Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Archives for June 2014

Thank you, Tracy!

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Today’s very special day of sanctuary was sponsored by Tracy Dunham! Tracy shared the following  message:

“On this special anniversary I would like to sponsor the day in honor of Jane Goodall. She has long been an inspiration to me and I am sure of many others. I admire her tireless advocacy on behalf of not just chimps. Her eloquent letter to Vancouver Aquarium on behalf of belugas and dolphins has no doubt made an impact. She is a visionary, a teacher, an environmentalist and I am sure no one would be happier to celebrate the new life that the chimps have made for themselves.”

As you may be aware, today is not only Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest’s sixth anniversary, but it is also the honorary 41st birthday of beloved Queen Negra! Negra was captured from the wild, presumably in 1973, although she could be even older. While we do not know the exact date of Negra’s birth we felt what better day to celebrate her and the birth of a new life than June 13th, the day the chimpanzees arrived at their sanctuary home after decades in biomedical research. A new life filled with choices, comfort, dignity and love.

Tracy, thank you so much for all you do for the chimpanzees and for contributing to their (and our!) day of celebration!

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And thank you, from the bottom of our hearts, to all of our supporters who have made the last six years of hope, love, home and sanctuary possible for Negra and her chimpanzee family. We could not do it without you.

Be sure to check back later today for the chimpanzees’ festivities! And it’s not too late to contribute to our day of celebration! Learn more about our future plans and please consider a donation supporting the next six years and beyond, making this the Luckiest Friday the 13th ever!

Negra, Routine, and Compromise

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We’ve written before on the blog about our daily routine here at the sanctuary, and why routine is important to the chimpanzees. At mealtimes, we ask the chimps to shift to a separate area of the chimp house so that we can close off and clean the area they’ve just evacuated. If one of the chimps chooses to stay behind, they know that they’re choosing not to participate in the meal, and they know that another meal will be served in a few hours. Because of this consistent routine, the chimps are never blindsided by the consequences of their decisions.

The chimpanzees are pretty motivated by food, so this routine works very well most of the time. Occasionally, a chimpanzee will decide they’d rather skip breakfast and have the playroom to themselves for a little while than join the others in the greenhouse for a meal. If this happens, we don’t sweat it. We love that they’re now able to make decisions about how and where they want to spend their time.

We do make one exception to this “if you don’t shift, you forfeit the meal” routine. When we set up a forage outside on Young’s Hill, we don’t require that the chimpanzees go out on the hill to eat. Though they’ve become increasingly comfortable with the wide open spaces of the outdoors since we opened the hill three years ago, they still feel safer inside or in the enclosed greenhouse, and we don’t want to push them too far out of their comfort zone before they’re ready. Most of the chimpanzees participate enthusiastically in Young’s Hill forages, but Negra is sometimes hesitant to venture out with the others. When that happens, we happily serve her some fruit or veggies in the greenhouse.

This morning we scattered the chimps’ breakfast fruit on the hill and most of the chimps ran out as soon as we opened the door. Negra watched from the doorway for a moment but ultimately retreated back inside. So JB grabbed some fruit from the kitchen, and she enjoyed it in the comfort of the greenhouse.

Tomorrow is Negra’s 41st birthday (and the 6th anniversary of the chimps’ arrival at the sanctuary!), and we will be throwing her a fancy tea party fit for the queen she is. If you haven’t already, please make a donation in honor of Negra, and in celebration of sanctuary.

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Lazy afternoons

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It’s been a warm, lazy afternoon at the sanctuary today (at least for the chimpanzees). The chimps were all sequestered away napping and out of range of the camera today and there was a lot of yawning, napping and general lazing about happening. But what a wonderful thing to be able to rest in peace and comfort with only the sound of the wind and the birds as you doze in and out of dreams.

Or if you’re Jody, to lie about with your foraged bamboo. Apparently, dried up bamboo is also an exciting treat by her standards:

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It seems it does get stuck in your teeth:

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But that’s OK, Jody looks happy nevertheless:

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Foxie and the bottled water

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A couple of years ago, we had tons of bottled water after the fire which ended up being great enrichment for the chimps. This week, our water pressure was a little low (it’s fixed now!) so we handed out some bottled water just to make sure everyone had plenty to drink. Of course they were very happy to have something different!

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Happy Birthday, Donna!

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Today’s day of sanctuary was sponsored by Donna Dinsmore! Today also happens to be Donna’s birthday and she wanted the chimpanzees to have a special day and be able to celebrate with her.

Donna, thank you so much for choosing to spend your special day in such a kind and generous way! We truly appreciate you including the chimpanzees in your celebration of life. From all of the primates here at CSNW, we hope you have a wonderful day and that all the good you share with others returns to you tenfold! Happy Birthday!!

Jody always knows how to celebrate each day with joy:

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Taking it Easy

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The pace of life in central Washington is different from what you might be used to experiencing on a daily basis. Slower, warmer, and quieter certainly come to mind, pastoral, if you will. In this context, the peaceful ease that the chimpanzees share with one another can be taken for granted. But their ability to relax with as much abandon as they do everything else is remarkable and, truly, a joy to behold. No matter what kind of day you may have had, take a moment to stop and relax with the Cle Elum Seven. They’ll show you how it’s done!