Burrito was intently grooming Jody this afternoon:
Jody was pretty relaxed after the grooming session, as you can see by her drooped-lip facial expression:
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ahhhh bring me a martini burrrrrito baby, will ya?
Well done, Burrito! Jody deserves the attention. Thank you for the photos!
I’m in love with that face. 🙂
He’s such a lovely chap. Does he enjoy being the only lad with all those ladies?
It’s hard to say if he enjoys being the only guy around. We’ve only known him in that role. I’m sure it has it’s pros and cons! J.B. is in a similar situation, so maybe he’d have more insight 😉
Burrito! You are so suave! A real gentleman!
I know how you feel Jody girl. I get sleepy when I go to the hairdresser. There is something about someone sifting through your hair. Mr. B is a true gentleman. I love that droop-lip almost as much as a play face.
I have to say it but Burrito is a cutie patootie!
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a picture of Jody with a drooped lip, very nicely done Jo Jo.
I agree with you Theresa I, too, get very relaxed when I get a scalp massage when I get my hair done.
QUESTION: Has Burrito always been a big groomer, it seems as if it’s something he’s recently begun doing?
I don’t think the frequency of Burrito’s grooming has increased, but it does seem to me that he’s partnering up with different people lately. He used to spend the vast majority of his grooming time with Negra or Foxie, and I’ve seen him with Jody and Missy as well lately.
I guess, after the last brouhaha, Burrito’s learned that it may help him, later, by grooming the other ladies, just in case, he may need backup.
I’m sure if Burrito is like most guys…he’s enjoying being the only one in the company of all those ladies…except of course when they pick on him! 🙂 He just always looks so sweet! I have a question as well, it seems like they all interact with each other very well but are there any that don’t get along with one another so well? You know, like most large families there’s usually a little friction between one pair…I was just wondering if the same were true in this chimp family?
Probably the most frequent friction we see is between Jamie and Jody. And sometimes between Jamie and Burrito. Of everyone in the group, those two are probably Jamie’s most obvious potential “rivals” – Burrito because he’s a guy (though, as we’ve pointed out, not really the dominant alpha male type) and Jody is pretty strong-willed and not always willing to just let Jamie have her way. The dynamics can be in flux, though, so what we’ve seen the past few years won’t necessarily hold true for the future.
Has Burrito shown any interest in mating yet? Good idea to groom Jody. Nice to have a strong person on your side when one of the ladies gangs up on you.
We’ve only seen Burrito attempt a couple of times and not for a while. It’s not unusual for male captive chimps to never display mating behavior, at least in my experience with former laboratory chimpanzees.
I figured if there was any friction in the group it would be between Jamie and someone….especially if they tried to mess with her cowgirl boots! 🙂
I’m also curious about their names….were they actually named in the labs or after they were released? It seems to me they would of just had numbers during their terrible years as lab subjects. I can’t imagine such heartless people giving them names.
No one messes with Jamie’s cowboy boots! Actually, she’s not overly possessive of them. We sometimes put treats in boots at night and she is okay with other chimps looking through them.
The chimps all had their names while in the lab. They also had numbers that were tattooed on their chest or thigh, and their records usually list both their number and their name.
The people at the labs who cleaned, fed and interacted with the chimps probably would have used their names, while the researchers used their numbers when recording information, etc. It’s really difficult for me to imagine looking at Negra (for example) every day and being okay getting paid to contribute to her torture, but I think most people working in labs start off not knowing much about chimpanzees and not really stopping to think what is wrong with the situation.The people that I’ve met who have worked in laboratories have not been heartless, though. I’m sure I’ve met a non-representative sample. Especially those who worked day to day with chimpanzees and allowed themselves to get to know them seemed to genuinely care and sometimes ended up trying to advocate for chimpanzees. I know there were jerks who worked with them over the years who truly didn’t care about their welfare, but that wasn’t everyone. I know the chimpanzees themselves educated many people.
having nearly finished fauna sanctuary book James mahoney springs to mind , this book is fantastic and although hard to read in parts its taught me so much , i am in absolute awe at whats chimps go though and yet are still so willing to then let humans help to rehabilitate them and try and repay some of the many wrongs done to them , i dont know of a human being who could live through and somehow survive what these chimps it makes me feel very humble and insignificant and also ashamed as well 🙁
really good questions from everyone and informative answers , thank you xxx