Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary
When Jamie decides she wants to go for a walk with a caregiver, there is almost always one chimp that decides to join the hike. Quite often, it’s Missy, but it isn’t always so obvious at first. Instead of following close behind, Missy makes sure to give Jamie a big head start so she can properly race to catch up.
Missy finds so much happiness in simply running as fast as she can, it’s hard to imagine her previous life spent warehoused in a basement.
The Poppoffs are a one of our favorite families, so we’re pretty happy to be a part of wishing Julie Poppoff a “Happy Birthday from Mom & Dad!” from Mike Poppoff and Gay Dorsey who sponsored this day of sanctuary in her honor.
We go way back with the Poppoffs. as you can see in this post from 2009. The Poppoffs and Poppoff, Inc. have been really great supporters over the years, including being a sponsor for galas many years running, including the HOOT! 2018 gala coming up in May!
But today is about Julie. The chimps hope you have some fun planned, July!
Foxie may be tiny (it’s even one of our terms of endearment for her), but her courageous and adventurous spirit are limitless. And while it may take her awhile to warm up to new things, once she makes up her mind to do something, she does it.
If you’ve been following the chimps for awhile you’ve probably seen Foxie and her dolls scaling the highest points on the structures of Young’s Hill and even bravely (and nerve-wrackingly) traversing the slippery metal roof of one. But the one structure we humans haven’t seen her conquer yet, despite numerous attempts, is the Twister. She approaches it with determination and cautiously climbs part way up and every time we watch with bated breath wondering, “Is today the day she’s going to the top?!” But then as she gazes up at the very top to the crow’s nest, she decides she’s not quite ready and climbs back down, moving on to other adventures. Today, that changed.
Jody and Foxie headed up the hill with what appeared to be a sense of determination. Foxie was the first to start climbing the Twister and paused at her usual stopping point.
And then in a flash Jody headed past Foxie all the way up to the top of the Twister which seemed to bolster Foxie’s confidence.
And then it began. Foxie taking slow, cautious steps higher and higher toward her friend, Jody, who was waiting at the top. I could barely contain my excitement for Foxie (as those on the other end of the radio can attest to with my frequent shouts and squeals). I kept expecting her to turn back at any moment, but she kept going.
Once she reached the crow’s nest she found a spot to sit, hanging on precariously and appearing a little uneasy. By this time, Jody had descended the other side and was sitting on a nearby log below watching Foxie. I thought Foxie might decide that was high enough for one day.
Nope! All the way to the top of the crow’s nest!! I raised my arms in the air cheering for her and giving her a head nod which she returned along with a playful thump of approval.
This. Face!!
Foxie spent a couple minutes from her new view point and then began trying to figure out how to get back down. First she attempted to go over the side:
Then reassessed the situation and went back through the crow’s nest:
Her leg would swing around as she precariously attempted to find footing she felt comfortable with, but then she steadily made her way back down:
Yeah, Fox!
While Jody was waiting for Foxie she picked herself a quick pine tree snack and then rushed over to meet Foxie at the bottom of the Twister:
And in classic Jody style, she escorted her brave friend all the way back to the greenhouse, continually stopping along the way to reassure Foxie and make sure was following her, like the good friend she is:
I realize some of you might be thinking, “Yeesh, she’s a chimp! That’s what chimps are supposed to do! What’s all the hullabaloo?!” But when you consider the very small world in which Foxie, and all the chimps, lived for so long and that every ounce of their courage was needed just to get through each day, to get through the most unimaginable of losses, it’s nothing short of miraculous to see the healing and leaps of bravery that continue to occur almost ten years later. And it makes your heart burst right out of your chest seeing all their innate courage finally getting to be used to expand and enrich their world, their hearts and their spirits in whichever way is meaningful to them.
Well, today turned out to be a mostly rainy day. The chimps took advantage and tried to recuperate after the crazy party yesterday! Jamie and I got to fit a few walks in luckily, but otherwise the chimps spent their day playing lazy games of chase, napping, and grooming.
Burrito took a mid-day nap on the floor:
Jamie found most of the Playroom forage (big nuts) and snacked on it for a while:
Later, Jamie took a nice relaxing nap with her boot:
Annie also took a minute to lay down and rest:
Jody decided to keep it pretty low key:
Jody and Annie spent a lot of their day grooming and laying in any warm sunshine they could find:
The chimpanzees had a pretty great day today. Foxie got a new doll this morning.
For lunch, they had a tropical party courtesy of their friends Oliver Mazner, Jeremy Mazner, and Karen Emmerman Mazner, who won a “Throw a Party for the Chimpanzees” auction item at last year’s HOOT! event. The chimpanzees had no idea there was a party in store, and they were SUPER excited when the spied the prepared spread:
Jeremy renamed the ants-on-a-log “peanut butter shooters” based on Burrito’s technique of deftly removing the peanut butter and raisins while setting the celery aside for a second go-round.
Jamie, of course, found the plate that was hidden under the barrel.
She took off with the umbrella-adorned pineapple and a sweet pepper.
The coconut was a much-admired item by Foxie.
Can you just feel Annie’s enjoyment?
Here Annie contemplates some lettuce while holding on to some specially-made carrot cake from a recipe that we got from the Center for Great Apes.
Annie really scored at this party – she found both the pineapple top and the leftover head of lettuce.
To no one’s surprise, Jamie took down the pinata and got most of the spoils.
But Negra, ever hopeful, did a check to see if Jamie had left any peanuts behind:
After the party, Jamie got to walk with the Mazners and (easily) convinced Oliver to race her multiple times around. It was still drizzling, but Jamie did not mind at all.
As I arrived this morning, I found Negra and Burrito grooming on a bench in one of the Front Rooms. This is a popular morning spot since it has a view of both the driveway and the kitchen.
Despite how this looks, Burrito is not in fact a vampire. He is actually more of a Tasmanian Devil. But at this point in the day he is still a very sleepy Tasmanian Devil.
As the other staff and volunteers arrive, Negra looks toward the kitchen and greets them with a soft grunt, and Burrito follows suit.
The arrival of the volunteers means the workday has begun, and that in turn means that breakfast will soon be ready. Breakfast always puts Negra in a good mood so she begins to play.
Negra has a rough style of play. The others tolerate it because of her status, and because they all know that it is a special occasion when Negra plays. Soon she is playfully but forcefully pushing Burrito’s head against the wall.
She thinks that is a lot of fun.
Burrito thinks a bit less of this game and he eventually slips away, so Negra settles for a patented Negra move – the head-butt to the belly. Let the day begin!
Today is a special sponsor-a-day from supporter Kery Shaw about a rescued senior dog that she and her partner Terran cared for during his last months.
I would hazard to guess that most of the people reading this have had some personal connection to animals who were rescued, and all of you will appreciate Oliver’s story, as shared by Kery.
Oliver was a blind and deaf fifteen-year-old chihuahua terrier mix. Last year he was seen being kicked out of a car and dumped in LA California. A good samaritan witnessed this, and then saw Oliver walking around in circles. He/She picked Oliver up and then shared his story on social media.
A woman named Janie Mudrick, who works with Hand in Paw Rescue, contacted my best friend Piper Wood, founder of that rescue, asking if they could take custody of Oliver. I had been following Oliver’s story for a while and was trying to figure out a way that Terran & I could help.
After months of Piper having him and not being able to find a home, Terran and I offered to foster Oliver, in the hope of relieving some of her burden. After only a few days I had convinced Terran that we were his best option, and that truthfully no one could love or care for him like us. Being a senior dog and so severely neglected and abused, I honestly had no idea how much longer he had for this world, but we knew that we wanted to give him as much love as possible in the time he had.
On Valentine’s Day of this year, we had officially adopted him. Oliver had good days and bad days. He was a fussy eater and sometimes he kept us up in the middle of the night. Often he left us worried and scared with his seizures and feet swelling. Oliver loved the park–since he was blind, he loved being able to smell everything. He also loved salads, his vegetables, and “beyond chicken”. Oliver’s favorite movie was Pretty Woman, I think because it has such a great soundtrack. He loved music. The Opera scene was his favorite. Oliver was easy going. Terran and I would take him everywhere. He loved his stroller and his carry bag. He was always cold, but never fussed, even when I put his onesies on him. Oliver never barked, except for when he dreamed. Overall, he was the sweetest dog and we miss him dearly.
My advice to everyone is to rescue, especially senior animals. They are truly special.
Kery’s story struck a chord with me, having cared for a dog into her senior years. And, more close to CSNW, while you may not realize it between Burrito’s young-at-heart antics and Missy’s always-on-the-move persona, all of the Cle Elum Seven chimpanzees are considered senior. Each day with them is, absolutely, truly special.
Thanks to Kery for sharing this story and caring for Oliver and to everyone who has taken in someone in need.
