Media Background Visit and Tour: Primate Research Center

What: A traveling group of animal activists named the 1999 Primate Freedom Tour is scheduled to stop at the California Regional Primate Research Center, on the UC Davis campus, on Friday, June 11, through Monday, June 14. To familiarize regional media with the purpose and activities of the primate research center, we will hold a background session. An introductory talk by Dr. Jeffrey Roberts, assistant director of the primate center, and Dr. Philip Tillman, campus veterinarian, will be followed by a tour of the facility. Background: The California Regional Primate Research Center is one of seven in the nation and has a colony of 3,800 rhesus macaque and long-tailed macaque monkeys. Researchers at the center study human health problems such as AIDS, reproduction, osteoporosis, Alzheimer's disease, asthma and the health impacts of environmental pollutants. Over 100 local and visiting scientists use the facility each year. When: Tomorrow, Wednesday, June 9. To accommodate the needs of reporter/photographer teams while minimizing the impact of large groups on the animals, we will conduct two tours -- one for print and radio media and one for television media. Late arrivals will not be admitted and no one will be allowed to leave the tour early. Print and radio media 11 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. Television media 1:30 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. Where: The California Regional Primate Research Center, on the western edge of the UC Davis campus (directions below). Visuals: We'll see rhesus macaque monkeys and long-tailed macaque monkeys, including an anesthetized monkey undergoing a bone-density scan as part of an osteoporosis study; an ultrasound scan performed on a pregnant, anesthetized monkey and her fetus; and baby monkeys in an infant-formula research project. Special instructions: For the health and safety of media, staff and the animals, these rules will be in force: -- You must RSVP by 9 a.m. Wednesday, to Sylvia Wright, News Service, (530) 752-7704, with the names of reporters and photographers or camera operators who will attend. Only these individuals will be admitted. Credentials will be checked at the door. -- Pants must be worn, not shorts or skirts. Closed shoes must be worn, not sandals. Protective clothing, eyewear and masks will be supplied and must be worn to visit the animal areas. Anyone with any known infection, such as a cold, sore throat, hepatitis or tuberculosis, can attend the lecture portion but should not tour the animal areas. You'll be asked to wash your hands after leaving the restricted area of the building. -- Camera lights and flash units will be allowed in only some areas. You'll be given directions on site. Directions and parking: From Interstate 80, take Highway 113 north toward Woodland. Exit and turn left at the first exit, Hutchison Drive. Travel west 2 miles to a T intersection. The California Regional Primate Research Center is straight ahead. Enter through gates to the left, then turn right into the parking lot in the front of the buildings. Leave a media business card on your dashboard as a parking permit, unless your vehicle is already marked. Enter the primate center through the doors farthest to your right (north); the building to the left is the related Center for Comparative Medicine. Sylvia Wright will meet you there.