A chimpanzee roaming free in Santa Fe has already harassed people, dogs: a refuge

SANTA FE, Texas (KTRK) – It has been reported that an animal might be a free-living chimpanzee in the Santa Fe area, said Tuesday at ABC13 a director of an animal shelter and a park manager.

According to Bayou Animal Services, the animal roamed was last seen on Monday in the area of ​​19th Street and O. Avenue.

The shelter staff initially stated that they had received information that the animal had harassed people and dogs and attempted to catch cats, but these claims could not be verified on Tuesday. afternoon.

Since Tuesday afternoon, Bayou Animal Services uses a drone League City Animal Control. Officials, however, canceled a search while the animal was still at large.

A team of primate experts has been called to help with the research.

It is not known if the animal belongs to anyone in the area.

Owners of chimpanzees and a number of exotic animals are required to possess a wildlife diversity license issued by the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department.

Bayou Animal Services said its staff was checking with license holders in the area and that all primates were counted on Tuesday.

Although a number of sightings were reported this week, the animal services group said it only spoke to one person who claimed to have seen the animal. .

Bayou Animal Shelter issued a statement in the middle of the research:

Let's move on to monkey business.

As you know now, a monkey has been reported free in Santa Fe.

That's what you need to know.

# 1 Do not approach, do not chase and do not catch a primate if you have seen the monkey loose.

# 2 Take a picture and call the animal control as soon as possible. The picture is to check what type of monkey it is.
Knowing the guy will keep this monkey safe if he has to be appeased.

# 3 Do not look for the monkey. Additional people looking for this animal may hurt someone.

# 4 A certified team in primate processing is on the ground and is now helping us locate the animal.
Do not interfere. Do not try to help. They are professionals and know what they are doing.

# 5 Please do not call animal control or police stations with false statements that you yourself are unable to verify. This is not helpful for the authorities or the animal.

The safety of residents and the animal is the top priority. Thank you for letting the primate team do its work and leave phone lines free so we can make verifiable reports.

Citizens are urged to report any sightings to the non-urgent police service number or by email to Bayou Animal Services at [email protected]. "

Texas Parks & Wildlife spokesman Steve Lightfoot said the animal would be a chimpanzee and the game wardens knew about the search, but the Santa Fe police and Galveston County authorities do the research.

Santa Fe police spokesman, Lt Greg Boody, said the officers had investigated two sightings, but that they had not yet confirmed the presence of the animal.

There were also rumors that an animal was attacking people, but Boody said these claims were unfounded.

"I'm not saying that there is no monkey, in fact, I'm sure there's one in freedom, here everything is possible," Boody said in a statement. communicated.

According to the Jane Goodall Institute, a chimpanzee is not a monkey, but one of four types of "great apes". Other types are bonobos, gorillas and orangutans. Chimpanzees are not meant to be pets and can have a strength five or six times greater than that of a human being.

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