Jamie really likes to walk around the hill with her caregivers, and will stomp to get our attention to get us to put on a boot and play chase with her. The other day, I decided to drive around in our farm vehicle and she was SO excited. She ran so fast, I had to floor it to keep up with her! I was so impressed. She gave herself quite the workout, too, because afterwards she was exhausted (but not *too* exhausted to come get the boot we drove around with). Today I tried this tactic again and she didn’t run all the way up the hill, but she ran along the top and on the way down.
That is quite impressive to see Jamie running up the hill. You folks do your all to keep the chimps happy and fulfilled.I wonder what goes in their minds,, from a life of total obscurity where no one even knew they existed, to a place where they now have global exposure, thus they have fans and supporters across the planet, they have an extraordinary life in the country, the outdoors, the best food ever, the best folks taking great care of them. Toys,blankets,enrichment’s, Young s Hill with all its,climbing apparatus, Negra’s cabin, the green house, Cowboy Boots, trolls,Dora’s, fave foods for everyone,. they even have neighbors whose horses got loose ,and decided to visit them ,, wow, that must of been quite a day that day,, filled with such excitement. Their lives are jam packed with excitement,fun,play and so many activities provided by nature;s changing of the seasons.. They truly have magnificent lives,
I’m sure running is such a joy for them!
Run Jamie run! She must be running your butts off since u r using the go cart. 🙂
You caught me, Ivy. 😉
Jamie is in such good physical shape since she arrived at Cle Elum. She could probably give a wild Chimp a run for her money:) We all feel better when we exercise and boy she sure is getting hers!
Let me see if I have this right. Jamie tells you when its time to exercise, right? Does she inspect your foot wear prior to the workout? And does she let you know if its not appropriate? Then Jamie leads you in walk/jog/run, right? Then does she decide how many laps you do? And if you wear a pair of boots, are you then required to hand them over after? And what is the protocol if you DONT wear boots?
I love this girl!! Several of the chimps seem to wear a certain “face” quite regularly, and hers seems to be “Youre going to know who is in charge here, and your going to like it”.
And last, Ive been wondering if she was in charge pre-sanctuary? And, someone mentioned that the staff “gets in trouble” if Burrito is acting up and pokes at you in front of Jamie. What does that mean?
Sorry to be so lengthy, Ive been wondering this stuff for a while.
Kerri, yes you’re right! Jamie tells us when it’s time to go for a walk by stomping. She prefers that people put on one of her boots for the journey, but is OK if you carry it along if you can’t find one that fits right. There are definitely some boots she likes more than others, but she goes through phases and her preferences change. If she wants to go around again, she will just keep going rather than come back to the building. Most often she comes to the building and goes straight to a food chute where we can give her the boot, but sometimes she wants to groom the boot first! She will then usually ask other caregivers to go for a walk.
I’m not sure if she was in charge before CSNW, our records indicate that Negra was most dominant, and although she is the Queen, she is not more dominant in most cases than Jamie. The problem in trying to determine social organization prior to coming to sanctuary is that by virtue of being in a lab their social situation is deprived. Sanctuary allows them to have a natural social order, something they never really had before (especially when shifted around to different labs over the years). Some still haven’t really adjusted from that abnormal environment, like Burrito. It’s taken him a long time to become more confident in his “chimpanzee-ness,” if that makes sense. In most free-living societies, a male is the most dominant individual in the group, but since Burrito doesn’t really know how to be a male chimpanzee (probably due to the deprived social situation he had prior to sanctuary) he just doesn’t play the political game as well as Jamie.
I think the “getting into trouble” question probably relates to Jamie’s dominance. It’s hard work being in charge, and you have to continually ensure that everyone respects you as the leader. We sometimes call Jamie the “party police” because she will interrupt interactions between others to assert her importance in the group. Even though we know and respect Jamie as the boss, she wants to make sure that we always are, and will remind us regularly who’s in charge 🙂
THANK YOU very much for answering my extremely long questions. I will certainly break them up next time. But, you did an EXCELLENT job as usual explaining. All of you are talented “bloggers” as I can almost imagine being right there by the way you all explain things. So, thanks again! You have the luckiest, most magical place on Earth. Disneys got nothing on CSNW!
Kerri, you’re too flattering! We love answering questions, don’t ever be hesitant to ask! I agree, CSNW is a pretty magical place 🙂
Debbie, that was SO much fun driving around the hill with Jamie!
I think it was the “two” boots I was holding in the air and putting them in motion, as if the boots were running along side her, that got her so excited to run the full length of the hill. We definitely have to do that again sometime! I think you and I had more fun than Jamie!! 🙂 I know it was the highlight of my weekend.
Yes, I think the boots are key! They worked well when Steph was passenger too. I guess I can’t drive around solo – I mean, I can’t really hold boots on my hands and drive at the same time! 🙂