Psychological Distress in Chimpanzees Rescued From Laboratories.

Journal of Trauma & Dissociation

ISSN: 1529-9732 (Print) 1529-9740 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/wjtd20

Psychological Distress in Chimpanzees Rescued From Laboratories Stacy M. Lopresti-Goodman PhD, Jocelyn Bezner VMD & Chelsea Ritter BA To cite this article: Stacy M. Lopresti-Goodman PhD, Jocelyn Bezner VMD & Chelsea Ritter BA (2015) Psychological Distress in Chimpanzees Rescued From Laboratories, Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 16:4, 349-366, DOI: 10.1080/15299732.2014.1003673 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15299732.2014.1003673

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Date: 05 November 2015, At: 19:10

Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 16:349–366, 2015 Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC ISSN: 1529-9732 print/1529-9740 online DOI: 10.1080/15299732.2014.1003673

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Psychological Distress in Chimpanzees Rescued From Laboratories STACY M. LOPRESTI-GOODMAN, PhD Department of Psychology, Marymount University, Arlington, Virginia, USA

JOCELYN BEZNER, VMD Save the Chimps, Inc., Fort Pierce, Florida, USA

CHELSEA RITTER, BA Department of Psychology, Marymount University, Arlington, Virginia, USA

The United States is one of the last countries allowing invasive research on chimpanzees. Biomedical research on chimpanzees commonly involves maternal deprivation, social isolation, intensive confinement, and repetitive invasive procedures. These physically harmful and psychologically traumatic experiences cause many chimpanzees to develop symptoms of psychopathology that persist even after relocation from laboratories to sanctuaries. Through semistructured interviews with chimpanzee caregivers, direct behavioral observations, and consultation of laboratory records, we were interested in qualitatively analyzing symptoms of psychological distress in a sample of 253 chimpanzees rescued from biomedical research now residing at an accredited chimpanzee sanctuary. We present the results of this analysis and include an illustrative case study of one rescued chimpanzee who engages in self-injurious behaviors and meets modified Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder. We discuss our results in light of recent policy changes regarding the use of chimpanzees Received 14 August 2014; accepted 22 December 2014. Address correspondence to Stacy M. Lopresti-Goodman, PhD, Department of Psychology, Marymount University, 2807 North Glebe Road, Arlington, VA 22207. E-mail: [email protected] Color versions of one or more figures in this article are available online at www. tandfonline.com/WJTD. 349

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in biomedical research in the United States and their implications for those involved in the rescue and rehabilitation of chimpanzees from biomedical research.


KEYWORDS posttraumatic stress disorder, complex posttraumatic stress disorder, self-injurious behaviors, psychological distress, chimpanzees

For ethical and scientific reasons, nearly every country in the world has banned or discontinued the use of chimpanzees in biomedical research (Capaldo & Bradshaw, 2011). The United States is the last country conducting large-scale experimentation on chimpanzees, with approximately 850 chimpanzees still confined in research colonies (Capaldo & Bradshaw, 2011; Kahn, 2014; National Institutes of Health [NIH], 2013). Chimpanzees subjected to biomedical experiments often endure maternal deprivation, unnatural rearing conditions, intensive confinement, and a variety of invasive and painful procedures, which results in physical harm and psychological trauma (see Ferdowsian & Merskin, 2012, for a discussion of laboratory-caused trauma in nonhuman animals, including nonhuman primates). In the wild, for instance, chimpanzees stay with their mothers for the first 5 to 7 years of their lives (Goodall, 1986). Chimpanzees born in laboratories are prematurely taken from their mothers—sometimes within their first hour—and moved to nurseries, where they are raised by humans or peers. As in humans, maternal separation and deprivation in chimpanzees is known to negatively shape neurobiology by compromising the chimpanzees’ responses to stress (Brune, Brune-Cohrs, McGrew, & Preuschoft, 2006; Kalcher, Franz, Crailsheim, & Preuschoft, 2008). Primates who are raised by peers have enlargements in “stress sensitive brain regions” that make them susceptible to traumatic and stress-induced psychopathology (Spinelli et al., 2009, p. 658), which can result in an inability to regulate affect and stress (Schore, 2005). Chimpanzees in laboratories are often socially isolated and confined in small cages that lack environmental enrichment and do not allow for speciesspecific behaviors. The seemingly unpredictable schedule of physical harm humans repeatedly inflict on them can result in their living in a constant state of fear. These harms include being injected with sedatives while being mechanically squeezed between two ends of their 5 × 5-foot cage, and being shot with anesthesia dart-guns, a process known as a knock-down (see www. youtube.com/watch?v=y_CF-SOgkOY for an example). Footage from inside laboratories shows chimpanzees screaming and frantically trying to escape the technicians with dart-guns. The powerful blow from the dart is painful, as is the 3-foot drop from a platform that often results from the chimpanzee being knocked unconscious while sleeping or climbing. Squeeze cages and


Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 16:349–366, 2015

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knock-downs are used for a variety of routine procedures, including gavage, lavage, and blood and tissue sample collection before infection with diseases such as hepatitis C, HIV, malaria, norovirus and respiratory illnesses and before the performing of invasive procedures ranging from liver biopsies to the removal of vertebrae. Chimpanzees endure pain and discomfort from such invasive procedures and complications such as anaphylaxis, hypoxia, and severe allergic reactions from the anesthetics (Adami, Wenker, Hoby, Morath, & Bergadano, 2013). They also endure the trauma of regularly watching their peers subjected to these procedures. Some chimpanzees have lived in such traumatizing conditions for more than 50 years. Chimpanzees in laboratories commonly live in physically restrictive and strictly controlled environments, which can result in a severely impaired sense of agency, because they have little autonomy (Bradshaw, Capaldo, Lindner, & Grow, 2009; Durham & Merskin, 2009). An inability to cope with or escape from the stressful and painful conditions they endure in laboratories often results in chimpanzees performing abnormal behaviors, or behaviors that are species atypical, occur only or more often in chimpanzees living in captivity, and resemble symptoms of psychopathology in humans (Walsh, Bramblett, & Alford, 1982). These include self-injurious behaviors (SIB) such as self-hitting, -biting, -depilation, and -scratching (Balcombe, Ferdowsian, & Durham, 2011; Birkett & Newton-Fisher, 2011; Fabrega, 2006; LoprestiGoodman, Kameka, & Dube, 2013; Nash, Fritz, Alford, & Brent, 1999; Walsh et al., 1982). Other symptoms of stress-induced psychosis brought about by their conditions mirror those seen in prisoners of war and individuals incarcerated in solitary confinement. These include affect dysregulation, hypersensitivity, irritability, social withdrawal, lack of impulse control, and problems with behavior initiation (see Haney, 2003, for a review). Impaired neuroendocrinological development as a result of stress and negative early experiences predisposes individuals to psychopathology later in life (Bradshaw & Schore, 2007; Schore, 2005; Spinelli et al., 2009), including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Given homologies in brain structures responsible for stress responses (e.g., the hippocampus, amygdala, hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis), as well as developmental and psychosocial similarities between humans and chimpanzees, using a framework of transspecies psychology and traumatology, researchers have modified and behaviorally anchored criteria from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision (American Psychiatric Association, 2000), for PTSD and applied them to chimpanzees (Bradshaw, Capaldo, Lindner, & Grow, 2008; Brune et al., 2006; Capaldo & Bradshaw, 2011; Ferdowsian et al., 2011; Lopresti-Goodman et al., 2013). PTSD and the related complex PTSD (CPTSD), which results from the early onset of prolonged, highly invasive, and repetitive trauma (Briere & Spinazzola, 2005; Herman, 1992; Tummala-Narra, Kallivayalil, Singer, & Andreini, 2012; van der Kolk, 1997), are fitting diagnoses for chimpanzees in biomedical research given their experiences outlined previously.


