Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary
Foxie started the troll doll trend years ago, and no one has ever matched her passion for the odd little toys. Occasionally, we do find some of the other chimps with a secret friend hanging out around them.
This afternoon, Negra lounged in the greenhouse with a brightly colored fellow tucked in her pelvic pocket:
It’s watermelon season and since the chimpanzees haven’t had a party in days, we thought what better thing to do than have an impromptu watermelon bowl party! Just because! We halved personal size watermelons and filled them with blueberries, strawberries, purple cabbage, cucumber, mini-peppers, avocado, wild roses, and chives. And what chimp party is complete without sparkling cider?
Jody:
Annie:
Negra collecting bowls:
Missy:
This guy:
Jamie lingering over the wild roses, one of her favorite things to eat:
Everybody has their favorite parts and style of eating the bowls. Foxie was all about the bowls themselves, scraping as much off the rind as she could:
The chimps spent most of the afternoon in various locations of the chimp house deep in watermelon bowl-induced naps. I came upon Annie, sound asleep in the greenhouse with the breeze blowing on her hair. But at one point she managed to find a bit of rind leftover to chew on before drifting back to sleep. She didn’t even open her eyes!:
Spring has just been a kaleidoscope of birds swirling through the cacophony of their songs, yellow and purple wildflowers covering neon green fields, warm days and cool breezes, neighboring wildlife going about all their wild lives…I mean, it’s just amazing. An ode to life, and sometimes death, just watching it all. And the fact that the chimps and their home are at the center of all this is a celebration all it’s own. We hope you are all soaking in all the beauty of this season as much as the chimps. It’s because of you that all their days are ones to celebrate.
The chimps’ good friend, Lisa Stuverud, sponsored today for them as a way to celebrate her own special day! Lisa shared this lovely message:
“I turned 60 this year, a HUGE accomplishment for me so I made a list of many things I was grateful for, things that had helped me get to 60. One of the things was ‘I am grateful for having passions in my life especially when they sustain me’ and today the passion I have for all animals especially Jamie, Foxie, Burrito, Annie, Missy, Jody, Negra and everyone in and around Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest supporting their passion will sustain me. I have often said that these seven chimpanzees and the people who selflessly support them give far more than they could ever take by showing such resilience, healing, love, kindness and devotion. Today, that will sustain me once again and I am so grateful to have this shared passion in my life.”
Lisa, thank you so much for such a lovely, inspiration-filled gift for the chimps! We are so incredibly fortunate that the chimps are surrounded by so much love and passion for their well-being and grateful ourselves that you are part of their chimp family. All of us here wish you the happiest birthday yet!
Annie and Missy:
Burrito and Negra:
Jody and Foxie:
Jamie and Missy:
After the chimps received access to Young’s Hill this morning, almost everyone went out! Missy and Annie were playing a fun game of what looked like, follow the leader. I am sure we are all familiar with this grade school game, where one friend leads and the other friend has to copy what they do. Well, I observed the chimp version of that today! As we all know Missy is very good at running, climbing, balancing, and just basically being a chimp. So in this game, naturally Missy was the leader and Annie followed, however as you will see in the photos Annie will do her own variations and what she finds most comfortable for her.
Missy starts of by climbing up Negra’s Cabin:
Then Annie follows:
Missy then walks the tight rope:
Annie follows, but decides to do it her way:
And gracefully sticks the landing:
While this game was happening, Jamie went for a perimeter walk accompanied by Foxie and Jody:
Burrito kept a close eye on everyone from his view up top:
And Negra, well she was too comfortable to get up (I mean really comfy):
I also have some extra photos I thought should not be left out!
Jamie put a sock on this morning and was running around and playing chase (this is the only photo she would let me take of her and the sock):
Jody:
Burrito following Jody on the Hill:
When the chimpanzees first had access to the two-acre Young’s Hill enclosure in 2011, it was pretty intimidating for some of them. Annie, Foxie, and Negra were among the more wary of the large space and unfamiliar surroundings.
In those early days, J.B. wrote about Annie’s reluctance and Missy encouraging her and about Negra seeking reassurance from Jamie when she got a little spooked after summoning the courage to go out there in the first few weeks. He also wrote about a little motivation game that Foxie seemed to invent that got her outside even when she was hesitant.
The experience of having this new big space really brought all of the chimps together as a group and we saw them look out for one another in ways we hadn’t seen in the years prior. It was so touching to witness.
Fast forward almost seven years to today…
Foxie split off from her walking group:
Jake and I completely lost track of her until we spotted her again at the top of the hill on the towers with her red haired doll:
Jody was looking for Foxie too, and climbed up to make sure all was okay before she went about her own business:
Annie went out with Missy first thing, but then completely disappeared on her own, foraging for her favorite plants:
I noticed Missy keeping an eye on Annie, just like the friend that she’s always been:
Negra broke free of her usual forage pathway at lunch and climbed up on the shaky bridge (this is highly unusual, based on the old Negra, but maybe part of a new normal level of adventure for her):
Each year these seven chimpanzees gain more confidence, but they needed each other for encouragement, motivation, and someone to follow along the way. And even in their newfound independence, they continue to look out for one another.
It’s easy to tell when Missy intends to engage her best friend Annie in a sudden game or wrestle & chase. It’s not quite a smile on her face. It’s more like, “hold my drink…”
This morning, she chased Annie up and down and all around the play structure.
They play-punched and play-kicked while they each swung by one arm.
At one point, Missy almost caught Annie’s toes – the ultimate objective of every chimp game.
But Annie and her toes escaped to play another day.
When she was finished, Missy performed one of her best-ever leaping uneven bar dismounts…
…and stuck the landing. Can you believe she’s 42 years old?
Today was sponsored for Matt Hillman by his 5th grade students at Huff Elementary School! They shared this wonderful message about their gift:
“Years ago, Matt volunteered his time at the sanctuary and fell in love with the chimpanzees. Mr. Hillman’s 5th grade students would like to make a donation in honor of Mr. Hillman for the wonderful job he did teaching this school year!”
This is such a wonderful thing to do! To all of Mr. Hillman’s students, thank you for giving such a compassionate, thoughtful and inspirational gift. It gives us joy and hope to see such gratitude for your teacher and care for the chimpanzees.
Matt, thanks so much for sharing your love of the chimps with your students! All of us at CSNW hope you have a fantastic day!
Jamie is quite studious herself. She really loves books!
