Did You Know Louisiana Has a Chimpanzee Sanctuary?
I do not profess to know every darn thing about Louisiana, but I was completely taken off guard when I found out that we are home to a chimpanzee sanctuary. Yes, chimpanzees are being rescued right here in the great state of Louisiana.
Since 1995, Caddo Parish has been the location of Chimp Haven, a landing place for long term care of chimpanzees. Some of the chimps who currently reside there were used in bio medical research, for entertainment purposes, or even for pet trade.
The 200 acre sanctuary, which has housed over 300 chimps in the past, is located at 13600 Chimpanzee Place in Keithville. 200 chimps are current residents, living in the beautiful natural habitat of the Eddie D. Jones Nature Park. In the fall of 2018, Chimp Haven became the largest chimpanzee sanctuary in the United States to open to the public, which hardly ever happens at places like this. Check out the schedule of visiting days for this year below.
Chimpanzee Discovery Days for 2019 are:
- Saturday, March 16
- Saturday, April 13
- Saturday, October 19
- Saturday, November 16
Admission is $10 for age 13 and older; $5 for ages 6 to 12; and free for kids under 5. No reservations are required, so take the family out and support this amazing cause right here in our beautiful Louisiana!