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Research in human and nonhuman primates has demonstrated that the greater the number of traumatic events occurring in an individual’s lifetime, the more severe the posttraumatic symptomatology may be (Bradshaw et al., 2008; Briere & Spinazzola, 2005; Brune et al., 2006). In humans, increased difficulties in affect regulation and self-control that are comorbid with diagnoses of CPTSD may result in increased incidents of SIB (Briere & Gil, 1998; Dyer et al., 2009). SIB in chimpanzees in captivity might be one way of coping with or relieving stress or may be used to self-stimulate or soothe (Birkett & Newton-Fisher, 2011; Lopresti-Goodman et al., 2013; Walsh et al., 1982). Diagnosing PTSD and CPTSD in chimpanzees relies on methods similar to those used in assessing the symptomatology of small children or nonverbal adults (Scheeringa, Zeanah, Drell, & Larrieu, 1995). It consists of consulting the chimpanzees’ case or laboratory files to assess early life experiences, conducting interviews with primary caregivers regarding their history of symptoms, and directly observing the chimpanzees to assess the frequency and severity of abnormal behaviors and SIB (Bradshaw et al., 2008; Capaldo & Bradshaw, 2011; Ferdowsian et al., 2011; Lopresti-Goodman et al., 2013). Using a mixed methodology, we conducted a large-scale analysis of symptoms of psychological distress in a sample of chimpanzees currently living in sanctuary who were retired from NIH- and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)–funded biomedical research. Previous investigations of chimpanzees living in zoos and sanctuaries have found that anywhere from 4% to 100% of the chimpanzees engage in abnormal behaviors (Birkett & Newton-Fisher, 2011; Martin, 2002; Wobber & Hare, 2011). Survey estimates of psychopathology, including diagnoses of PTSD, major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder, in chimpanzees rescued from laboratories and the pet and entertainment industry and living in sanctuary have ranged from 18% to 58% (Ferdowsian et al., 2011, 2012). Given these results, we expected a large percentage of the chimpanzees rescued from biomedical research living at the sanctuary to be reported as displaying a variety of abnormal behaviors and symptoms of distress. We present an illustrative case study of one chimpanzee rescued from biomedical research, Seve, who engages in SIB and meets the modified criteria for PTSD. Lastly, we discuss our results in light of recent policy changes regarding the use of chimpanzees in biomedical research.

METHOD Research Site The study was conducted at Save the Chimps, Inc. (STC), a sanctuary in Fort Pierce, Florida. STC provides lifelong care to chimpanzees who have been rescued from biomedical research, the entertainment industry, or the exotic



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FIGURE 1 (a) An aerial view of Save the Chimps, Inc., sanctuary in Fort Pierce, Florida. (b) Large climbing structures and trees on the chimpanzees’ islands.

pet trade. STC cares for nearly 270 chimpanzees, 253 of whom were rescued from biomedical research and living at the sanctuary in January 2011, when this project began. The chimpanzees live in social groups of 12 to 25 chimpanzees on 3- to 5-acre islands. Chimpanzees are free to move between their indoor enclosure and their island, which includes large climbing structures, places for the chimpanzees to socialize, and places for them to retreat (see Figure 1). The sanctuary offers daily opportunities for enrichment, including foraging boards, stuffed animals, blankets, and kiddie pools to splash in. Marymount University’s institutional review board and STC’s board of directors1 approved all procedures.

