Enriching chimpanzees is hard work. We have particular guidelines to ensure that the chimps will not consume something unsafe and that the item of enrichment cannot harm them. Sometimes, we think an enrichment item will be so perfect, only for it to arrive and realize it was made of a material the chimps can’t have. Caregiver Chad did a lot of research on the Jolly Ball that we wanted to give to Burrito on his birthday, but when it arrived it was leaning towards a little to soft of plastic to give to the chimps. However, this morning we were discussing how we knew he would love it soooo much! We decided that we could keep a close eye on the Jolly ball and that if it was destroyed we could remove it. When we showed Burrito his belated birthday present his eyes lit up! Once their group was invited back into their freshly cleaned Playroom, Burrito immediately grabbed it. He was beaming with joy. I think you will all be pleased to know that the ball is still alive and well!
This is a screen grab from the video. I know the quality of the photo might not be great, but it might be the best part of the whole video!
