Willy B turned 31 today, wahooo!! Our trusty enrichment Coordinator, Chad, planned a day of Willy B’s favorite foods, food puzzles, and forts, with Ice Age touches thrown in, of course! Now the three are still not quite used to our wild and crazy party ways here at Chimpanzee Sanctuary NW and while they still don’t get excited at the same level as the seven during parties, they DO get excited! If I had to pick three main events from Willy B’s party today I would say it was:
- Mangoes (I mean, all three took one look at whole mangoes and began hooting like crazy!!
- Willy B standing on Mave’s back when the mangoes arrived! (My personal favorite and naturally, no photo! Now if you can imagine, all three were hooting and hollering and running around at the mere sight of the mangoes. In true Mave fashion, she had just very exuberantly greeted Willy B which overwhelms him a little at times. Mave was then standing with both hands and feet planted firmly on the ground when Willy B leap-frogged on top of her to get around her to the mango and for an ever so brief moment, just stood on her back!! I think Mave was as in shock as I was and once he leapt off she was a little overwhelmed herself and started screaming. Understandably. I interpreted that for, “Oh my gosh, you realize how BIG you are, don’t you?!! But the mangoes saved the day and she was quickly off to enjoy hers in peace.)
- Mangoes!
Willy B enjoying his birthday mango:
Honey B and her mango:
Mave:
Two of the party forts (of five that Chad put together!):
Willy B and his peanut butter and cabbage frisbee food puzzles:
Meanwhile, on the other side of the house, the seven enjoyed so much time outside exploring Young’s Hill!! There is still plenty of snow around, but we’re having some very warm days so it’s melting on in patches. The chimps have a pathway around the perimeter and with blue sky and bright sun, they went everywhere they could!
Jamie, Jody, Burrito and Annie:
Jody, Burrito, and Foxie:
Foxie, Strawberry Shortcake and Orange Blossom 🙂
Look at all these chimpanzees! (L-R: Jody, Burrito, Annie, Foxie, Missy and Jamie):
Burrito watching Jody looking for an ice treat in the tire swing and Annie taking in the view:
Negra was her own version of a groundhog today and was the first to stick her head outside into the sunshine. She stood there for quite awhile, looking around and listening to the birds, but in the end opted to enjoy the quiet of the greenhouse in her nest while everyone else was out. Here she is enjoying her beloved lettuce today:
Well, just look who is sneaking into the window of Jamie’s fort! 😉 And he could have just gone in the door, but somehow squeezed through the window in true stealth mode!:
The toes in the window!!
Another funny moment with this fort happened! I had just shifted the chimpanzees out of the greenhouse so we could clean and was doing a chimp/door/lock count to ensure it was safe for the humans to enter the greenhouse. Well, I looked and looked and couldn’t find Missy anywhere! Now, this isn’t entirely unusual. She’s an independent woman and sometimes has plans of her own around shifting. I was standing here in front of the playroom door and this fort looking and looking when all of a sudden the little front door popped open and Missy came sauntering out!
As I finish this blog up, Chad and I are awaiting Honey B’s permission to close the chute off for the night, but it’s been such a lovely day she’s not ready for it to be closed and I don’t blame her at all. It’s still too cold at night to leave open, but soon. Honey B just came in and made a lovely nest, covering herself up and sounded out nest grunts (the vocalizations chimpanzees give to check in and say goodnight to one another – and in this case, the humans as well) so I took that as “I’m ready for bed, close the door!” Willy B was already sound asleep upstairs and didn’t even budge with the noise or lights. And Mave thought it was waaay past bedtime and was pretty happy we were finally calling it a night.
I think it’s safe to say Willy B’s special day was a special day for all! We are so happy to have this special fella here with us and to celebrate what a special individual he is. Happy Birthday, Willy B!!! And many, many thanks to all of you who contributed to making his day extra fun! We so appreciate you ALL!
And a side note of thanks to Chad and Anthony for helping with great photos of Willy B’s celebration! It was definitely a group effort today. 🙂
Well done activity directors;) Mango madness! Happy Birthday handsome Willy B! Haha I get it Mave I’m not down with the cheerleader moves either, especially if its my back you’re landing on!
What a cheerful and fantastic update! It sounds like a wonderful day. Willy B looks delighted with the mangos and the whole thing looks like so much fun!
Happy Birthday Willy B!! It looked like a great party. Love the forts!
Happy Birthday Willy B.
You handsome Devil !
Thank you for the wonderful pictures today, Everyone looks so happy.
I noticed that Burrito totally ignored the no trespassing sign on Jamie’s fort. Naughty boy.
Well, fair play. She took over his, which said “no girls allowed” 😀
A lovely tribute to the handsome fellow and very enjoyable posting! What a lovely tribute to the 10 and the day. I’m going to have to practice for some kind of pant-hooting and grunting the next time I see a mango — but hopefully I’ll restrain myself in the grocery store before bursting into vocalizations or they might escort me out as a public nuisance. But you can bet I’ll never look at a mango the same way again. Maybe under my breath I can get away with vocalizing my newfound reactions…Thanks to Katelyn and all for great descriptions and photos!