Procedure We used a previously developed mixed methodology to assess psychological distress and symptoms of PTSD in the chimpanzees (Bradshaw et al.,

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2008; Ferdowsian et al., 2011; Lopresti-Goodman et al., 2013). Given the large number of chimpanzees living at STC who have been retired from biomedical research, and the difficulty in obtaining and analyzing all of their laboratory records and conducting behavioral observations, we elected to supplement our survey and interview data with an illustrative case study of one traumatized chimpanzee. Case studies are a valuable methodology, as they allow for rigorously and systematically evaluating a representative individual’s experiences and symptomatology (Bradshaw et al., 2008; David, 2007; Ferdowsian et al., 2011).


CAREGIVER INTERVIEWS Eight senior staff members at STC (length of employment at the time of the interview: M = 85.00 months, SD = 19.15) were told the purpose of the interviews prior to meeting with the first author. Informed consent was properly obtained from each individual. Using a methodology detailed in Lopresti-Goodman et al. (2013), the first author conducted preliminary semistructured interviews with the staff members to assess the number of chimpanzees exhibiting abnormal behaviors indicative of psychological distress, as a present/absent decision (Nash et al., 1999). The first author conducted structured follow-up interviews with two primary caregivers of Seve, a chimpanzee who was mentioned by three different caregivers as exhibiting a variety of abnormal behaviors, including SIB, and met the criteria for PTSD.2 The two interviews were used to qualitatively assess consistency in ratings with regard to Seve’s symptomatology. NATURALISTIC OBSERVATION The first author conducted naturalistic observations of Seve on three occasions separated by 6-month intervals. A total of 31 hr of observation was conducted using instantaneous focal animal sampling with 1-min intervals in half-hour blocks, resulting in a total of 1,860 observations; 9 hr of observation was conducted over a week in July 2011, 11 hr over a week in January 2012, and 11 hr over a week in July 2012. Seve was observed inside and outside his enclosure, with or without the use of binoculars, at distances ranging from 2 to 25 m. The first author personally observed and recorded both normal (e.g., grooming, playing) and abnormal (e.g., rocking, SIB) behaviors using a previously developed ethogram for chimpanzees living in sanctuary (see Lopresti-Goodman et al., 2013, for a detailed description of the observation methods). She recorded whether he was solitary or interacting with other chimpanzees and whether he was inside or outside for each observation. The data were recorded with pen and paper and a continuous alarm timer (Sper Scientific, Scottsdale, AZ).


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We assessed the severity of Seve’s symptomatology by determining the percentage of observation time he engaged in abnormal and SIB and spent socially isolated. We also assessed the amount of time he spent outside of his enclosure. We were interested in determining whether the severity of his symptoms would decrease with an increasing amount of time at the sanctuary free from the harms of biomedical research.

RESULTS


Caregiver Interviews During the preliminary caregiver interviews, 60 of the 253 chimpanzees (24%) were mentioned as exhibiting at least one abnormal behavior or symptom of psychological distress. Symptoms reported included affect dysregulation, anhedonia, irritability, social withdrawal, a fear of going outside,3 rocking back and forth while self-clasping, eating and/or smearing of feces, dissociative episodes, and SIB. During the structured follow-up interviews with Seve’s caregivers, there was 100% agreement with regard to symptoms of PTSD reported. We consulted Seve’s laboratory records to obtain a clearer understanding of the causes of his trauma.4

Case History of Seve (ID# 1572) LIFE

IN THE

LABORATORY

Seve (see Figure 2) is a male chimpanzee who was born on July 9, 1993, at Holloman Air Force Base, in Alamogordo, New Mexico, to parents Carlos (ID# 958) and Montessa (ID# 893). As is common laboratory practice, sometime before the age of 2, he was tattooed with the ID# 1572. In May 1995, when Seve was not yet 2 years old and weighed less than 15 lbs, he was taken from his mother and placed into his first research protocol under the direction of the NIH at Bioqual, Inc. laboratories in Rockville, Maryland. During that study, Seve lived in isolation and was infected with respiratory syncytial virus, a cause of bronchitis and pneumonia, via intranasal and intratracheal inoculation. His records indicate that in the span of 7 months he had 39 knock-downs for repeated nose and throat swabs, tracheal lavages, blood draws, and tuberculosis tests in his eyelids. In December 1995, Seve was transferred to the CDC in Atlanta, Georgia, where he was placed into a hepatitis C study. His records indicate that for 3.5 years he was housed alone in a 16-square-foot cage, the size of a small restroom stall. While at the CDC, he had daily nose and throat swabs, bidaily tracheal lavages, weekly blood draws, monthly liver biopsies, and 24 tuberculosis tests on his eyelids, all of which involved knock-downs.


