Law requires former research chimps to be retired at a federal sanctuary, court says

A federal judge ruled that the National Institutes of Health violated the law when it decided that former research Chimps in New Mexico would not move to a sanctuary in Louisiana.

Chimp Haven, a 200 acres property with a staff of dozens who care for more than 300 Chimps, was started after the National Institute of Health stopped funding research on Chimps.

Chimpanzees at research facilities tend to live in smaller social groups than the primate's at this federal sanctuary.

Chimpanzees that were too sick and frail to make the move were not allowed to stay. Being trucked to a new home can be difficult for older animals that have lived in one place their entire lives.

Dozens of Chimpanzees will not be leaving the Alamogordo Primate Facility in New Mexico because of the announcement by the National Institute of Health.

The Humane Society of the United States and other groups challenged this decision, saying that a law passed in 2000 as the CHIMP act required that the APF Chimps be given the chance to retire at Chimp Haven.

The judge noted that Congress understood that older and sicker chimp's would enter the federal sanctuary system.

The judge wrote that the court appreciated the difficult policy and practical considerations that theNIH had to confront in determining how best to ensure the health and safety of the frailest APF Chimpanzees. "Pursuing these issues with the appropriate policymakers within the legislative branch is the appropriate avenue for resolving these important concerns."

It's not clear what's going to happen next.

According to Kathleen Conlee, vice president of animal research issues for The Humane Society of the United States, the language of the law was clear.

According to Conlee, this lawsuit applies to the chimps at APF, so theNIH should immediately begin plans for transferring them.

The agency doesn't comment on litigation, according to a spokesman.

According to an attorney with Animal Protection New Mexico, a January 13 deadline has been set for the plaintiffs to file a report on their relief. She says animal welfare advocates are going to ask the judge to order the transfer of the APF Chimps.