foothills of the Canadian Rockies (bear country) and hear many stories of people being mauled by bears. I love the mountains, but don't hike that often just because of the bear problem. It's their world out there.Hi David, you are so right. We take great risk when we go camping, fishing, hunting, and whatever else we do out in the great outdoors, and me being the reformed conservationist that I am, (I used to hunt), I respect all wildlife and their habitat. It's their country, and who am I to impose? I do love the mountains though, and have lived out in the middle of nowhere, in the mountains, (lots of cougars where I used to live, mother with kits) and the like, and I always gave her a wide berth, and kept far away from her and her den.....This event really disturbed me, and it was a accident that didn't need to happen, if only people would stop thinking these animals can be domesticated!!! Thanks for reading and commenting on the article, as usual, it is always a pleasure to hear from my poetic friend.....your fan and friend in pen........Gary..
Wow, Gary, I thought I had heard wrong when I first heard the damage cause by this chimp. My heart goes out to the victim and my angst to the "owner." It seems that the animals have had enough of our s*#% and are finding more and more ways to get even. Lots of passion in this piece, as always. Your writing is very exciting, KEEP IT UP!!!YOUR fan,Ken McCrelessThanks so much for your kind words Ken....I know we are told over and over by the experts to treat a wild animal, as a wild animal, they were not meant to be domesticated. Its like the elephants, like we can control them when they go on a rampage. If I were caged up for years and years, I might just be a tad antsy myself, and want to step on the first human I see.....It's no wonder these things happen. I love your work, and I really do appreciate your taking the time out of your busy day to comment, I really appreciate it.....Your fan and friend in pen......Gary.
Bravo, Gary! Well-written and exactly the way most people feel. Anyone with a smidgeon of intelligence would know that wild animals belong in the wild. Zoos are ok as long as the animals are treated well and with the respect that they deserve and that their keepers always know where the danger lies. Thanks for a great peice.SandraThanks Sandra for reading the article, I'm pretty passionate about people owning wild animals for novelties...It's not fair to the animals, and obviously the owners friend, my prayers go out to her and her family.....Thanks again for the comment, always a pleasure to hear from you. I used your name in a article called "What Is A Fan", I hope you don't mind. It's more of a tribute to those on my fan list that are nice enough to read my articles.....Thanks for reading them, Your fan and friend in pen....Gary.
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