Who’s living behind the concrete and steel bars? What are the names, lab ID numbers, ages, genders, and other identifying information of all the chimpanzees held today in U.S. labs?
Project R&R cares deeply about chimpanzees still kept in research labs and refuses to allow any of them to remain anonymous and behind bars. Each of the chimpanzees housed by federally owned or supported labs has an identity and unique story that deserves to be told.
The public can file Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and state open records requests to the main research facilities holding federally owned or supported chimpanzees, urging them to disclose the names and other requested information for all the chimpanzees housed at their facility. Some labs refuse to answer because they are considered private facilities and therefore not subject to federal disclosure laws. In contrast, others provide updated information on their residents. Additionally Federal Chimpanzee Management Reports are updated annually listing the cost, location, and number of federally owned chimpanzees.
The remaining chimpanzees held in U.S. labs are in two facilities.
- New Iberia Research Center (LA)
- Michale E. Keeling Center for Comparative Medicine and Research (TX)
- Southwest National Primate Research Center (TX)
- Emory National Primate Research Center (GA) holds only privately-owned chimpanzees
During the campaign Project R&R maintained information about the chimpanzees in laboratories. Below are lists that have not been updated since 2017 but serve as a historical record.
- Alamogordo Primate Facility
- Michale E. Keeling Center for Comparative Medicine and Research
- New Iberia Research Center
- Southwest National Primate Research Center
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center
Preparing a current and accurate census of chimpanzees in U.S. research facilities takes the work of every one of us. If you have additional information on any of these laboratories, please contact us. To learn more about the difficulty of obtaining information on chimpanzees kept in laboratories and the conditions in which they live and are used, see our Myth of Humane Treatment page.