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"Sir, please try not to befriend the chimps."

By purepedantry on April 19, 2007.

i-44ae591f474a5235aa8eac23f87e5932-chimp01.jpgOutcast chimp prefers humans to other chimps:

We all know not to feed the animals when visiting the zoo. Now the Antwerp Zoo has urged visitors to, please, stop staring at the chimpanzees.

New rules have been posted outside the chimp enclosure at the city zoo urging visitors not to form a bond with a particular male chimp named Cheetah. He was raised by humans but is now bonding with the seven other apes at the park, a zoo official said Wednesday.

"We ask, we inform our daily visitors and other visitors that one of the monkeys (sic) is particularly open for human contact," zoo spokeswoman Ilse Segers told AP Television News. "He was raised by humans in a family and therefore we are trying to integrate him, to try to get more social integration with the group."

She said Cheetah's continued interaction with humans was "delaying the social integration of the animal in the group," and isolating the ape from the others.

"I'm sorry, Son, but Cheetah has new friends now. He doesn't have time for his old friends."
"But whyyyyy, Papa?"
"Because the zoo says you're not hairy enough to be a chimp, Son. We tried to leave you here, but they just kept bringing you back..."

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