Today the chimps’ appeared to get a memo that a fresh crop of wildflowers had sprung up on Young’s Hill overnight. Or maybe Missy was the memo. As soon as everyone spotted her running down the hill with a bunch of flowers they suddenly spread out and started foraging for wild greens for themselves. At one point everyone was walking around bipedally through the tall grass picking flowers one by one to carry back to the greenhouse to enjoy.
The wild mustard is starting to grow as well which is a real summertime favorite:
Foxie, Annie and Jody:
Jody and Missy enjoying their dandelions:
Annie was a purist and chose to just eat sweet spring grass, enjoying her solitude in the sun:
Hi Kathleen, It’s one of the greatest joys, seeing hers, and the joy of each of the chimps. Same for your pups I’m sure. <3
I am curious, have they ever been around their babies since their days in the labs? If they have been near them, have they recognized them as their baby? I know they can recognize other chimps by smelling their butts, behinds?? Ive seen it on tv or videos on YouTube. I was just curious. It would be a wondrous time, thats if they knew the scent of their babies.
Thanks for all your hard work and keeping the updates coming. I am so delighted.
Pam ??????
It was a severely traumatized Foxie who attracted us to the brand new sanctuary. Until she found troll dolls, she was not interested in other forms enrichment if I recall correctly. When we visited the sanctuary close to the first year annoversary, I foolishly brought stuffed chimps for the 7. Well, Foxie had her troll doll and beckened me with her fingers under the door to the nighthouse to give her a stuffed chimp. Sarah Baechler threw it over the wire and Foxie proceeded to kill it! After she had torn it from limb to limb, she stromped on it to make sure it was dead, put the troll doll on her back and walked away! Jane Goodall said that there are good chimp mothers and bad chimp mothers. In the wild, I think we can count on Foxie being the best mother in her community. She is fixated on dolls like Jamie is fixated on boots. Could it be replacements for the trauma of having babies taken from them? Only they know. If only they could talk!
I, too, got a laugh (human, not chimpanzee) out of the video. In the lower right corner of the screen, I notice that there is a chimp with a front row view of Annie and Negra: I wonder who that might be?
Those pictures of Foxie and her doll are so touching. Thank you to all of you for letting all of these Chimps lives their lives in such a compassionate environment, allowing them to be themselves.