HBO’s ‘Chimp Crazy’ Featuring Stamford Chimpanzee Sparks Push to Ban Primates as ‘Pets’

For Immediate Release:
August 26, 2024

Contact:
Moira Colley 202-483-7382

The maker of Tiger King is back with a twisted tale that is simply bananas. Chimp Crazy—director Eric Goode’s new four-part HBO docuseries—highlights the story of Travis, a chimpanzee who was raised in Stamford and made national headlines in 2009 when he attacked and severely injured a local woman. PETA Foundation General Counsel for Captive Animal Law Enforcement Brittany Peet—who appears in Chimp Crazy and worked on many of the cases featured in it—is available for interviews.

Peet could share behind-the-scenes details and talk about PETA’s support of the new bipartisan Captive Primate Safety Act. The proposed legislation, which was introduced in the U.S. Senate by Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and cosponsored by Sens. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), would prohibit private ownership, private breeding, and all commercial activity involving primates used in the pet trade.

A crime scene photo of the shovel used to beat Travis during the attack. Credit: PETA

“Chimp Crazy shows that confining highly intelligent, social apes and monkeys to human homes or seedy roadside zoos is not only cruel but also extremely dangerous,” says Peet. “PETA encourages everyone who was moved by the tragic stories featured in Chimp Crazy to contact their legislators and urge them to support the Captive Primate Safety Act.”

PETA notes that chimpanzees kept as “pets” are often bred in captivity by dealers, torn away from their mothers as babies, sold to anyone with a big enough bank account, denied any chance at a natural life, and forced to do whatever their owner chooses. Thanks to PETA’s campaigns, chimpanzees are no longer used in films, and the group is working to ensure that no more great apes are exploited by roadside zoos or the pet trade.

The Captive Primate Safety Act was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.-03) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.-01) and is cosponsored by Reps. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.-01) and Joe Neguse (D-Colo.-02).

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment or abuse in any other way”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow the group on X, Facebook, or Instagram.