Cheetah the chimpanzee turns 74, demands universal health care for apes
Posted by Matthew on Friday April 14, 2006 @06:38PM
from the equal-protection dept.
matthew writes: Cheetah the chimpanzee, who stared in 12 Tarzan movies along side Jonny Wiesmuller in the 1930’s and 1940’s, is celebrating his 74th birthday with close friends at his home in Palm Springs. An active and acclaimed abstractionist, Cheetah suffers from a typical list of old-age maladies including high blood pressure and diabetes. He released a statement to the press to coincide with his Birthday advocating on behalf of apes in the wild.
“Nearly 100% of apes in the wild lack adequate health care insurance. Life expectancy in the wild is only 42—lower than most human populations.”
“Clearly, we must do more to support the undomesticated. Why is it still easier for a retired action hero such as myself to obtain quality healthcare than it is for the undomesticated? We must correct this age old injustice. It is the 21st century. It’s time to do more.”