Marya, I think we humans should all pant hoot and food grunt our delights to the world. 🙂
Shhhh…..depending on what it is and where I am……I sometimes do! 😛
Sorry this is so late. Happy Birthday to You, Happy Birthday to You, Happy Birthday Dear Willy B.
Happy Birthday to YOU. What a fun day shown by those great pictures.
To the staff of the sanctuary I say a job well done and you should all take a bow what a beautiful blog and thank you so much for all that you do!
have a wonderful evening everyone and sweet dreams to all the chimpanzees. Oh cannot forget about the bovine cattle – sweet dreams.
????
This morning, I turned over the page of my CSNW calendar and, since then, I have had the pleasure of being looked down upon by the image of Willy Birthday-boy Chimpanzee! Given how big he is (as Mave can attest from today), shouldn’t William have an another birthday celebration tomorrow? After all, he eats for two people, and, I suspect, that he has dual credentials as both a pan Troglodyte as well as a Gorilla gorilla gorilla. Surely, there are some extra mangoes on the premises just waiting to find their way to his palate. I wish him a happy new year and many a happy birthday.
Happy, happy 31st birthday Mr. Willy B!! Got a good laugh over your pointing out that the Three do not get the same blast out of parties as the Seven do. Yes, the seven are serious partiers! But it sure sounds as if those mangos were a hit. Looks as if Mave got Willy B back for climbing on her back, it appears as if she flattened his fort. And that last photo of Willy B with his cabbage is fabulous — he is so handsome. May happiness follow your every step Willy B.
Three observations on the other side of the chimphouse. (1) The Seven have a snow free path on their side of the fence but the caregivers walk through snow. That’s love. (2) Negra enjoying her cabbage in the Photo Booth. That’s it. We all know it’s the best feeling looking at those photos. (3) Burrito got his payback. Jamie took over Burrito’s fort last week and now Burrito is caught sneaking into Jamie’s private fort. He’s too funny.
Willy B’s special day was a special day for all, even me. Sweet dreams to everyone.
I wonder if the 7 appreciate the parties more because they spent so much time in the labs, Kathleen. You know how shelter dogs/cats just seem to appreciate the love more? As if they knew?
Kathleen, wild Honey B flattened that fort in about the first 30 seconds of the party! But Mave found it to be a great thing to lie about on. 😉 Thank you for making their day extra special!
I think you need to give Mave some of those non toxic crayons and let her color in the fort! Then she’ll have a nice colorful floor mat. ; )
I so enjoy these blogs. Katlyn I love your stories. It’s like we’re right there hearing them hoot. Thank you.
Thank you, Patti, nice to *see* you!
There’s never been a blog post I haven’t enjoyed, but I have to say, today’s was the “icing” on the proverbial Birthday cake…(pun intended…HaHa) …I was laughing so hard throughout every minute of all the partying, that I thought I might just end up hooting myself…
At first I thought for sure the resident BIG, Birthday Boy, jumped onto Mave’s back so he could attempt to steal her mango, as I think Honey B taught him a lesson with that projectile she recently launched at him…
The forts were the best ever…I cracked up at Bubba’s entrance to Jamie’s fort..
He didn’t even have to bother knocking at the door since he snuck right through her open window, & don’t even get me started at the toes dangling out that window…
I’m so happy today was such a fun day for everyone…(the chimp people AND the people/people who have so much love & respect for them…I wish I could hug each one of you…GREAT BLOG!
Debi, it really was a good day. 🙂
The pictures today were wonderful. All the 2 tribes were represented. It is delightful to hear of their individual quirks. Thank You
I always love Party Pictures (and pictures of party trays/platters.) Had to laugh at the thought of Willie B. using Mave as a step stool to get to the food. The fort pictures are so funny too. You caretakers are hard workers but you sure get rewarded by these light moments all day long. Seeing the fingers hanging out of the window and the head poking in the fort window were so priceless.
What a terrific birthday party! Happy birthday, Willy B!
Happy birthday Willy B!!! Boy, you guys sure know how to throw a party!! Does not get much better than mangos and forts! These chimps are living the high life now and they deserve nothing less for all they have sacrificed!!! Xoxo
What a raucous party! I wish my guests were as entertaining!! Thanks for sharing those great pics.
That made me snort! Imagine humans standing on one another’s backs and eating whole mangoes! Ha!
Happy 31t Willy!! Thank you for making his day so special!
Happy birthday and happy year Willy B!!!
He is so handsome. I’m glad that they enjoyed the delicious mangoes and those forts wow. Thank you for all you do for these special Chimp people. I am glad Willy B’s day was so special.