Our Captive Cousins: The Plight of Great Apes in Zoos (2025)
Great apes are often referred to as our closest cousins, and rightly so. Science tells us that we share more than 98% of our DNA with other apes, but what does this mean for us and them? It means that we all have long childhoods, long lives, and the need to live in communities of family and friends. It means that we share a remarkable level of intelligence and consequent need for mental stimulation. It means that we suffer when treated poorly.
It means that we value our freedom. Great apes in zoos are so like us, and yet we deny them all of these things; reducing them to exhibits for our own entertainment. This report explores the landscape of captive great apes, considering their health, welfare, living conditions, and the safety risks they pose to us and other captive animals, among other issues. It should not come as a surprise that our great ape cousins die young in zoos, they suffer injury due to enforced close proximity with others, and they pose a serious safety risk to their caregivers and zoo visitors. Disturbingly, the use of pharmaceuticals to curb depression and other mental health conditions in captive great apes is well documented. Stereotypies – repetitive behaviors that signal severe mental distress – are rife in great apes in zoos.
The result of this research points in one direction: towards the need to end great ape captivity for human entertainment in zoos.
Share the Report
Help spread the word about the suffering of great apes in zoos by sharing Our Captive Cousins on social media!
Twitter/X
Reduced lifespans, limited space, psychological and physical distress: these are just some of the ways great apes like chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans suffer in zoos. Explore the plight of captive great apes with @BornFreeUSA’s new report, #OurCaptiveCousins bit.ly/ourcaptivecousins
Reduced lifespans, limited space, psychological and physical distress: these are just some of the ways great apes like chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans suffer in zoos. Explore the plight of captive great apes with Born Free USA’s new report, “Our Captive Cousins.” bit.ly/ourcaptivecousins #CaptiveCousins
Reduced lifespans, limited space, psychological and physical distress: these are just some of the ways great apes like chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans suffer in zoos. Explore the plight of captive great apes with @bornfreeusaorg’s new report, “Our Captive Cousins.” bit.ly/ourcaptivecousins #CaptiveCousins
Donate to Help End Captivity
Around the world wild animals, including great apes like gorillas, chimpanzees, and orangutans, are taken from their natural wild homes or bred in captivity for lives in cages, all for the sake of human amusement. This not only threatens animal welfare but also poses serious risks for public safety.
Help end wild animal captivity by making a donation to Born Free USA. Your donation will help us produce more report like this, advocate for pro-wildlife legislation, rescue monkeys to our primate sanctuary, and more.
DONATE NOW