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FIGURE 2 Seve is an adult male chimpanzee who has been diagnosed with complex posttraumatic stress disorder and engages in self-injurious behaviors as a result of a decade of use in biomedical research.

In February 1998, he was infused with human antibodies. Seve’s records indicate that during three of four infusions, he had anaphylactic shock, a “severe reaction” and was “struggling to breathe” as a result of laryngospasm and a pulmonary edema. He was intubated and given oxygen and Dopram, a drug used to stimulate spontaneous respiration. In April 1998, he was knocked down to have a portion of a liver lobe removed. His anesthesia notes indicate that the knock-down started at 7:20 a.m., but Seve “never went completely down” and was “still fighting” the anesthesia until 8:35 a.m., after two more doses of Ketamine and Valium. At 8:47 a.m. they began the surgery, even though he was still moving and coughing. At 11:35 a.m. he stopped breathing and required oxygen and Dopram to be revived. In August 1998, researchers at the CDC performed another liver biopsy. Records indicate that he was agitated, was in pain, and turned “blue” on the operating table. They attempted to intubate him, but he needed Dopram to be revived. His records indicate that from February through October 2000, he had another 13 knock-downs for liver biopsies; six times he was given too much anesthesia and had “complications,” including prolonged pain and inflammation at the incision site. In 2001, in addition to having knock-downs for weekly blood draws and monthly liver biopsies, Seve had his axillary lymph nodes removed. His records indicate that that year he had a screaming fit and clawed at


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his head and scalp for 2 days. As treatment, he was prescribed Valium and given access to television. Despite his life-threatening allergic reactions and deteriorating physical and mental health, he continued to be used in research protocols until May 2004. His records from 2001 through 2004 are sparse. His 2002 records indicate that Seve had severe diarrhea for prolonged periods of time; in 2003 he had two additional biopsies, and in 2004 he suffered from pinworms. Because federal law only requires that animal laboratory records be maintained for the most recent 3 years, most of his records are not available, and it is nearly impossible to determine what else Seve endured during this time. LIFE

IN

ALAMOGORDO

In May 2004, after spending more than a decade in biomedical research laboratories, Seve was sent to a facility housed at the defunct Coulston Foundation laboratory in Alamogordo, New Mexico. The laboratory was closed in 2002 because of extensive Animal Welfare Act violations, and all of the chimpanzees were under the care of STC (Primate Freedom Project, 2002). Psychological state. When Seve arrived in Alamogordo, his caregivers indicated that he seemed constantly “distressed.” He engaged in daily episodes of SIB similar to those noted in his 2001 CDC records. He was reported as being “out of it,” screaming, severely scratching and clawing at his head, and biting his arms and feet frequently (see Figure 3). He was stiff and shaky, had bizarre postures and movements of his limbs, and would repeatedly bob and hit his head. He made stereotypic, repetitive movements with his jaw that seemed to serve no function or purpose. Seve also suffered from bouts of anorexia. According to his caregivers, his psychological health seemed to wax and wane. There were periods of time when he seemed to be improving, his head wounds would heal, and he was quiet and stable. Months, weeks, or days later he would regress to a state of constant distress. In February 2007, during a severe SIB episode, he tried to twist and bite off his index finger. Physical state. Seve had multiple physical examinations that included blood work, radiographs, dental exams, a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan, and several computerized axial tomography (CAT) scans to determine whether his SIB had an underpinning biological cause. Any abnormalities were ruled out. After consultation with psychiatrists, anesthesiologists, and veterinary behaviorists, a combination of Risperidone (an antipsychotic) and Diazepam (an antianxiety medication) was prescribed. Any possible environmental stresses were addressed. Seve was slowly integrated into a social group with 23 other chimpanzees who were rescued from research or who were formerly kept as pets.


