Journey to Oregon could start Tuesday for CJ the chimp

Say goodbye, CJ.

The chimp that escaped from her cage twice in about a month is scheduled to leave Las Vegas as early as this morning.

Lee Watkinson, who owns CJ with his fiancee, Timmi De Rosa, said officials from Chimps Inc., a sanctuary in Bend, Ore., will arrive Monday night in Las Vegas. If everything goes to plan, CJ will leave sometime today .

Watkinson said he will ride with the sanctuary's director and probably will do some of the driving. It hasn't been an easy few days for the couple, he said.

"We're anxious but doing good," Watkinson said. "It's been a lot of stress and headaches this week worrying about CJ."

CJ escaped for the second time Saturday afternoon before being tranquilized by officers.

It was a happier ending than her first escape July 12, when CJ and partner Buddy escaped from their backyard enclosure at 5720 Rowland Ave., near Ann Road and Jones Boulevard.

A Las Vegas police officer shot and killed Buddy as he "aggressively approached" a group of onlookers, according to police. CJ later was tranquilized.

After the ape's second escape was foiled Saturday afternoon, she was transported to the Southern Nevada Zoological-Botanical Park because Clark County animal control officers "weren't comfortable" with how secure her cage was, a source told the Review-Journal on Sunday.

De Rosa received a misdemeanor citation from Animal Control officers Saturday for housing a dangerous animal without a permit and for an animal running loose. The charges carry a fine up to $1,000 and six months in jail. She is scheduled to be arraigned Oct. 25.

Watkinson said the citations were the least of their worries.

"We can pay it," he said. "We're just concerned now with CJ."

CJ was being temporarily housed at the home of magician Dirk Arthur, he said.

The first escape prompted Clark County commissioners to pursue tighter regulations for owning exotic animals.

Changes will include verifying the education and expertise of someone wanting to own exotic animals, requiring animal control officers to conduct annual inspections and requesting input from the U.S. Department of Agriculture on applications for exotic pets.

Those proposed changes are in contrast to how the county treats keeping exotic animals now, as a land use issue rather than examining an owner's qualifications to care for the animal.

Watkinson and De Rosa were not the chimps' original owners but have been caring for the chimps for several years. They always had planned to move the chimps to a sanctuary, Watkinson said.

"We just wanted a better life for Buddy and CJ," he said.

CJ will live at the sanctuary with seven other chimpanzees that have been rescued from the entertainment industry, private ownership or roadside zoos.

"Chimpanzees grow to be strong and intelligent and most often are forced to live in impoverished environments, being cared for at facilities that lack thorough safety protocols and is a recipe for disaster," Chimps Inc. founder Lesley Day said in a statement. "Chimpanzees are very dangerous and in captivity can display behaviors that are dangerous to humans, and when they are living in homes and close to the public, there is a great risk for injury."

Humane Society officials said the incident spotlights Nevada's lack of rules on keeping exotic pets.

"The same chimpanzee escaping twice in less than a month underscores that large, powerful exotic animals should not be kept as pets. Nevada is one of just six states with no rules on the private ownership of dangerous wild animals, and it's a free-for-all that puts people and animals at risk," said Holly Haley, the Humane Society's Nevada state director.

De Rosa said she thought the chimp had human help during her second escape, although Watkinson disagrees.

"I think it's a coincidence," he said.

Contact reporter Mike Blasky at mblasky@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0283.