lucy: loves food and to be tickled
Lucy was brought directly to LCR by her “owner” – a woman from Grand Geddeh county region in Northern Liberia in January 2016. Lucy was estimated to be 4-5 months old. That area is well known for illegal hunting.
According to the woman surrendering Lucy, she was being held at the age of only 1-2 weeks by a man in the village. He gave her the baby, who she decided to keep until she realized she could no longer care for her properly. It is believed the woman was actually attempting to sell the baby but changed her story when she found out this was illegal and she could be prosecuted.
With permission from FDA, LCR made the confiscation onsite. FDA did not wish to prosecute. Lucy is now being cared for (under the supervision of Liberia Forest Development Authority) by Liberia Chimpanzee Rescue, located at LIBR facilities in Charlesville, Liberia. She arrived extremely underweight and depressed.
Lucy suffered from severe anxiety upon being separated from her human surrogate mother but after only a few days of round the clock care and greatly improved nutrition, she slowly recovered and bonded with her new caregivers. Lucy Is now a very active and agile chimp and a true survivor.
Lucy, now over a year old, is still very particular about who she trusts but she has thrived in the safe and secure love and care of caregivers. She has a great smile and laugh and adores being tickled and swung about. She loves her food and makes very happy food grunts whenever meals are served. Lucy has a lovely face and a sweet expression with big brown eyes that stare with intensity.
According to the woman surrendering Lucy, she was being held at the age of only 1-2 weeks by a man in the village. He gave her the baby, who she decided to keep until she realized she could no longer care for her properly. It is believed the woman was actually attempting to sell the baby but changed her story when she found out this was illegal and she could be prosecuted.
With permission from FDA, LCR made the confiscation onsite. FDA did not wish to prosecute. Lucy is now being cared for (under the supervision of Liberia Forest Development Authority) by Liberia Chimpanzee Rescue, located at LIBR facilities in Charlesville, Liberia. She arrived extremely underweight and depressed.
Lucy suffered from severe anxiety upon being separated from her human surrogate mother but after only a few days of round the clock care and greatly improved nutrition, she slowly recovered and bonded with her new caregivers. Lucy Is now a very active and agile chimp and a true survivor.
Lucy, now over a year old, is still very particular about who she trusts but she has thrived in the safe and secure love and care of caregivers. She has a great smile and laugh and adores being tickled and swung about. She loves her food and makes very happy food grunts whenever meals are served. Lucy has a lovely face and a sweet expression with big brown eyes that stare with intensity.
When new chimpanzees arrive they are physically and emotionally traumatized. Our veterinary director does a full health check and treats them as needed. Some little ones arrive with broken limbs and shrapnel, and often have deep cuts due to ropes and chains that were used to restrict them while they were held captive. They are also given around the clock TLC, as nurturing and unconditional love is the most important part of their recovery. Feeding the chimps is a challenge. In the wild, chimpanzees eat over 200 different types of food! At LCRP, while we can’t replicate their diet exactly, we work hard to provide the chimps with a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, seeds, and nuts. Little ones receive baby cereal multiple times a day and all the chimps get morning and evening cereal to ensure the get daily boosts of all the right vitamins and minerals.
