Author(s): Andrew Westoll

Environment

On a small farm in the Canadian countryside, thirteen elderly chimpanzees are living out what's left of their troubled lives. Retired from the infamous laboratories where they were abused for decades, their home is now an idyllic, somewhat rowdy establishment called the Fauna Sanctuary. The chimps share the farm with more than 100 wounded animals, many of them retired from show-business. Together, they are slowly healing, physically and emotionally, after lifetimes of suffering. Andrew Westoll spent months at Fauna Sanctuary as a volunteer and vividly recounts his time in the chimp house and the histories of its residents. Gradually the chimps begin to warm towards Westoll as he learns the routines of life at the farm and realises just how far the chimps have come. Seemingly simple things like grooming, establishing friendships and alliances, and playing games with the garden hose are all poignant testament to the capacity of these animals to heal. Brimming with empathy, The Chimps of Fauna Sanctuary is an absorbing, bighearted book that grapples with questions of just what we owe to the animals who are our nearest genetic relations.