One of the things that brings the Cle Elum Seven chimpanzees the most joy is food. In order to keep the chimps as healthy and happy as possible for as long as possible, we focus on nutrition and variety (and taste, of course!). Here’s what the chimps ate today.
Breakfast:
Breakfast is usually the most exciting meal of the day, eliciting lots of food grunts. This morning the chimps had a fruit smoothie made of persimmons, bananas, and protein powder. We also served apples, oranges, and kiwi berries. In the green bowl are some banana slices. Burrito gets his heart pills in banana (those are the two slices in the small white bowl on top), and of course, you can’t give something to one chimp without also offering it to the others, so the rest of the chimps get a couple of banana slices too. We always include a small bowl of peanuts with breakfast – Negra often won’t leave her nest in the morning until she spots the peanuts on the breakfast tray. In the small pink bowl are the chimps’ gummy vitamins, fiber pills, and probiotics. And the silver bowl on the right holds protein biscuits we call chow.
Lunch:
Lunch is usually a pretty simple affair consisting of fresh veggies and more chow. Today the chimps had corn on the cob, bell peppers, Brussels sprouts, and beets.
Dinner:
For dinner, the chimps had celery, carrots, and spaghetti squash. Everyone had a couple of banana slices so Burrito could get his second dose of heart meds, and of course, a night bag for dessert (these are small paper bags with a handful of nuts, seeds, and dried fruit, and they are Negra’s favorite part of the day).
The vast majority of the chimps’ food is donated by local stores, volunteers, and supporters. We’re so grateful to be able to offer the chimpanzees the bounty of delicious food that they deserve.
