Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary for primates.

Archives for April 2022

Diana’s Birthday Wish

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Today is my birthday! My birthday wish is for the newly integrated group of nine chimpanzees at the sanctuary to blossom into a stable family that includes new friendships as they watch the construction of outdoor habitats that are are being built just for them right now.

If you’d like to contribute towards this wish, at least the building of the habitats part (as for the stable group and new friendships, we will all just have to cross our fingers), consider investing in future adventures by making a donation on my and Monica’s GiveBIG page.

A pant-hoot thank you in advance and to those who have already made a donation!

In Memory of Steve Ross

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Last week, the non-human primate community received the sad news that Dr. Steve Ross had suddenly passed away.

Steve was the director of Lincoln Park Zoo’s Lester E. Fisher Center for the Study and Conservation of Apes and the board chair of Chimp Haven for more than a decade. As a primatologist who was unabashedly focused on chimpanzees, he bridged the primate zoo, sanctuary, and observational/academic research communities in a way that no one else has, bringing everyone together to improve the welfare of chimpanzees.

Steve was the brainchild and leader behind an ambitious project to identify every captive chimpanzee in the United States and keep this information public and regularly updated as part of Lincoln Park Zoo’s Project ChimpCare.

He aided in the rehoming of many chimpanzees to zoos and sanctuaries from undesirable situations including chimpanzees within the entertainment industry and in private ownership. His loss is a huge blow to chimpanzee advocacy and a personal loss for countless people who were influenced by his academic and professional work and his passion, including many students who considered him a mentor. It is no exaggeration to say that anytime any question came up regarding a chimpanzee in captivity, I would immediately think to ask Steve.

Steve visited Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest on several occasions over the years, including a visit that coincided with a speaking engagement at Central Washington University in 2017 that I mentioned on the blog. He was a source of support to us during both difficult and joyful times at the sanctuary.

Not surprisingly, Steve was a member of Burrito’s unofficial fan club.

I thought about him often yesterday as I was watching the newly integrated groups of chimpanzees interact. I have been working alongside Steve on the placement committee for the Chimpanzees in Need campaign to find homes for all of the Wildlife Waystation chimpanzees, and we had exchanged impressions and updates over the last year about various chimpanzees we had met and fallen in love with at Wildlife Waystation.  If he had been alive, I would have texted him the good news of the integration. I have no doubt he would have responded with enthusiastic words of encouragement, and that it would have been among dozens of encouraging texts and emails he sent to others that day.

We are so saddened by his loss, and our hearts go out to those he was closest to in this world. His legacy is large and far-reaching and he leaves behind an immeasurable void.

Steve Ross @Lincoln Park Zoo

And then there were 9

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This morning Kelsi opened the last door and officially fully merged Willy B with Cy’s groups into a single group of 9. While we can’t say for sure that this is the final product of all of our intro efforts, we remain cautiously optimistic. There is plenty of socialization work left to be done. For now though, we celebrate this momentous occasion.

The new big group (Honey B not pictured):

It might be hard to see, but there are 9 chimpanzees in this photo taken of our video surveillance tv!!

Cy and Willy B:

 

 

Busy Chimp House Day!

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As Chad wrote on Sunday, this week has already proven to be busy for the entire chimp house. I think today’s blog is all about Burrito!


As an intro update, so far so good!

Mave and Terry grooming:

Cy and Willy B grooming:

Lucky:

Just some photos

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As mentioned on Sunday’s blog, this week is busy busy for all the caregivers and for the chimpanzees involved in the introduction process. For today’s blog please enjoy some photos from my personal collection.

Betsy:

Jody eating some apples this morning:

Missy enjoying some plant-based non-toxic soapy bubbles:

I had to take the opportunity of capturing Rayne on a nest in the grassy floor of Oakwood green house (sorry for the low quality of my phone):

Rayne again:

A Glass Hoof Full

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Chad wrote yesterday about our ambitious plans for this week which will likely impact the blog in the coming days. This afternoon’s post is just a brief update on the sanctuary’s bovine residents.

Every year, the hoof trimmer swings by to give the cattle their spring “pedicures.” Bovine hooves grow continuously like human fingernails and a trained professional must trim them on an annual basis to minimize the risk of injury and disease. Dr. Erin and Sofia also take the opportunity to administer their annual vaccinations. Ideally, we try to schedule this trimming before the cattle rotate out to pasture for the summer and become even more difficult to corral in the lower paddock.

Yesterday, our friend Gates brought his specialized equipment to the sanctuary with the intent of getting all the cattle taken care of in one brief visit. Meredith bravely entered the chute first and got her hooves cleaned and trimmed, then Honey followed without issue. Nutmeg proved to be more difficult; the massive steer has actually grown too tall and wide for the hydraulic device that Gates uses to safely restrain the cattle. Betsy also missed her appointment after declining to get into the pen altogether. Because of these challenges, we’ll have to schedule a follow-up visit once we’ve made some adjustments to our setup.

Meredith waits in the squeeze after getting her hooves trimmed
Nutmeg waits for his appointment with the trimmer

Importantly, all of the cattle look just as healthy- if not healthier- than when they arrived (which isn’t bad for a bunch of reality TV stars from California). Evidently, life in the mountains has been quite good for them, and we’re happy to have them mowing the sanctuary lawn.

After the hoof trim event, the crew took a walk around the property to discuss our fencing and grazing plan for this year. It was exciting to see the more secluded areas where the cattle will be spending their summer!

J.B., Erin, Diana and Sofia walk through the upper pasture

 

Please Excuse the Interruption

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To our supportive blog followers and lovers of the sanctuary:

We are always ever so grateful for all the love and support you have given us throughout the years and want to thank you for following along and interacting with us through the blog. As you all know, we have been in the process of integrating Cy’s group and Willy B’s group over the past several months. Our friend and colleague, Jen Feuerstein, will return tomorrow to help us with progressing even further into the integration process this week. During this time, we are going to be extremely busy monitoring the process as the chimpanzees come together and work on their relationships with one another. We will still be posting the daily blog, but please forgive us if at times this week it seems it is abbreviated or posted a little later in the day. We hope you understand. We will be back on a regular schedule soon!

As we prepare for the week ahead, please enjoy these photos from today!

Willy B:

Honey B:

Mave:

Cy:

Lucky:

Gordo:

Dora:

Rayne:

Terry: