Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary
After a summer full of heatwaves in Cle Elum, we’re greeting this week’s cooler temperatures (and even rain!) with open arms. Today the chimpanzees have been making the most of the break from the heat and spending lots of time outside on Young’s Hill. While adventure is great, it’s important to mix in some quiet time here and there. Here are my favorite portraits of the day.
Negra:
Missy:
Jody:
Jamie:
Foxie:
Burrito:
Annie:
Today’s forecast called for rain and cooler temperatures, so we thought about what sorts of rainy day activities we could set up for the chimpanzees. The enrichment theme for the day was Fort Day, which seemed more than appropriate, so staff and volunteer caregiver Lizz set about building forts in the Greenhouse and Playroom with blankets.
Jody is usually the one to take the forts apart in order to gather blankets for her nest, which is exactly what she did.
Jamie took it upon herself to find the perfect rainy day activity in one of the Front Rooms. Notice the boot and magazines within her nest.
Grooming is another perfect rainy day activity.
Jody
But, it didn’t take long before the weather changed. Instead of more rain, the skies cleared up and the sun came out. So much for rainy day activities; the chimps moved on to foraging and spending time on Young’s Hill instead.
Burrito
Foxie
Jamie
Don’t forget to check out the Summer Biddin’ online auction, which ends on September 1st. Bid on your favorite items and donate to help us exceed our fundraising goal!!
We had a slight sprinkle of rain and a breeze as we put out the forage on Young’s Hill this afternoon. This seemed like appropriate weather for Negra to venture out and collect some tomato slices.
She quickly returned to the greenhouse where she enjoyed her bounty under an orange fleece blanket. This photo and the weather remind me that fall is just around the corner.
Negra reminds me of comfort. She has favorite foods, sleeping spots, and outdoor temperatures. An early morning ritual that caregivers enjoy with Negra is the wrist kiss and grass request. When temperatures are warm, we will usually find her sleeping under a blanket on the top platform in the greenhouse. She will usually greet us with a gentle kiss on the wrist (her prehensile lips extend outside the caging) and then immediately clap her hands. I learned early on that this was an appeal for a couple fresh sprigs of grass that are growing just beyond the chimpanzee’s reach. “Queen” Negra will munch on the grass and go back to bed where she waits in her nest for us to present her with an offering of peanuts. We have hopes that she will accept the offering and shift into the building so we can close off the greenhouse for cleaning. Negra knows what she likes and she sticks to it.
After a hot, dry, and smoky summer, there’s a chance we will finally get some rain this week. Though we didn’t get any today, the clouds were a nice change of pace and the chimps took advantage of the cooler weather to spend more time outside climbing and foraging.
Annie:
Jamie:
Missy in the foreground, Foxie in the background:
Burrito, Jamie, and Foxie:
Burrito:
Foxie keeping an eye on the cows:
Jody harvesting bamboo:
Jody with a wadge:
Negra and Jody foraging during lunch:
Jody:
Foxie and Dora’s friend:
If you haven’t done it yet, go check out our online auction, which began today at noon. Things are going fast, but there’s still plenty of bidding left!
The bidding has begun in our Summer Biddin’ online-only auction! Bidding is open to everyone, regardless of location, and we have so many great items – lots of things that would make great gifts, or just once in a lifetime experiences for yourself.
And don’t forget to make a donation and help produce the Summer Lovin’ party. It’s all about fun and raising funds for the chimpanzees and the sanctuary!
Check out the art category, which includes original paintings of Annie and Burrito, handmade decorative masks, great prints, and more!
The photo category that has images of all of the chimps, plus other prints!
and keep your eye on the Once in a Lifetime category for a week long vacation to the Grand Cayman Islands, a personally autographed guitar by Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day, tickets to the Seahawks v. Cardinals in Seattle, and a Pasado’s Pigs and Pancakes Sanctuary Experience!
Lunchtime at the sanctuary might be the most peaceful time of day. The chimpanzees have settled down from the morning excitement, and are usually grooming one another or playing quietly when we bring out the lunch tray.
This afternoon’s lunch included some cucumbers and tomatoes straight from the sanctuary’s vegetable garden, lovingly maintained by volunteer caregiver Denice. Everything tastes better when it’s garden fresh…
If you’ve been following the blog for awhile you are probably aware that we talk a lot about enrichment for the chimpanzees. Things for them to play with, nest with, investigate, use as tools, make projects with, encourage natural behaviors, or use for whatever comes to their minds. Even the best facilities for captive chimpanzees will never be able to fully replicate their natural lives in the wild. And chimpanzees, who experience the world in much the same way that humans do emotionally and intellectually, are going to get bored in captivity at some point, despite the best of care. Keeping their active minds busy and their days interesting is one of the biggest challenges we face as caregivers.
We provide a variety of items for the chimps each day and everything comes out each morning to be cleaned and is replaced with new items. For the humans, there are two enrichment calendars hanging in the chimp house, one for daytime enrichment and one for evening enrichment. Each day, thanks to Keri, our Enrichment Coordinator, notes a particular “theme” for the day and a particular food puzzle for the evening. For example for daytime enrichment it might be “trolls in socks” day, “yellow” day, or “garden” day. The themes are really a way for the humans to think outside the box and try to present the same things in a new and interesting way for the chimps.
The enrichment theme for today was “giant pile” meaning that after we cleaned the chimp house, we put their fresh blankets and enrichment for the day in a giant pile in the middle of playroom. The chimps each took turns collecting the items they wanted from the pile and went their way. Jody took her time and pulled together quite a array of items she needed to nest with. After choosing an armful of blankets, she found a paper bag and decided to make a lovely wadge as she looked out over the garden. A wadge is a ball of food or something fibrous that chimps like to place in their bottom lips to suck on.
Once Jody had her blankets and wadge situated, she chose the dolls she needed. She decided on two trolls and a Dora doll, sticking two in her pelvic pocket and carrying one. Then she headed upstairs to find a quiet corner to construct her nest.
But it can be precarious carrying all of that stuff upstairs and once Jody reached the loft, she dropped one of the trolls down below. Much to my surprise, she came all the way back downstairs, rescued the fallen baby, and decided while she was at it she should grab some more blankets. Then she headed back upstairs with another precarious load covering her head. It’s hard work gathering the perfect nesting accessories.