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FIGURE 3 Evidence of self-injurious behaviors on Seve’s head and neck in July 2011.

LIFE

IN

FORT PIERCE

In May 2011, Seve was moved from STC’s Alamogordo facility to their Florida sanctuary. There Seve had access to an unenclosed outdoor area for the first time in his life. Like many chimpanzees rescued from lifelong confinement in laboratories, however, when he first arrived at the sanctuary, he chose to remain indoors. Despite the move to a new pseudo-natural location and the freedom to decide whom to interact with or whether to stay indoors or go outside, Seve continued to engage in severe SIB. Symptoms of PTSD reported from caregiver interviews in July 2011. Seve’s experiences in the laboratory and the resulting persistent symptoms of psychological distress meet the modified criteria for PTSD. As detailed previously, over a 10-year period while living in various laboratories, Seve was exposed to adverse rearing conditions, routine stress, and physical abuse, including invasive surgeries and infection with diseases, that caused him severe physical and psychological trauma (Criterion A1). Even after being rescued by the sanctuary, Seve had intense physical and emotional reactions to objects that may have symbolized or reminded him of time in the laboratory (Criteria B4 and B5). For example, his intense screaming fits and episodes of SIB were prompted by the sound of the food cart being wheeled around or enclosure doors being shut. Confining him to a single room would severely upset him. During his episodes of SIB, he scratched and clawed at his head, neck, and shoulders, causing extreme excoriation; exhibited a fear grimace; and screamed excessively. He lacked interest in



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socializing, grooming, and playing with other chimpanzees; was often alone; and avoided his human caregivers (Criteria C4 and C5). He had persistent symptoms of increased arousal, including excessive outbursts and episodes of SIB (Criterion D2); was hypervigilant (Criterion D4); and was easily startled and agitated by other chimpanzees and general noises (Criterion D5). He would attempt to interact with and seek assurance from other chimpanzees only after an episode of SIB, but his peers did not always welcome these interactions, and the rejection would magnify the severity of his SIB. He was reported as being an anxious chimpanzee who had a hard time calming down once aroused. After his episodes of SIB, he often refused to eat. Instead, he spent hours picking at his wounds, sitting in a depressed hunched posture alone in a corner or underneath a bench inside of his enclosure. Given his history of prolonged repetitive trauma while living in an environment of constant stress under the control of humans who perpetrated violence against him, from which he had no means of escape, a diagnosis of CPTSD is also appropriate. Naturalistic observations. When Seve first arrived in Florida, he was reported as spending a significant amount of time being socially withdrawn and frequently engaging in abnormal and SIB and went outside rarely to never. In order to directly assess the severity of Seve’s psychological distress, as well as to determine whether his symptoms diminished the longer he was at the sanctuary, the first author conducted nonintrusive behavioral observations. With regard to social interactions, in July 2011 Seve was observed being solitary and socially withdrawn 88% of the observation time. Despite having access to the outdoors, he was observed inside his enclosure on more than 99% of the observations. On 0.004% of the observations, he was in the doorway of his enclosure but never fully stepped outside. With regard to the distribution of behaviors, Seve spent 8% of the time engaging in abnormal behaviors indicating psychological distress (e.g., self-clasping, rocking, bobbing head), 10% of the time engaging in severe SIB (e.g., clawing at his scalp and neck while screaming; see Figure 3 and Figure 4), and 82% of the time engaging in normal chimpanzee behavior (e.g., resting, eating). In January 2012, Seve was observed alone on 68% of the observations and interacting with other chimpanzees during 32% of the observations. A dramatic increase was observed in the amount of time he spent outside of his enclosure from 6 months prior; he was observed outside 55% of the time and inside 45% of the time. His caregivers indicated that this was his new normal routine. He engaged in abnormal behaviors indicating distress on 6% of the observations, in more severe SIB on 10% of the observations, and in normal chimpanzee behavior 84% of the time. Shortly after this visit, he was placed on Savella, an antidepressant, to help reduce his SIB.

