Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Archives for January 2015

Always a reason to play

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The chimp house is full of activity today as we (meaning J.B.) works on the completion of the new bridge in the chimps’ playroom. The chimpanzees are always interested in what is happening in their home, especially if it’s outside of the ordinary.

Annie had been watching J.B. from the greenhouse windows when she decided to run around to the front rooms to get a better view:

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If you know Annie and Missy, you know that these two best friends can typically be found playing chase, wrestling and laughing with one another. So once Annie took off Missy saw this as a prime opportunity to begin a game of chase and was hot on her heels, laughing all the way, and Debbie happened to be there with the camera to catch them mid-air:

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Spiderchimp

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The ceiling of the greenhouse is made up of long metal bars that allow the chimpanzees to brachiate (swing arm over arm), much like wild chimps swing through the trees. The chimps use these bars pretty often to move from place to place in the greenhouse. For Foxie, though, they’re more than functional – they’re fun. Foxie uses the greenhouse ceiling as her own personal playground. She climbs around upside down on all fours, and then dangles by her feet (sometimes while laughing). Today she took Dora along for the ride.

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A day of sanctuary and service

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Today is observed as Martin Luther King Jr. Day here in the States and both Katharine Moody, and a supporter who wishes to remain anonymous, chose to sponsor this date as a day of sanctuary for the chimpanzees. Today means many things to many people. It is a day that honors Dr. King’s contribution to humankind and it represents the belief in freedom, equality, and justice for all through non-violent social change. To further honor Dr. King’s legacy, in 1994, Congress designated this federal holiday as a national day of community service – “a day on, not a day off.” We are honored that our two sponsors thought of making a difference in the chimpanzees’ lives on this day. Thank you so much, to both of you!

Katharine shared this amazingly kind message with us: “Thank you! I would not have had the opportunity to do this without you and your efforts.”

And our anonymous supporter shared this special message: “I chose this day because it represents the increased freedom experienced by the Cle Elum 7 when they were transferred from the research facility. It brings me near tears to see them roaming the hillside and lying on their backs eating grass without signs of fear. I am honored to be able to help serve each and every one of them.”

Jody enjoying a quiet moment with bamboo she harvested from Young’s Hill:

web_Jody_eat_bamboo_2_GH_jb_IMG_4287 We truly value each and every one of our supporters. We could never fully express the gratitude we have for being given the privilege of providing the chimpanzees with their lives in sanctuary. There are countless individuals and organizations, all doing incredible work, making a real difference in the lives of others, that you could choose to support and knowing this makes us feel all the more honored and full of gratitude.

Every single one of us has something valuable to give, a way to be of service and support to all living beings. Each of us is rich in this respect. And whatever inspires your compassion, makes your heart sing, follow that. Because ultimately, it benefits us all.

“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is: ‘What are you doing for others?'” – Martin Luther King Jr.

Jamie and Missy (background) on Young’s Hill:

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In Search of The Perfect Snow to Eat

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It didn’t take long for the chimpanzees to make their way outside today once the sun came out. Jamie, Jody, Annie, Missy, Foxie and Burrito all made their way onto Young’s Hill. While Jamie continued on to do her first perimeter walk around the hill, the other chimpanzees were more focused on eating the pieces of crusty snow they found. Missy seemed to be on a mission to find the perfect piece.

Missy took her time making her way across the logs, eating chunks of crusty snow along the way.
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Then she moved on to Negra’s cabin in search of more pieces. Of course, as many of you know by now, Missy has a knack for climbing. She climbed up one of the posts and made her way up to the roof of the cabin.

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Lo and behold, there it was, another big piece.

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She took her time enjoying the morsel, taking in the scenery and scoping out where to find the next piece.

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When she finished, she climbed onto the roof of the cabin and then proceeded to check for more crusty snow chunks on the other side.
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After that, she continued up to the top of the cabin.
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Ahhhh, the perfect piece.
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Happy Anniversary Mr. and Mrs. Brezo!

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Today’s day of sanctuary was sponsored by Isabel Ibarra in honor of her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Brezo, on their 56th wedding anniversary! Isabel, we are truly touched that you would choose to honor such a special day in your family’s lives with the gift of sanctuary for the chimpanzees. It’s amazing to see all of the wonderful life celebrations that the chimpanzees get to be part of and that their lives are enriched by.

Mr. and Mrs. Brezo, from all of the primates here at Chimpanzee Sanctuary NW we wish you a beautiful day full of love, laughter and celebration with your friends and family. Thank you so much for sharing your day with the chimpanzees! Happy Anniversary!!

Burrito and Jody:

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Taking some photos up a notch

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I really like black and white photos. I think it lends a more intimate feeling to portraits – you can really concentrate on the person’s facial features and wonder about their personalities and their pasts without the distraction of color.

We’ve been getting some great close-up photos of the chimpanzees lately plus I found a few that we hadn’t posted before, so I thought I would render some in black and white and sepia.

What do you think?

This is a close up of Annie’s eyes:

close up eyes of Annie

Annie:

annie close-up b&w

 

Foxie:

foxie b&w

 

Jamie (I just love this photo that Katelyn took – it’s great in color and sepia):

jamie sepia

 

Jody:

jody b&w

 

Burrito:

burrito b&w

 

Missy:

missy sepia

 

Last, but never least, Negra:

Negra b&w