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Couple plans southern haven for gorillas
November 18, 1997
Web posted at: 11:58 p.m. EST (0458 GMT)FANNIN COUNTY, Georgia -- (CNN) This time of year, trees are bursting with red, gold and orange leaves in the mountains of North Georgia, home to bears, deer, wild turkey -- and gorillas?
If Jane and Steuart Dewar have their way, at least 20 acres of Fannin County will be a haven for gorillas that zoos can't put on display because of their age or social behavior.
"I ran a company for 30 years," said Steaurt Dewar. "I worked 100 hours a week, and I was really looking for something different in my life."
Something different has turned out to be the couple's plan to use 20 of their 275 acres as a primate retirement home.
Some zoo directors welcome the prospect.
CNN's Paul Caron reports
"I'm not a fan of private citizens owning exotic animals, those that don't have credentials, or the will, or the commitment, or the resources," said Terry Maple, director of the Atlanta Zoo. "Now, it's different in this situation because they have all of these things."
The couple is planning to pay all the cost of a full-time gorilla keeper, of 24-hour surveillance and of putting up an electronic fence around the gorilla's home.
But some area residents are worried about having the gorillas there, and they have gotten up a petition against the plan.
"We don't want to take a chance on anything possibly happening to our environment as a result," said Buddy Folsom, a spokesman for a local group called Concerned Citizens Against Gorillas.
Steuart Dewar says the gorillas won't harm anything, and that his plan for the land keeps it out of developers' hands.
"We are preserving this area," he said. "I think, here in Fannin County, we should be proud."
However, the Dewars say they are still years away from breaking ground on their home for gorillas with no home of their own. They still need approval from several state and federal agencies before they can have gorillas in their midst.
Correspondent Paul Caron contributed to this report.
Related stories:
- Gorillas are endangered prey in Central African forests - February 21, 1997
- Wild about zoos - September 4, 1996
- Virtual gorilla puts students in the wild - June 12, 1996
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