Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Archives for July 2015

In memory of Kevin Clark

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Today’s day of sanctuary was sponsored by Shelley Winfrey in memory of her brother, Kevin Clark. Shelley shared this message about today:

“For my  brother who passed away…he would have loved the chimps!”

Shelley, we are so touched that you would think of the chimpanzees in honoring the memory of your brother. What a special thing to do. It’s a lovely thing to know that his life has made a difference in theirs. We so appreciate you keeping the chimps in your heart and our thoughts are with you today as you remember Kevin and celebrate the live he lived.

Your pal, the handsome Mr. B. (looking at camera) with Jamie:

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Nests

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Each day we give out at least 60 blankets for these chimpanzees to use as nesting material. It’s not uncommon for some of the chimps to use over 20 of these blankets and sometimes even 30 for a single nest (Negra)! However, nests are not limited to just blankets. Often times paper, bamboo and other plant material brought in from Young’s Hill, straw, a variety of clothing, stuffed animals and even some of the fire hoses in the various enclosures will be incorporated into these nests as well.

In the wild, individual chimpanzees construct a nest each evening to sleep in. Nests can also be made during the day as a place to rest. Youngsters that are not yet weaned will share a nest with their mother, from whom they learn to build their own nests. Most often, nests are made in trees by bending and lacing together branches from one or more trees. Leaves are then used to line the nest, perhaps to add comfort, provide insulation in cooler temperatures and protect from insects.

In the following photos Katelyn took yesterday, Jody demonstrated that a comfortable nest can be made with fresh straw to get the same effect as a blanket nest here at the sanctuary. Of course, the key to any nest is the testing phase, which Jody seems to have perfected in the last photo.

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Chimpanzee Tool Use and Jamie’s Smartness

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We all know by now that chimpanzees are really smart. And, if you are familiar with Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest, you know that boss Jamie chimpanzee often shows off her intellect. Sometimes she even impresses those of us in the know, however.

Case in point: the other day I was doing a perimeter walk with Jamie and she turned back to gather two big tumbleweeds. At first I wasn’t sure what she was doing – she doesn’t usually pick up tumbleweeds on our walks. Plus they were rather awkward to carry. They kept slipping out of her hand as they scraped against the ground, but, each time, she would pick them back up and continue the walk.

Jamie gathering tumbleweed

At one point she stood up bipedally and put one of the tumbleweeds in her mouth for easier carrying. She also took a good long look at the boots I was wearing, and I became clued in to her plans.

Jamie bipedal with tumbleweed

When the walk was complete, I met her and her tumbleweeds in the greenhouse. Jamie pulled up the big black tub to sit on.

Jamie altering tumble weed

And then she proceeded to alter one of the tumbleweeds to her liking:

Once she was satisfied with her tool, she pushed it through the caging and began to groom the boot I was wearing (which, of course, she had picked out prior to our walk).

Jamie grooming boot

Imagine the forethought that it took for her to go through the process of seeing an unruly tumbleweed well before the walk was finished to the grooming session that she imagined would happen minutes later. She’s one smart cookie!

You are the tomato of my eye

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To say that Missy loves tomatoes is an understatement. When she sees them offered at a meal she shakes her head vigorously, hold out her hand and follows the server relentlessly. She has no problem inserting herself in front of anyone lower in the hierarchy to make sure she receives the maximum amount possible.

Missy, and all the chimpanzees, have been watching their garden grow with increasingly impatience. Missy is very focused on the cherry tomatoes planted right outside one of the playroom windows and they are just starting to ripen. And I know this because Missy wasted no time in letting me know. When she saw me today she immediately ran to the window by the tomatoes, swung back and forth from the caging in excitement, and occasionally looked over her shoulder at me and gestured toward the tomatoes.

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Then when it seemed I was a little slow to catch her drift (humans!), she threw herself onto the caging and shook it with all her might:

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Here she throws me an outstretched arm to further plead her case:

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The chimpanzees’ garden helps supplement the wonderful food donations we receive, but it also provides visual and edible enrichment for the chimpanzees. It’s a wonderful thing for them to look forward to and to be able to request something they see, freshly ripened and still warm from the sun. Thanks largely to volunteer caregiver, Denice, the chimps’ garden is really taking off. This year it’s full of onions, scallions, beets, cherry tomatoes, and carrots to name a few.

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But for Missy, her eye is on these little guys:

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Of course, it didn’t take long for boss lady, Jamie, and everyone else to catch on so staff caregiver, Anna, served up a mid-afternoon garden snack. Here Anna serves Burrito a cherry tomato as Jamie looks on:

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Burrito was very anxious for a green onion, but with Jamie lurking next to him, he was reluctant to take it before receiving the green light from her. So he sat very, very still, hair standing on end (pilo-erect) and waited patiently for her to pass by before taking it from Anna:

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Eventually, the boss gave her OK, but let him know she was watching. Here you can see her hovering over him as he munches his onion:

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Annie loves, loves, loves green onions:

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Missy:

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Jamie keeping a very close eye on Anna, making sure she is serving things correctly during her training:

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I love that the chimpanzees have so many things to look forward to with each passing season.

Today is in honor of Andrea

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This day of sanctuary was sponsored by Juliette Brush-Hoover in honor of her sister Andrea. Juliette shared this beautiful and touching message about today:

“Andrea was my younger sister who left this world way before her time. She was beautiful, hilarious, generous and creative. She loved to help people. And she loved monkeys. I know that chimps are technically apes but I don’t think this distinction would have mattered to Andrea. In memory of my sister’s birthday I am making this special donation to Chimp Sanctuary NW. Knowing the chimps will have a special day full of treats and surprises seems a fitting tribute to my fun loving sister.”

Juliette, we are so honored that you would think of the chimpanzees in remembering Andrea and celebrating her life today. We will be holding Andrea and you in our thoughts today, grateful for all the compassion you both hold and seeing her kind spirit carrying on in the world.

It sounds like Andrea may have had some things in common with fun-loving Foxie, shown here with sweet, Annie (left):

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