Inside Chimp Haven: A Rare Look at the Louisiana Sanctuary Where Retired Research Chimpanzees Live the “Chimp Life”
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My road trip through Louisiana ended in Keithville, on 200 acres of piney woods where nearly 300 chimpanzees spend their days climbing, foraging, and doing exactly what they want. This is Chimp Haven, one of the largest sanctuaries in the world for chimpanzees retired from biomedical research.
Catch a rare glimpse behind these gates during Chimpanzee Discovery Days, a unique Louisiana experience where you can see the sanctuary’s residents thriving in their natural habitat
I arrived expecting a refuge, but what I found was something far richer: a place where a deeply thoughtful design meets an equally thoughtful philosophy of care, and where the chimps themselves become the teachers.
Table of Contents
The Sanctuary’s Origin Story
Chimp Haven was founded in 1995 by Amy Fultz and Linda Brant with a vision that became urgent five years later, when chimpanzee biomedical research was made illegal in the United States. Since then, the sanctuary has operated under a contract with the National Institutes of Health, taking in chimpanzees once their research days end and giving them something the staff calls simply the “chimp life.”
Once biomedical research became illegal for chimpanzees in 2000, that’s when we decided to create this nice place for the chimps to come retire and basically get to do whatever they want to do every day, what we call the chimp life. — Morghan Bruns
Named habitats like Doreen’s Den offer a diverse landscape of climbing structures and open green space, ensuring every retiree has the room to thrive in their new social community
The transition from laboratory to sanctuary is handled with extraordinary intention. New arrivals spend time in a quarantine facility where the care team learns each individual’s personality. From there, they are placed into social groups built around compatibility, with a clear hierarchy that ranges from the alpha at the top to lower-ranking members who find their own place in the community. Watching over all of them is an on-site veterinary team that visits the chimpanzees every single day.
A Tour Through the Chimps’ World
My guide was Morghan Bruns, a communications and development specialist who knows these chimpanzees and clearly adores them. Our walk into the sanctuary began along a path lined with photographs of some of the 300 residents, an immediate reminder that every chimp here has a name, a face, and a story.
Along the wooded trails of the Chimp Haven sanctuary, informative displays offer a rare look into the lives and personalities of the retired chimpanzees who now call this Louisiana refuge homeThis forest pavilion serves as a quiet observation spot for visitors to learn about the sanctuary’s mission during special public events in Keithville, LouisianaStrolling along the sanctuary’s winding paths, you’ll discover the inspiring individual stories of the more than 300 retirees who now call this Keithville forest home
Morghan cupped her hands and let out a series of enthusiastic vocalizations that she called the “chimp food bark.” Across the habitat, the chimpanzees answered back with their own excited calls. The sound is a signal that snacks are coming, and the chimps were ready.
It’s a “popcorn party” at Chimp Haven! Sanctuary staff often toss a custom, salt-free trail mix of popcorn, seeds, and fruit into the enclosures, encouraging the chimpanzees to use their natural foraging skills while enjoying a nutritious treatDedicated habitats like the Anita Hirsh area provide expansive, multi-acre environments designed specifically to let retired chimpanzees explore the Louisiana landscape with total freedomThese multi-level climbing structures and hammocks are essential for encouraging physical activity and natural play among the sanctuary’s residents in Keithville
We boarded a golf cart and wound through the forested property as chimpanzees followed us inside their enclosures, running along the fence line with a curiosity Morghan described perfectly.
They want to know what’s going on all the time. We like to call it nosy neighbor here at Chimp Haven. They want to know what’s going on next door. Or if you’re just driving by, they want to say hi. — Morghan Bruns
A close-up view through a chain-link fence of two chimpanzees at Chimp Haven
The destination was the Annenberg Pavilion, a glass-walled structure that offers the closest public access to the chimpanzees. Standing there, separated only by a transparent barrier, I felt something I was not prepared for: a true, deep connection. A chimp looked directly at me, and it felt like looking into a soul that was also looking back into mine.
This close-up captures the calm spirit of a retiree enjoying a peaceful life of choice and community in the Louisiana woods
Morghan encourages visitors to be interactive because the chimpanzees respond in kind. The more you bounce up and down, the more they bounce with you. They are on display as much as you are. On my visit, the chimps were contentedly eating forage, but normally they press right up against the mesh line, eager to see new faces and welcome guests.