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Percentage of Observations


SIB Solitary

July 2011

January 2012

July 2012

Observation Dates FIGURE 4 Seve’s behavioral distribution. Total observations = 1,860. Black bars represent the percentage of observations in which Seve was engaging in self-injurious behaviors (SIB). Gray bars represent the percentage of observations in which Seve was solitary. Note that these numbers do not add up to 100%, as he could have been observed as solitary and engaging in SIB simultaneously.

In July 2012, there were more positive changes in Seve’s behavior. He was observed alone on only 40% of the observations, and hence was interacting with other chimpanzees 60% of the time. There was a decrease in the time spent engaging in abnormal behaviors indicating distress, which dropped to 3%, and a drop in SIB to 1%, which meant he spent 96% of the time engaging in normal chimpanzee behavior. He was observed outside of his enclosure 22% of the time (see Figure 5).

DISCUSSION Seve’s case demonstrates how routine laboratory procedures—early maternal deprivation, social isolation, repeated invasive procedures, and infection with harmful diseases—can lead to the development of prolonged psychological distress, persisting symptoms of PTSD and CPTSD, and severe SIB in chimpanzees. It also demonstrates how integration into a caring, pseudo-natural environment can help aid recovery from prior physical and psychological trauma, as evidenced by the reduction in time Seve spent socially isolated and engaging in abnormal behavior and SIB over the year observed. As experts have learned from human survivors of trauma (Herman, 1992; Tummala-Narra et al., 2012), recovery for chimpanzees diagnosed with PTSD and CPTSD involves establishing safe, predictable routines; caring



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FIGURE 5 Seve with hair regrowth and wounds healed in January 2014.

interpersonal relationships; and a restored sense of self (Bradshaw et al., 2008). This includes empowering them with the ability to make decisions about everyday aspects of their lives because autonomy was not something they had in the laboratory. Although it may seem unusual that Seve remained inside alone when first given access to the natural world and other chimpanzees, we must appreciate that this is a decision he made. Because fear may continue long after danger is gone, Seve needed time to acclimate to his new environment and to the other chimpanzees and experience safety. When he was ready, he went outside and interacted with other chimpanzees. Recovery also involves allowing chimpanzees to decide what activities to engage in. Therefore, sanctuary caregivers must create complex physical environments that are stimulating and ethologically appropriate. This includes providing access to large outdoor areas with climbing structures; opportunities to forage for food; and cognitively enriching games, puzzles, and toys. Sanctuaries must also provide places for retreating from other chimpanzees and relaxing (Wobber & Hare, 2011). These are all features STC provides the chimpanzees in their care. Sanctuaries must also create positive and stable social environments. This involves gradually integrating rescued chimpanzees into established multi-male, multi-female, mixed-age social groups (Bradshaw et al., 2008; Wobber & Hare, 2011). Caregivers must work to build empathic, trustful relationships with the chimpanzees given the chimpanzees’ vulnerable and powerless relationships with humans in the laboratory. Adequate veterinary


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care must be provided, including routine checkups and pharmacological interventions when necessary. As is sometimes helpful with humans who engage in SIB, antianxiety and antipsychotic medications helped to reduce Seve’s distress and SIB. Experts have learned from humans diagnosed with PTSD and CPTSD that multidimensional treatment, including increasing social and environmental stability, can improve mental health (Harvey, 2007; Tummala-Narra et al., 2012). It appears that the holistic care Seve received at STC—including integration into a large social group, living in a cognitively stimulating environment, restoring his sense of autonomy and trust in human caregivers, and pharmacological intervention—facilitated his healing process and mitigated his symptoms of psychological distress over the course of the year he was observed.

