Sanctuaries | 499 of the original group that was captured in the wild for the space research that culminated in sending the first astronauts to the moon In 2002, Carole Noon took on the biggest chimpanzee rescue in history when the Coulston laboratory in New Mexico was finally closed down after accumulating countless violations of the animal welfare act for years, and the whole facility was bought with an incredibly generous grant from the Arcus Foundation Dr Noon’s first task was to make immediate improvements to the existing facility The chimpanzees were sleeping on concrete or metal flooring with no blankets or straw, given only one piece of fruit each per week, and many had no contact with each other even visually Gradually the Florida facility will be enlarged, and more and more of these chimpanzees will move to the relative freedom of grassy islands with shade and climbing structures, and be cared for by humans who understand and love them Wherever a sanctuary is located, the chimpanzees rescued from abuse have so much to teach us Many have lived alone for years, deprived of everything that a chimpanzee needs to enjoy life Often they have acquired psychotic behaviors, such as rocking from side to side, banging their heads on the wall, mutilating themselves, showing sudden violent outbursts of rage, or huddling alone in a corner for hours on end Many can never fully recover psychologically But it is inspirational to watch how they can gradually manage to lose some of their abnormal behavior, and learn to live in chimpanzee society, and there is much they can teach us Not so long ago, psychiatrists and psychologists used to raise chimpanzees in conditions designed to replicate the abnormal early experiences of psychologically disturbed humans It was argued that this would be helpful to scientists seeking to better understand mental illness in people and thus help human patients Now there are hundreds of chimpanzees who have been exposed Mariah, a Siberian tiger, right, is penned next to two timberwolves, Apache and Noshoba, at Noah’s Lost Ark animal sanctuary in Berlin Center, Ohio Mariah was raised by an elderly woman who also took care of wolves When brought to the sanctuary, Mariah began losing weight and was not adjusting well to her new environment The original owner suggested her enclosure be placed next to the wolf enclosure She immediately began gaining weight Ellen Whitehouse, who has run the sanctuary with her husband for the past five years, calls the wolves “the best tiger baby sitters.” (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)