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Travis (chimp)

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Animal

The Resume

    (1995-February 16, 2009)
    Adopted at three days by Sandra and Jerome Herold of Stamford, Connecticut
    Appeared in commercials for Coca-Cola and Old Navy
    Attacked 55-year-old Charla Nash and was shot dead by police

Why he might be annoying:

    Leslie Mostel-Paul claims Travis bit her in 1996 and the incident was ignored by police.
    He escaped from the car he was riding in and held up traffic for several hours (2003).
    After the incident, the state passed a law banning residents from owning primates that weigh over 50 pounds, but it was never enforced against the Herolds.
    After the deaths of Jerome and their only child, Sandra Herold considered Travis her son and treated him like a human.
    During his rampage, he bit off Nash's nose and jaw, leaving her in critical condition.
    He was shot and killed trying to break into an officer's car.
    The New York Post reported the attack using the headline 'Furious George.'

Why he might not be annoying:

    He was suffering from Lyme disease, which can cause mood swings, panic attacks and paranoia in humans.
    On the Today show, Herold said she tried to calm Travis down by slipping Xanax in his tea. In humans, Xanax can cause aggression in people who are already unstable.
    Herold tried to stop him from mauling Nash by hitting him with a shovel and stabbing him with a butcher knife.
    After the attack, the Humane Society called on Congress to pass the Captive Primate Safety Act to prohibit interstate and foreign sales of primates as pets.
    He served as a reminder that chimpanzees are wild animals, not pets. (Granted, most people don't need the reminder.)

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 74 Votes: 68.92% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 408 Votes: 69.61% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 173 Votes: 57.80% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 360 Votes: 45.00% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 180 Votes: 55.00% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 80 Votes: 51.25% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 38 Votes: 52.63% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 49 Votes: 79.59% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 11 Votes: 90.91% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 8 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 12 Votes: 58.33% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 21 Votes: 61.90% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 70 Votes: 51.43% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 57 Votes: 78.95% Annoying
    In 2010, Out of 177 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2009, Out of 236 Votes: 73.73% Annoying