Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Archives for May 2020

Old Tools, New Ideas

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Chimpanzees are known for their ability to evaluate situations and find some pretty novel ways to handle the task at hand. Everyday, the chimpanzees are provided with numerous items throughout the day as enrichment. One of these items is a long, plastic tube. Jamie generally uses it to reach items just beyond her reach, or to groom the human caregivers. Burrito uses it to play tug-o-war. And every body uses it as a straw when we provide them with buckets of diluted Gatorade. At the end of each dinner service, we also provide the chimpanzees with nighttime food puzzles. The purpose of these puzzles is to exercise their cognitive functions, help promote natural behaviors, and to try to alleviate boredom. And every so often, they surprise us when two-and-two are put together.

Last night’s evening food puzzle were small PVC tubes. The purpose of this puzzle is to promote one of chimpanzees’ natural behaviors: fishing. In the wild, chimpanzees have been found to fish for termites, grubs, and honey. They will find a stick and modify it to suite the situation. They will adjust the length, girth, and the leaves depending on what they are fishing for, and where it is hidden. Here, caregivers put a smear of peanut butter, smashed fruit (bananas, avocados, etc) applesauce, or honey in PVC tubes for the chimpanzees to fish out. The chimpanzee’s are also provided a tool in the form of a chopstick. Some just use their fingers, while others use the chopstick they are provided. Last night, we were pretty amazed that Honey B decided she had an even better tool: the long plastic tube. It was so efficient, she waited patiently for Willy B and Mave (who were using chopsticks and fingers) to be done with theirs, collected them up, and got the peanut butter missed by both of them.

As mentioned before, the chimpanzees use these tubes as straws as well. Usually for buckets of diluted Gatorade or sometimes for their breakfast smoothie. Annie is one who is more likely to use a straw for her smoothie. That is, until caregiver Anthony witnessed her using the tube to siphon smoothie from Jamie’s cup as Jamie was drinking from it!

These chimpanzee people never cease to amaze and surprise us with their actions!

Lastly, an update on Jody. Jody was recovering so well and wanted nothing more to be back with her group, we decided she was well enough to be brought back into the group. She flew into the playroom and was greeted with a sincere hug by Annie.

 

Happy Birthday, Jess!

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Cori Price sponsored a day of sanctuary for the chimpanzees today in honor of Jessie Crosier’s birthday!

“Happy Birthday, Jess!”

Cori, thanks so much for thinking of the chimps and Jessie in such a lovely way!

Jessie, we hope this is a birthday to remember, full of all you love most! Thank you for adding to the chimps’ lives and Happy Birthday from all of us here at CSNW!

Mave and Honey B:

Honey B:

Annie and Missy:

Foxie and Strawberry Shortcake:

Case of the Mondays Remedy

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Mondays have that stigma of always being a bad day. For humans, it usually signals the end of the weekend and the beginning of the work week. For the chimpanzees, though, it’s another day. Though some bad things can happen on Monday, there is always a silver lining to bad days.

Honey B and Mave seemed completely oblivious to what the stigma of Monday is. They played and laughed nearly all day.

While with the Group of Seven, when the chimpanzees went on their morning patrol, Foxie marched out onto Young’s Hill on a mission.

With Dora there with her every step of the way, she climbed the Twister.

But stopping at where the firehose ladder ends wasn’t enough for Foxie this day.

She wanted to be on the top platform. And the top platform was where she went.

Some of you may remember the last time Foxie climbed all the way to the top of the Twister, she was accompanied by Jody. Unfortunately, Jody was not with Foxie today.

Today, Jody went through a medical procedure. Last week, her foot became swollen and after careful monitoring we decided that diagnostics were in order. Jody readily cooperated with x-rays using the foot box, which thankfully revealed no bone involvement, but further evaluation was required so the decision was made to put Jody under anesthesia for a full exam. Our veterinarian, Dr. Erin Zamzow, also arranged for Dr. Tyler Sugerman, an emergency surgical veterinarian, to come to the sanctuary and perform an ultrasound on Jody to ensure she was in overall good health.

J.B. (left), Dr. Tyler Sugerman (back), Chad (right), and Dr. Zamzow position Jody to prepare to take x-rays.
Dr. Sugerman performs an ultrasound on Jody.

We are happy to say that preliminary testing showed Jody to be in great health and the swelling on her foot was due to a large hematoma, which after being drained and cleaned by Dr. Erin, should not be a concern. She is currently recovering in the front rooms on a big pile of blankets and waiting to be reunited with her family.

And yes. Foxie’s first priority when she received access back to the rooms adjacent to Jody was to pay her a visit.

The Saga of Willy B

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Right now, I know that many folks are struggling to adjust to the new normal: a degree of social isolation, economic strife and general mistrust that rails against our innate drives to be together. No matter what we believe should be happening right now, I think it’s safe to say that most of us are frustrated, worried, and even exasperated. We want this to be over, but it won’t end.

Instead, we must look at our own lifestyles, identify the things that truly bring us fulfillment, and work to keep those fires lit even as boredom, anxiety, loneliness and grief do their best to snuff them out.

Amid this uncertain period of perpetual unease, one new development in particular is giving us all some inspiration: the methodical progress and unexpected bravery of Willy B.

I could sit here writing about this chapter of Willy B’s story for hours on end. Given the gradual adjustment of the three new chimpanzees to life at CSNW, punctuated by a couple heartbreaking setbacks, Willy’s recent exploits have given his tale the flavor of an odyssey. It’s now a epic saga of sorts, complete with a courageous, endearing and hairy little hero. Lately, he seems to be on a vague quest with a yet undetermined goal.