A rare, face-to-face look reveals the thoughtful intelligence and unique personality of a chimpanzee thriving in its natural habitat
The chimps are amazing creatures. They love to come up close to you. They love to look right into your eyes. And I always tell all of our visitors, the more interactive you are down here, the more the chimps are going to interact with you. You’re kind of on display. The more you bounce up and down, the more they’re going to want to bounce up and down with you and hang out. — Morghan Bruns
The Chimp Life Explained
What exactly does a retired research chimpanzee get to do all day? The answer is almost anything they please. Chimpanzees here live in large, multi-acre habitats with trees to climb, forests to roam, and the freedom to form multi-sex social groups. Their days begin with carefully prepared diets and continue with a range of enrichment activities designed to keep them healthy and stimulated. Behind us, a fabricated termite mound allowed the chimps to engage in the natural foraging behaviors they would use in the wild, poking and probing for treats just as their wild counterparts do for insects.
A retired chimpanzee enjoys a peaceful afternoon climbing through the 200-acre natural forest habitat at Chimp Haven in Keithville, Louisiana
One of the most fascinating aspects of life at Chimp Haven is the fission-fusion dynamic that governs chimpanzee society. The group comes together to eat and sleep, then splits off during the day into smaller bands or solitary wanderings, depending on each individual’s mood. That requires a lot of space and a lot of friends to choose from, and the sanctuary has provided both in abundance.
A group of retirees gathers in a grassy clearing, showcasing the vital social bonds that define the “Chimp Life” at this Keithville sanctuary
They get to climb trees. They get to live in multi sex relationships out here at Chimp Haven, large scale habitats that they can walk in and roam in every single day, diets that are prepped for them every day, enrichment to make their days brighter and more fun. — Morghan Bruns
Whether bonding with a close friend or enjoying a moment of solitude, these chimpanzees have the space and freedom to choose how they spend their retirementLife at the Keithville sanctuary allows these retirees to spend their days roaming across expansive, natural habitats that encourage their wild instincts
Veterinarians are on site daily. Every aspect of the chimpanzees’ environment, from the thoughtfully designed enclosures to the playful pens that ease their adjustment from laboratory life into a more natural world, feels intentional. This is a sanctuary that meets not just the physical needs of its residents but their psychological ones as well.
retired research chimpanzees enjoy wide-open spaces and the freedom to interact with their peers in a natural, grassy environment
What Chimps Teach Us
Toward the end of our time together, I asked Morghan a question that had been forming in my mind ever since that moment of eye contact at the glass pavilion: What do you think chimpanzees have to teach humans? Her answer was immediate and it has stayed with me.
They teach us a lot every day. They are teaching me something new. They’re teaching kindness. They’re teaching forgiveness. They’re very quick to forgive. And to show each other compassion and love, which I love. They’re very playful. They want to play all day, every day. And honestly, just playing with them makes your mood skyrocket. That is what I love about this job. — Morghan Bruns
Say hello to Melody! At Chimp Haven, each resident has a name and a story, like this expressive female who is enjoying her retirement
That lesson in kindness and forgiveness is not just theoretical here. It is lived out in a community of chimpanzees who came from difficult pasts and now resolve their conflicts, show affection, and spend their days in play. Morghan herself is proof of how transformative this environment can be for the humans who work inside it. She told me she has worked with a variety of primates over the years, but she landed on chimpanzees, landed at Chimp Haven, and never looked back.
Special events at the sanctuary offer a rare chance to meet the caregivers who make the “Chimp Life” possible for former research chimpanzees in Northwest Louisiana
Planning Your Visit to Chimp Haven
Chimp Haven opens its gates to the public twice a year during large Discovery Days, one in the spring and one in the fall. Those events are the easiest way to experience the sanctuary, but they are not the only way. Private guided tours are available by appointment Monday through Friday, and smaller special events are sprinkled throughout the calendar. The next upcoming event is called Enrichment with the Chimps, scheduled for March 28th, offering a hands-on look at how the care team keeps daily life interesting for the residents.
The expansive habitats at Chimp Haven include serene water features and diverse terrain, allowing residents to spend their retirement exploring a landscape that truly feels like home.
All visits are arranged through the sanctuary’s website at chimphaven.org under section “Plan Your Visit.” Because the experience is intentionally limited to protect the chimpanzees’ well-being, booking ahead is essential.
My own tour ended where it began, with the sound of chimpanzees calling to each other across the woods and the image of an animal looking at me as though I were the one being seen. That is the gift of Chimp Haven. It offers a rare look not just at a model of ethical sanctuary care but at what becomes possible when creatures who once lived in service to science are finally given the chance to live for themselves. The chimp life, it turns out, is one filled with play, forgiveness, and an uncanny ability to look you right in the soul and maybe teach you something you did not know you needed to learn.
From playful hoots to complex social calls, the air at Chimp Haven is filled with the sounds of retirees finally having the space to express themselves freely.
