The viral recording, released by the sanctuary on June 15, shows the animal walking alongside other chimpanzees named Shake and Dwight | is released into nature for the first time Photo: Reproduction/Social Networks
Video of an adult chimpanzee seeing the sky for the first time has garnered attention due to the animal’s reaction on social media. Vanilla, 28, spent the early years of her life locked in a cage in a laboratory in New York, USA.
After her rescue, Vanilla was taken to the Wildlife WayStation Sanctuary in California, where she is still kept in a covered enclosure.
The site closed in 2019, requiring the relocation of 480 animals. With this, Vanilla was transferred to the Save The Chimps Sanctuary in the city of Fort Piece, Florida.
The viral recording, released by the sanctuary on June 15, shows the animal being released into the wild for the first time along with fellow chimpanzees named Shake and Dwight.
The video shows Vanilla emerging from custody and looking up at the sky in surprise. Check it out here.
“Vanilla and Shake have been fully integrated into a large family group and released on their island home. Shake was direct, but Vanilla hesitated. Nothing an encouraging hug from the Alpha, Dwight, couldn’t fix. See How Excited Vanilla Is “Experiencing vast, open skies for the first time,” reads the release’s headline.
The Save The Chimps sanctuary is home to an additional 220 chimpanzees rescued from “research labs, the pet trade and the entertainment industry” and is supported by donations.
On the organization’s website, a user can also “adopt” one of the chimpanzees, thereby covering the cost of all daytoday care. Vanilla’s adoption page states that she was born on July 22, 1994 and that she is “independent, curious and intelligent.”