In recent weeks, I think that other staff have done an amazing job describing each step in his journey. If you’re looking to catch up, I suggest skimming the previous blog posts about Willy, the Courtyard, and the tall wooden structure that he is gradually conquering one ladder rung at a time. If you are really feeling ambitious, you could skip back to last June when we first announced that we would be welcoming three chimpanzees from the Wildlife Waystation, including a mysterious dominant male named Willy B.

Today, I’m focusing on one particular chapter describing one short event. It occurred over the span of an hour today in the Courtyard.

We’ve been setting food items in small caches throughout the Courtyard to entice Willy B and the others to explore. Gradually, Willy B’s bottomless appetite is leading him to venture into parts unknown. He recently made sporadic forays out onto the boardwalk until he determined that each section was safe. He then grew comfortable sitting at the end of the boardwalk and began to investigate the base of the multi-tiered wooden structure that it leads to. Last week, he climbed the tower, and he has been slowly acclimatizing to the new sensations of sitting on wood decking, perching high above the ground, and being able to see clear over the Chimp House. He’s made tremendous progress, but there are still areas of the Courtyard that he has yet to explore. For example, the structure has two thin spits of decking that jut out toward the rest of Young’s Hill. These pier-like extensions are connected by a web of twisted vines (“the ropes”) and a large hammock, all made from repurposed firehose.

Here is an old photo of caregiver Chad testing out the hammock after it was first made and hung inside the building. It was moved outdoors when we realized that the chimps didn’t seem interested unless we placed food on it.

 

Today, I placed a whole apple on the hammock. Willy B will do almost anything for an apple, but I wasn’t sure if he’d have the confidence to go after this one. He’s an athletic and intelligent individual with a bold personality, but he’s not as skilled at climbing as an adult chimpanzee should be.

Well, he tried. He tried hard.

First, he scouted the area.

Then, he tested whether the new sections of decking were safe to sit on. They were.

Suddenly, shockingly, Willy B dropped down below the decking and swung himself over towards the hammock.

He was so close. But then, with the visible apple just out of reach, he turned back. It seems that he wasn’t yet confident in his ability to make the final swing over to the hammock. From the safety of the decking, he surveyed the area from above a second time.

He dropped down again and swung back to the hammock, gripping the firehose vines with his chubby chimpanzee feet.

This wasn’t the right moment to try out the hammock, though. He backtracked all the way to the safest spot in the Courtyard at the base of the structure. There, he checked in on the neighbors, nibbled on a slice of tomato, and let out a muted display.

After expressing himself as only a chimpanzee can, he gave the ropes another try.

Again, he retreated and regrouped.

He mustered up the bravery and strength to make one more push. He got so close, but seemed hesitant to put any weight on the hammock and did not reach out to grab the apple.

Willy b even thought about lowering himself to the ground to find a new route over to the hammock, but he apparently decided the dirt and grass were too strange for today. He paused, suspended from the decking with his toes skimming the blades of grass, and then hoisted himself back up without ever planting his heels on the firm ground below.

Fortunately for Willy B, he gets several apples each day (along with many other nutritious foods). Importantly, he’ll get another shot at the elusive hammock apple for as many days as he needs. If he’s ambitious enough, he’ll conquer the ropes tomorrow just as he has so many other unusual obstacles in his path. We’re hopeful that he will eventually grow to enjoy climbing and exploring even without the promise of a shiny red apple to propel him forward, just as a chimpanzee should. Either way, I look forward to watching the saga continue.

Courage, little by little

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Willy B has gotten a lot more confident in the courtyard. He usually just marches right out there like he’s been doing it for years. He does, however, still stick to the boardwalk and usually keeps to the parts of the platform by the posts.

So today we decided to scatter pieces of food (instead of one whole piece of fruit) all over both tiers of the platform.

The photos that J.B. took today are in sequence and tell the story of Willy B’s exploration for the day. You can see he gathered the food and then ate it in his comfortable spots near the post, but still, he went to the middle of the platforms. We’ll continue to push his comfort zone in different ways so that he gets used to being on the grass too. Little by little.

The last photo in the sequence shows what a great view there is at the top of that structure. I wonder how he feels when he’s up there.

Happy Anniversary, Don and Kate!

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Margaret Austin sponsored a day of sanctuary for the chimpanzees in honor of the 6th wedding anniversary of her dear friends, Don and Kate Held!

Thank you so much for choosing to celebrate your dear friends by making a difference in the lives of the chimpanzees, Margaret! We so appreciate your generous heart.

Happy Anniversary, Don and Kate! May your special day be filled with the love, laughter and family that you’ve also helped make possible for the chimps!

Mave and Willy B:

Foxie and Burrito:

Missy and Annie:

Willy B and Honey B:

 

Racing at Sunset

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The other night, Jamie was walking around Young’s Hill with Diana (and Meredith) after all of the other chimps had gone to bed. As I went to put the Gator back into the barn, she signaled that she wanted to race. So we did. And we were lucky enough to do it with one of the most beautiful sunsets as our backdrop. Strange job, indeed.

As a bonus, here are some photos our our man Willy B from this morning. He dined in on the first level of the platform with the lettuce he’d picked up along the way, but he took the orange on the second level to go. Mave reached out to grab some lettuce from the boardwalk but she has yet to come all the way out. And Honey B is content for now to watch from above in the chute. All in good time.