After 18 Years in Captivity, Terry the Chimp Takes His First Steps Outside (VIDEO)

Terry the chimp has had a long depressing journey during the first 33 years of his life but hope of happiness is on the horizon. He has gone from the ice capades to a small cage at the Las Vegas Zoo, to being rescued and now making some progress as he took his first steps outside recently. The video below shows Terry’s first venture outside into the Florida sun, a bit of anxiety still in him, but it’s a first step to a happier life.

We first reported on Terry back in October 2013, when he was taken in by Save the Chimps after the Las Vegas Zoo was forced to shut down when all of its employees quit. Terry had spent his early years with his friend and mate Simon as part of an ice capades show. After their trainer retired, they were brought to the Las Vegas Zoo, where unfortunately Simon passed away soon after, leaving Terry depressed and alone for 18 years.

Since arriving at the Island in the Sun Sanctuary, Terry has been kept in the special needs building due to his depression and anxiety. Essentially, he is kept separate from the main population to give him time to adjust from a caged life to one that will be more open and free. Due to the position of the special needs building, Terry has not had access to the outside until this week.

As Terry took his first steps outside, he was surrounded by a few other chimps and an audience of a couple of people who couldn’t wait to see the chimp experience life outside. The sanctuary reports Terry had some anxiety when he first stepped out, sticking to the concrete patio and the fence most of the time. However, he did find some comfort in another chimp that made the spectators collectively “awww.”

It was only Terry’s first venture outside and, as expected, he is still a little scared of roaming too far, but it’s a start! Watch his first step out in the video below: