Kriti Mehrotra
With HBO’s ‘Chimp Crazy’ shining a true light upon the complex, long-term relationship between owners and their primates in the most natural sense, we get a documentary unlike any other. After all, it incorporates not just exclusive interviews with those involved in the matter but also archival footage of old stories wherein things ultimately ended in tragedy. However, for one person, Pamela “Pam” Rosaire, it doesn’t matter how things will eventually pan out because she has experience, love, and a passion — she’s not only a chimpanzee trainer but also a “Chimp Mom.”
Pam Rosaire’s Background Enables Her Passion
Although one of eight children born to Betty Kays and Derrick Rosaire Sr., Pam actually grew up all across the world, considering her parents ran a relatively successful circus. Both the parents hailed from circus families, with the former’s predating the latter’s family by generations, yet they connected so deeply that they knew they were destined to end up together and build a circus of their own. While Betty was involved in the riding acts, vaulting, dog training, as well as much more, Derrick was an all-around performer with an added interest in the big animals. All this, and more, was actually even profiled in the 2008 documentary about the Rosaire family, ‘Circus Rosaire.’
Therefore, Pam became interested in primates through her aerialist, acrobat and animal-trainer father, only to bond with them to such an extent she began training them at quite an early age. In fact, when she was asked by her father what she wanted to do for the rest of her life at the age of seven, she stated she wanted to be the best chimpanzee trainer and performer ever, and that’s precisely what she worked towards. However, as the years went by, she realized they were a part of her family too; they were her kids that she cared for from the moment they were young babies to the moment they passed, truly making her one of the best in her field.
Pam Rosaire Has Always Had the Support of Her Husband and Daughter
Pam Rosaire has been married to retired acrobat and bareback rider Roger Zoppe for years. Although she shares a daughter named Dallas with him, Pam has mothered several primates, too. In fact, when she gave birth to their daughter while raising an ill baby chimp, she actually breastfed him to nurse him back to health, and it worked, further cementing her belief that they were her kids. It also genuinely made Dallas view these animals as her siblings, especially the one she grew up with. This is something the latter reiterated in the aforementioned docuseries, too: “We were like brother and sister. So much that the instant a boy would like me, he knew, and he would be mean to the boy… I can’t imagine my life without him. It would have been very different.”
Therefore, it goes without saying that Pam shares such a deep bond with these animals that she, Roger, and Dallas often forget that they are technically supposed to be wild and dangerous. She is actually well aware of the fact that she puts her life at risk daily by being in such close proximity to these powerful beings, but she also maintains they are not as unpredictable as people believe them to be if they are trained right. That, along with her natural passion for them, is what has always pushed her to treat them as her own as well as protect them even in imperfect situations.
Pam Rosaire Continues to Be Involved With Chimpanzees
From what we can tell, Pam has long been settled in Sarasota, Florida, with her husband of nearly four decades, Roger, where she continues to raise and train chimpanzees to the best of her abilities. One of them was actually named Chance, who was even featured in ‘The Wolf of Wall Street,’ but he sadly passed away in 2024, leaving her with only a little more than a handful of chimps to raise. With them, it appears as if she continues to perform across the nation, primarily at the Big Cat Habitat and Gulf Coast Sanctuary, a growing large-animal rescue in Sarasota that was established by her sister Kay in 1987.
Pam is admittedly also very active in the exotic animal community to this day and continues to be in touch with others who believe themselves to be chimp moms, too. After all, the one thing that matters most to her in this world is her primates, ponies, dogs, and other beings – she may not have enough money to build them a sanctuary of her own, but she is trying to give them the best possible life.
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