Eric Goode has struck again with a misfit, bonkers exotic animal owner story! The director of the Netflix lockdown phenomenon Tiger King, which felt like the only thing on television during that time, has spotlighted a new story about a woman who will do anything to keep PETA from taking away her beloved chimpanzee, Tonka. The new Max show, Chimp Crazy, details the story of Tonia Haddix, a lover of chimpanzees and exotic animals who has been involved in a battle to keep her precious animals under her care at the Missouri Primate Foundation. In 2017, PETA sued the foundation over poor and restrictive conditions, and Haddix was named in the lawsuit.
What Is ‘Chimp Crazy’ About?
In Chimp Crazy, currently streaming on Max, the story of Tonia Haddix and her love affair with chimpanzees and other exotic animals is documented as she tries to elude the authorities and the legal team of special interest groups like PETA to maintain her own private sanctuary for these primates. She took over ownership of the Missouri Primate Foundation (or Chimparty), from another Chimpanzee enthusiast and owner, Connie Casey, in the late 2010s. Haddix’s relationship with a chimp named Tonka is explored in depth, detailing the lengths she will go to for him to keep the animal from being found. Throughout the first two episodes, Goode goes into how Haddix, who has been called “the Dolly Parton of the chimps” because of her flamboyant appearance, big, flashy blonde hair, and other similar physical attributes, originally got into the world of chimpanzees and exotic animals. The connection she forms with Tonka is undeniable, as Haddix claims she loves him more than her own children and will do anything to protect him.
What Makes Tonka So Special to Tonia Haddix in ‘Chimp Crazy’?
Tonka has been in many movies and is probably best known for Hollywood roles in Brendan Fraser’s George of the Jungle and Alan Cumming’s (who appears throughout the documentary) Buddy. The monkey has a unique charisma, and Haddix claims the two have a special bond, as she has been with him for years. In an interview with Australian radio’s “Carrie and Tommy Show” on August 29, she expounded on her relationship with Tonka, saying “Tonka and I just found each other… It was meant to be. It was just natural. And Tonka loved me as much as I loved Tonka.”
Haddix and PETA reached an agreement in 2020 that she could retain ownership of the chimps, including Tonka, so long as she upgraded the Missouri Primate Foundation facility. When she failed to meet those requirements in 2020, she was held in contempt and ordered by a judge to surrender all of her animals so they could be relocated to the Center for Great Apes in Florida. This spacious and lush preserve gives these exotic animals the specialized care they need. However, Haddix claimed that Tonka was suffering from congestive heart failure and refused to hand him over to the authorities.
Where Is Tonia Haddix Now?
As of 2024, Tonia Haddix has avoided jail time and lives near the Ozarks with her husband, Jerry Aswegan. She continues to work as an exotic animal broker in Sunrise Beach, Missouri; together, they own a mobile petting zoo, Sunrise Beach Safari, near the Lake of the Ozarks. She is also the mother of two grown children, Justin and Erica, the former of whom appears in Episode 3, “Head Shot,” and confirms his mother’s obsession with chimpanzees and Tonka. Haddix still maintains that Goode and the Chimp Crazy documentary crew tipped off the U.S. Marshals, which eventually led to them raiding her Missouri home and finding Tonka in a small enclosure in her basement.
Haddix had previously told PETA lawyers and others that Tonka had died of congestive heart failure in 2020, even going so far as to produce the chimpanzee’s ashes. But at the end of Episode 2, it was revealed that she had been keeping him in her home even after the order to turn Tonka over to the authorities was issued. In Episode 3, Haddix maintained that Tonka’s heart was failing and refused to subject him to the 14-hour sedation necessary to fly the chimp to the Florida preserve. Tonka was moved to Save the Chimp’s sanctuary in Florida in June 2022, and a veterinarian has officially gone on record saying that he is not suffering from heart failure. In fact, the controversial performing primate is alive and well today.
Chimp Crazy is available to stream on MAX.
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