Government Researchers Want to Retire Most Chimps

Send all but 50 to sanctuary and stop breeding them

Government scientists have agreed that all but 50 of hundreds of chimpanzees kept for federally funded research should be retired from labs and sent to a national sanctuary.

The proposal from a National Institutes of Health committee also said all of the chimps should have plenty of room to play and climb.

The NIH Council of Councils Working Group on Tuesday approved the proposal, which also calls for major cuts in grants to study chimps in laboratories and no return to breeding them for research.