Many thanks to Terrell Stockdale for sponsoring this special day of sanctuary in honor of David Stockdale and Gordo (Chimpanzee 🙂 )!
“I would like to sponsor July 19 in honor of my son David’s 42nd and Gordo’s 34th birthdays. Hope everyone enjoys the party.”
Happy Birthday, David! We hope it’s the best one yet!
And we’re so excited to be celebrating Gordo’s second birthday with us since he and his group arrived to the sanctuary a little over a year ago! Terrell, it means so much that you included Gordo in your celebration of your son, David, and we’re happy to get to celebrate them both today.
Gordo is still rather a man of mystery for us humans. But although he tends to be a bit aloof with his human caregivers and chimpanzee friends (with the exception of his half-sister, Dora), we’ve been delighted these past few weeks to see him really beginning to feel more comfortable in showing us his silly side. He’s been engaging caregivers in wild games of chase and tickle all while sporting a huge play face, more often joining in play with his chimp friends, and even surprising us by adorably bunny hopping his way with excitement through parties (Gordo is his own person, but fingers crossed for today!). It’s such a privilege getting to know this handsome guy and we’re so thrilled to see him honored and celebrated today.
We are so fortunate to have two Sponsor a Days celebrating this handsome fella today! We hope you can join us on the blog later today for the celebration!
Gordo deserves to be honored on his special day. Thank you, Terrell, for celebrating David and Gordo’s birthdays. Plus, it gave me the chance to chuckle over these wonderful photos!
Happy birthday Boys! Grab a box and hop around until you find a cozy spot to plunk down and savor your surroundings!
:birthday:Have an awesome day David:birthday:!!!
And Thank You Terrell!
David,many happy returns on your special day. :birthday:.What a delightful expression on his face.Gordo looks like he can’t belive how happy he is to share the rest of his life with so many caring & giving companions. Life is good!
Thanks, Terrell!
David, now that your dad has posted your (still young!) age on the internet :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:, I hope you find a whole big box of goodies await you! Have a fabulous day!
Handsome indeed!
Buon Compleanno, caro Gordito! While I don’t know the phrase for “bunny-hopping” en Espanol, I hope that your birthday provides tu con la oportunidad to ambulate in that manner as your soul — and the soles of your feet — are thus inspired to do so.
(Mis disculpas por my mangling of la gramatica in no uno sinos dos linguas).
happy birthday David and Gordo.
Happy Birthday Gordo and David. Have a day filled with fun and laughter. Gordo, you have such beautiful expressive eyes. It is easy to get lost in them.
Question for the caregivers: Can you tell which chimp is which if you just isolate one section of them? For instance the eyes?
Hi Jeani,
Good question – for the most part we can. Most likely because we are with them all day in addition to doing multiple “chimp counts” for safety throughout the day when the chimps are shifted to different areas for cleaning and we need to confirm an area is safe for humans to enter (i.e., no chimps have access to the enclosure we need to enter). We never just count chimpanzees, we make certain to clearly identify each individual. That said, we’re not beyond having to take a second look occasionally if they are at a distance or we only have a partial view of them. Examples of this right now are with Rayne and Honey B (half-sisters who share many similarities) and even Cy and Lucky (full siblings who look very much alike) if we only catch part of their face from a distance or certain angle. Or Missy and Negra who often cozy up almost completely covered in blankets. And just as with humans, each chimp carries themselves differently, so for example, it’s pretty easy to identify everyone in Jamie’s group even when they are at the top of Young’s Hill, based on body posture and gait alone. 🙂