Archives for March 2021

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:

1. Mangoes (I mean, all three took one look at whole mangoes and began hooting like crazy!!
2. 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.)
3. 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. 🙂