the wild, wild west of Young’s Hill

Young’s Hill, the chimpanzees’ 2-acre enclosure, is treated a bit differently than the chimp house and greenhouse, which we thoroughly scrub and clean everyday. Sometimes toys get left out for a couple of days on the hill, which is fun because the chimps can discover them later.

A few days ago, during a forage, Jody spotted something that I was sure was a morsel of food that had been overlooked by the other chimps. She race-walked over to get it:

But when she picked up the object, I could tell that it wasn’t food at all. It was a “well loved” toy horse.

I thought Jody would quickly discard it and go back to her search for food, but she took some time examining it – all sides of it.

And decided to take it back to the greenhouse.

You just never know what treasures you might find in the wilds of Young’s Hill.

Tomorrow we will be celebrating Jody’s 39th birthday (though she may be older than that). It’s her 1,858th day of sanctuary (give or take a couple of days). Tomorrow will be special for Jody, but we strive to make every day full of adventures, treasures, and comfort. We love you, Jo Jo!