I just finished reading the book "Molly's Zoo" by Molly Badham and her partner Nathalie Evans, with Maureen Lawless also a co-author. Rather than give a full review of the ups and downs of 50 years of being involved with raising primates, I would like to point out a few items of note.
Does anyone know if the book was written over a long period of time? It would seem normal that the publication date of 2000 means that it was written around 1998 and 1999 but I was a tad surprised at the views that Molly Badham had on a few subjects. On at least 3-4 occasions in the book she becomes defensive about putting clothes on chimpanzees, or using the apes in the world of advertisement. She states on page 84: "Chimps, like children, respond equally to praise and correction and they were almost as proud of their achievements as we were. That is why it saddens me when people describe giving them the opportunity to expand their experiences and horizons by teaching them skills as exploitation." Her constant comparison between chimps and children throughout the first half of the book is intriguing, as she seems to view the apes as little kids running around and sharing her bed, kitchen and clothes!
On page 17 she says in reference to a chimpanzee: "Dressing her in clothes also provided another entertainment for Sue, and anyone who criticizes dressing up chimps has obviously never witnessed the enormous pleasure they get from their clothes and how individual they are in their preferences for different items of clothing." Since the book was published in 2000, it seems as if Molly was at least 25 years out of date when it comes to putting frilly dresses and blue jeans on chimpanzees.
The book was an enjoyable read, full of mishaps and surprises, and it seemed as if Twycross Zoo was put together via duct tape and super-glue as there was constantly a lack of funds or issues with construction. The zoo opened with toilets that barely worked due to a lack of water and many of the animal exhibits in the early days seemed to be last-minute events as apes would be hand-raised in the main house before being allowed back into their enclosures. I breezed through the book in no time at all but was genuinely shocked to learn that even in the year 2000 Molly Badham was quite defensive over her outdated methods of dealing with chimpanzees. She did wonders over the years and had a big heart but it seems as if she just viewed her animals as her own little kids.
Does anyone know if the book was written over a long period of time? It would seem normal that the publication date of 2000 means that it was written around 1998 and 1999 but I was a tad surprised at the views that Molly Badham had on a few subjects. On at least 3-4 occasions in the book she becomes defensive about putting clothes on chimpanzees, or using the apes in the world of advertisement. She states on page 84: "Chimps, like children, respond equally to praise and correction and they were almost as proud of their achievements as we were. That is why it saddens me when people describe giving them the opportunity to expand their experiences and horizons by teaching them skills as exploitation." Her constant comparison between chimps and children throughout the first half of the book is intriguing, as she seems to view the apes as little kids running around and sharing her bed, kitchen and clothes!
On page 17 she says in reference to a chimpanzee: "Dressing her in clothes also provided another entertainment for Sue, and anyone who criticizes dressing up chimps has obviously never witnessed the enormous pleasure they get from their clothes and how individual they are in their preferences for different items of clothing." Since the book was published in 2000, it seems as if Molly was at least 25 years out of date when it comes to putting frilly dresses and blue jeans on chimpanzees.
The book was an enjoyable read, full of mishaps and surprises, and it seemed as if Twycross Zoo was put together via duct tape and super-glue as there was constantly a lack of funds or issues with construction. The zoo opened with toilets that barely worked due to a lack of water and many of the animal exhibits in the early days seemed to be last-minute events as apes would be hand-raised in the main house before being allowed back into their enclosures. I breezed through the book in no time at all but was genuinely shocked to learn that even in the year 2000 Molly Badham was quite defensive over her outdated methods of dealing with chimpanzees. She did wonders over the years and had a big heart but it seems as if she just viewed her animals as her own little kids.