CONCLUSION Chimpanzees subjected to biomedical research are susceptible to trauma and stress-related psychological disorders brought about by intensive confinement, social isolation, and routine invasive procedures. We were interested in qualitatively assessing to what extent a large population of chimpanzees who were retired from such conditions still exhibited symptoms of psychological distress. Our results revealed that for 24% of the chimpanzees, the negative effects of this trauma persisted for years even after they were removed from the original traumatizing environment; this parallels what is seen in some human survivors of trauma. As is illustrated by Seve’s case, integration into a caring, accredited sanctuary; drug treatment; and time can help heal these wounds. Although Seve’s case may be representative of the distress that some chimpanzees endure even after retirement to sanctuary, it is important to acknowledge that three fourths of the chimpanzees retired from biomedical research were not mentioned as exhibiting symptoms of distress during the caregiver interviews. One limitation of this study is that we did not conduct behavioral observations of all of the chimpanzees or a more in-depth analysis of their laboratory records and case files to examine what individual differences may contribute to the variation in resilience and coping after trauma. Future research will be aimed at investigating this. In 2011, as a result of substantial public concern for the welfare of chimpanzees in laboratories, and at the request of Congress and the NIH, the Institute of Medicine conducted a year-long investigation of the scientific value of using chimpanzees in research that concluded that “most current use of chimpanzees for biomedical research is unnecessary” (Institute of Medicine, 2011, pp. 66–67). As a result, the NIH announced that it will take steps to retire at least 310 of the remaining 360 federally owned chimpanzees



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still in laboratories, and it has created a new oversight body and guidelines for the review of experiments on chimpanzees (NIH, 2013). Unfortunately, this decision does not necessarily impact the approximately 500 chimpanzees still in private facilities. Given the overwhelming scientific evidence for the physical and psychological suffering of chimpanzees confined in laboratories, it is difficult, if not impossible, to ethically justify their continued use in harmful biomedical research. Lessons learned from cases like Seve’s also provide insight for individuals working at sanctuaries into how to anticipate symptoms of distress in chimpanzees being retired from research, how to alleviate some of these symptoms, and how to help acclimate them to sanctuary life following years, even decades, of physical and psychological trauma.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Portions of these data were presented at the 2014 Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Chicago, Illinois, and the 2014 Bi-Annual Meeting of the Virginia Psychological Association in Norfolk, Virginia.

FUNDING This research was supported by a Marymount University Faculty Development Grant awarded to Stacy M. Lopresti-Goodman and a Marymount University Discover Summer Undergraduate Research Grant awarded to Stacy M. Lopresti-Goodman and Chelsea Ritter.

NOTES 1. Research at STC is permitted only under limited circumstances. Such research must be observational, must be noninvasive, and must demonstrate that it is of direct benefit to chimpanzees before approval by the leadership of STC is granted. 2. Since the time this research was conducted, the American Psychiatric Association has published revised criteria for PTSD. Although the revised criteria were not used in the original caregiver interviews, Seve also meets these revised criteria set out in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition. 3. Survey data gathered from the two caregivers in charge of each family group revealed that 82.3% of chimpanzees go outside frequently (i.e., multiple times a day), 13.5% go outside occasionally (i.e., once a day or every other day), 4% go outside infrequently (i.e., from once every other day to a few times a month), and less than 1% have never been seen going outside. Interrater reliability, as measured by Cohen’s kappa, was significant (p < .0001). 4. A Freedom of Information Act request was made to the NIH and the CDC for Seve’s records. The information reported here was obtained from those requests and from records obtained from STC.

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