Kriti Mehrotra
As a documentary that traverses the reality behind peoples’ relationships with the primates they care for as their owners, HBO’s ‘Chimp Crazy’ is absolutely unlike any other. That’s because it incorporates not just related archival footage but also exclusive interviews with those actively involved in the exotic animal industry to really shine a light upon the verity of it at every step. Amongst those to feature in this original — albeit briefly — was actually lifelong chimp trainer Pamela “Pam” Rosaire’s loving family, her husband Roger Zoppe and their daughter Dallas Zoppe.
Pam, Roger, and Dallas Have Overcome Everything Life Has Thrown Their Way
While it’s unclear precisely when Pam first came across Roger, we do believe they bonded over their passion as well as love for the circus and everything it has to offer. After all, while the former performed with animals of all kinds in her parents’ troupe from an early age, the latter became a professional acrobat and bareback rider, making them connect. Little did they know they would soon end up tying the knot and face several ups and downs in life, all the while embracing every opportunity coming their way to ensure a better future for their family.
Nevertheless, Pam and Roger’s primary means of income back then was their circus work, as explored in the 2010s documentary ‘Circus Rosaire,’ before they began expanding their wings. They actually settled in Florida, where they welcomed their daughter into this world while also raising chimpanzees as family members, with her falling deeper into her passion while he continued the night. He knew the risks they were taking by being in such close proximity with these historically unpredictable, powerful primates, yet he knew they were of no real harm since they had trained him well. From strolling to waiting to eat with friends, they did much more.
Roger Zoppe Continues to Unwaveringly Support His Wife
Although we don’t know much regarding Pam and Roger, we do know they are a nearly idyllic couple, considering they have been together for nearly four decades and have stuck by one another through thick and thin. It hence goes without saying he not only knew of her passion for chimps from the get-go but has always actually supported her efforts and continues to help her thrive. In fact, he has even mentioned how he knew chimps were a part of their lives from day one, only to ever just be surprised when he found her breastfeeding a premie one day.
According to his own statements in the aforementioned original, Dallas had just been born when Pam got a premature Chimp to raise, and since the latter couldn’t have formula, she decided to literally nurse him back to health. The most shocking part is that it actually worked, further strengthening their belief that these animals are a part of their family in every way, shape, and form, which the retired acrobat plus bareback rider did assert publicly, too. So, of course, today, he is still by Pam’s side as they reside in Sarasota, Florida, and continue to train chimpanzees for different kinds of performances on stage or in entertainment.
Dallas Zoppe Has Embraced Her Family’s Legacy
Since Dallas was born into a family of circus people and literally grew up alongside a chimpanzee, she understood their beliefs regarding animal connection at an early age. In fact, she stated in the original production that she did indeed see the primate with whom she shared breast milk as her sibling. “He was very gentle. He was very kind,” she said on the show. “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 — he would throw poop at him. I can’t imagine my life without him. It would’ve been very different.”
Thus, it comes as no surprise that Dallas has followed in her ancestors’ footsteps when it comes to her career—this Sarasota, Florida, resident is an animal lover, dancer, and circus performer. In fact, she currently serves as a Performing Artist at Circus World, all the while also volunteering as an animal trainer at her maternal aunt’s Big Cat Habitat and Gulf Coast Sanctuary and as a part-time dog groomer. On a more personal front, although this dog mom appears to be single at the moment, she continues to share an extremely close bond with both her parents, especially her mother, who essentially gave her a start in this world as an entertainer.
Read More: Tonia Haddix: Where is the Chimp Mom Now?
