Our commitment to ex-lab chimpanzees
Learning to live step by step.
Project: Our commitment to ex-lab chimpanzees
Because of their genetic similarity to humans, the chimpanzees were captured as babies in their homeland and brought to Austria. In the service of research, they were kept in isolation for 20 years without knowing their conspecifics or feeling the sun. In cramped laboratory cages, they had to be available for animal experiments instead.
The animals have been in the care of Gut Aiderbichl since 2009. The expertise of leading primatologists and veterinarians was sought for the planning and realisation of the monkey sanctuary. In this way, Gut Aiderbichl can guarantee the traumatised chimpanzees the best possible accommodation and accompany them step by step back into a normal life.
Help us and give the chimpanzees back a piece of the life that was so cruelly taken from them.
"So what, said the white chimpanzee"
Kept in isolation and alienated from their social existence. Weakened and tortured by animal experiments. But despite this traumatic past, the chimpanzees at the Gänserndorf ape sanctuary have learnt to leave this horror behind and find new joy in life. “It’s amazing that the chimpanzees still want to get to know us after all this. But they always look ahead – something we humans can learn from them!” explains Renate Foidl, head of the ape sanctuary.
This is exactly what inspired Thomas Brezina to write his latest book “Na and said the white chimpanzee – A story about forgiveness”. Thomas Brezina uses sensitive words and impressive examples to tell the story of how chimpanzees learn to free themselves from the shackles of the past and feel the beauty of the present moment. Because the white chimpanzee knows: More than ever, we need a future that is not determined by the past.
Our project at a glance
Our commitment to ex-lab chimpanzees
Initial situation:
- The chimpanzees were kept in a research environment for 20 years for animal testing.
- The chimpanzees were infected with diseases such as HIV and hepatitis
- Cramped laboratory cages and social isolation make a species-appropriate chimpanzee life impossible
Target:
- Trauma management
- Resocialisation of the apes: Guidance towards a regular chimpanzee life
- Through public relations work: sensitising the public to the horrors of animal experiments
Our work:
- 2009: Gut Aiderbichl takes over the former safari park in Gänserndorf and founds the Gut Aiderbichl Monkey Sanctuary
- 2011: Opening of a 2,000 square metre outdoor enclosure
- Loving and species-appropriate care of the chimpanzees by Gut Aiderbichl.
Outlook:
- Loving care for the chimpanzees until the end of their natural lives
- Ensuring age-appropriate care for the chimpanzees by e.g. remodelling the enclosures
"The chimpanzees were brought here for us. They had to live in the lab for us for decades. We all benefit from this. And so we are in your debt." (Renate Foidl, head of the ape sanctuary)
Our project - The whole story
In the service of research
In the 1970s and 1980s, chimpanzees were in great demand for animal experiments due to their genetic similarity to humans. For research purposes, they were infected with diseases such as HIV and hepatitis. In the laboratory, the monkeys were completely isolated, with no contact with the outside world or environmental influences. Many of them died in agony. When the experiments with the animals were stopped in 1997, they were finally saved. The pharmaceutical company financed an extensive monkey facility in the Gänserndorf Safari Park near Vienna and paid for the upkeep of the ex-lab monkeys. When the safari park went bankrupt, Gut Aiderbichl took over the facility and the care of the traumatised chimpanzees.
Back to life step by step
Since then, we have been slowly re-socialising the animals – a process that continues and will never end. The chimpanzees were highly traumatised after being kept in the laboratory and some of them injured themselves. They were also denied the opportunity to grow up in the natural structure of an ape family. Only as adults did they have to learn what social interaction means. It was unimaginable that the apes would ever be able to lead a normal chimpanzee life again after such experiences.
Most of the chimpanzees are now able to live in a group again and are visibly happy in their new home. However, some of them are still full of mistrust and tend to live in seclusion.
Gut Aiderbichl’s main aim was to give the chimpanzees back some of their natural freedom. They were completely unfamiliar with the seasons and even sunlight. Since 2011, they have also had a large outdoor enclosure – not least thanks to the help of many Aiderbichlers. The opening of the 2,000 square metre outdoor enclosure was an exciting moment for the animals and their keepers. How would the chimpanzees react if they could feel the warmth of the sunlight and the wind on their skin for the first time in their lives?
It's about so much more
The support paid by the pharmaceutical company, the state and the federal government over many years ended in 2019 and since then we have had to bear the costs of several hundred thousand euros a year entirely on our own. This is only possible thanks to the support of our donors, whose help we so urgently need.
Support us with your donation!
With €58
we can feed a chimpanzee for a day
With €400
we can feed a chimpanzee for a week
With every €
provide our chimpanzees with food
If you are a supporter of our chimpanzees, you can also visit the ape sanctuary!
Guided tours are available every Saturday from April to the end of October. Start at 14:00.
Only with advance booking at patenschaften@gut-aiderbichl.com
We would like to inform you that the visit will only take place with a minimum of 7 people. We reserve the right to cancel the visit up to two days in advance if there are too few registrations.
News from the monkey sanctuary
Dr Jane Goodall
In 2011, a dream of Gut Aiderbichl founder Michael Aufhauser came true. The former laboratory chimpanzees regained some of their freedom in the form of a large outdoor enclosure. Many of our chimpanzees saw the sunlight for the first time or felt the wind on their skin. We were able to share this moving moment with Dr Jane Goodall, a woman who has been working incredibly hard to protect nature and animals for many decades.
Gut Aiderbichl congratulates Dr Jane Goodall on her 90th birthday!
