Special Thanks to ABC Dancing with the Strars

Dancing with the Stars was going to using a chimpanzee on it's Oct. 6th show to predict the winner. However, thanks to may e-mail and one especially from Shirley McGreal from IPPL. Executive producer Conrad Green decided to re-cut the package they were to use on the show to remove any footage of the chimpanzee they filmed...! Proof that speaking out does work!!

It is as important now to , please, reach out to ABC to let them know that we appreciate the fact that the segment was pulled....

http://www.nt2099.com/J-ENT/news/american-entertainment/fourth-couple-eliminated-on-dancing-with-the-stars-the-results-show-tuesday-october-6-on-abc/

Here is a copy of the e-mail sent to ABC and their response.

On 10/6/09 8:56 AM, "Shirley McGreal"

Dear Mr. Green,
I hope you are not going to use a performing chimpanzee in your "Dancing with the Stars" show. I don't see any point. Promotion of primates in entertainment only encourages people to see them as objects of ridicule and encourages the primate pet craze which victimizes so many primates pulled from their mothers as babies and forced to live in human households or training camps and conform to human expectations, wear silly clothes, etc. until the owner gets sick of them or badly bitten and tries to dump them on over-filled under-funded sanctuaries.

Please don't exploit chimpanzees. Assuming you pay their "trainers," they are making money off the suffering of innocent animals.

Sincerely yours, Shirley McGreal

Dr. Shirley McGreal, OBE, Chairwoman

E-mail - smcgreal@ippl.org, Web: www.ippl.org Working to Protect All Primates Since 1973

Dear Shirley,

Thank you for your e-mail. We decided to use the chimpanzee for a package today and taped the package last week. While I didn't personally attend the shoot, I'm assured that throughout the shoot the chimpanzee seemed happy and well-treated. We have followed the network's broadcast standards guidelines in the setting up of this shoot and the process was overseen by the American Humane Association. We really have tried everything we can to ensure that we did this the right way and would never have proceeded if we thought that the animal was in distress or being ill-treated.

However, I wasn't aware of the information you have kindly provided about the way that chimpanzees are sometimes treated when trained for entertainment purposes. While I have no reason to believe that the chimp we used was treated in this way I do appreciate your point that showing a chimpanzee on our show may indirectly lead to other chimpanzees being ill-treated in the future. If I had been aware of the information you outlined below I wouldn't have proceeded with the shoot in the first place, so I've decided on balance to re-cut the package we use in tonight's show to remove any footage of the chimpanzee. While I can't undo the fact that we did shoot with a chimpanzee I will be sure we don't do this again in the future.

I hope this allays your concerns and I appreciate you getting in touch with me. We would never intentionally harm an animal in the process of making our show, and I hope you can continue to enjoy Dancing With the Stars in the future. I may send this e-mail to other people who have objected to the use of a chimpanzee on the show... I hope you don't mind. I'm rather pressed for time today and can't craft an individual response to everyone!

Yours sincerely

Conrad Green

Executive Producer

Dancing With the Stars

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