Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Archives for April 2024

This, That, and the Other

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You have probably read before that caregivers usually have mounds of unused photos and video clips. There are multiple reasons why they don’t make it to the blog: they didn’t quite fit that particular blog so they get lost to the wayside. They are too short to include into a full video. The reasons go on. Here are some clips I found on my phone that have yet to be used. Minus the Rayne clip, which I grabbed from the security cameras today.

Earlier today, you may have read it has been one year since we lost our beloved Jody Chimpanzee. I will be honest, it still is extremely hard for me to talk or even think about that day. This entire 365 days has felt like it was just yesterday, yet at the same time 1,000 years ago. There is literally not a single day that passes in which I don’t think about her.

On Jody’s burial spot, we planted some lilac trees, if you may recall. Right after planting the trees, they lost their leaves and seemed to be dead. We hoped that wasn’t the case and that Fall was just doing its thing. As the months passed and no sign of life, we began to lose hope that they survived. Well, I am happy to say, they in fact did not! On the contrary, they are thriving in this early Spring. When I noticed it as I was doing my morning run around Young’s Hill with Burrito, my eyes immediately went from dry to emitting a salty watery discharge.

Jody’s Lilac Tree with a smaller one in the foreground

Since noticing it, my entire day was filled with thoughts and memories of Jody. All the thoughts of our Joji gave me the idea to do something she loved: foraging. But I didn’t want to just do a normal forage as usual and call it a day. No. I decided to spice things up a little bit. I hid several “jackpots” around Young’s Hill. The more difficult to get to, the better the jackpot. Most of the jackpots were whole carrots and potatoes. But there was one jackpot that took a keen eye to spot and some athletic agility! (<– BIG foreshadowing of who got it.)

The prize?

A whole opal apple in one of the trees at the top of the hill! I will spare you the details of how I got it up there and got it to stay.

One person came to mind of who would reach it first. To no surprise, that person knew I was up to something at the top of the hill and it was worth skipping the bigger forage at large and see what was up there.

Missy!!!

Initially, she found one of the easier to reach whole carrots. When she looked up though, she dropped everything and raced up the tree. I wasn’t able to get photos of it on account that I am not as fast as Missy and couldn’t make it up the hill in time.

Mmmmmm… The sweet taste of victory

I did, however, follow Missy the rest of the forage. During that time, Missy when to every single structure to see if any more big prizes were to be had. (Unfortunately for her, there wasn’t since some of the places she looked, I wouldn’t have been able to reach.)

Missy climbing down from the very top platform of the Twister structure
She did end up going back to reclaim the carrot she dropped
She found another one of the jackpot carrots on top of Negra’s Cabin

It was well worth climbing to some pretty hard to reach areas to watch Missy seemingly having a forage that was designed for her, unintentionally.

Good job, Missy!

Here are some bonus photos from today!

Burrito

Scooping a pile of chow biscuits into his mouth
During our morning run today with Jody’s lilac tree in the back ground.
Annie even joined

Missy

Nothing like pre-breakfast grass to start the day

Gordo

Gordo seems to agree about the pre-breakfast grass. So far, he is the only one in his group we have seen collecting grass to eat.
Don’t forget you keys!

Rayne

Taking in the morning sun in some solitude on the Bray
Rayne found all the jackpots during her group’s forage

Jamie

She took a slight detour during today’s morning patrol through the logs

Negra

Hiding behind some logs watching the neighbors

Foxie

That blur in the background is Missy making her way to the top of Young’s Hill

Terry

Teeny Tiny Terry not looking so teeny tiny during lunch

Unlike most, Terry is very delicate with his nightbags to pick out his favorites first

In memory of Jody

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It is incomprehensible that today marks one year since Jody passed away. Our heartfelt thanks to long-time supporter of the sanctuary, Tobin, who has graciously sponsored this day of sanctuary in her memory.

“In memory of our beloved Jody; in gratitude for her life, spirit, and for all those who love and cared for her.”

Jody, forever in our hearts and lives, forever missed. By none more so than her chimpanzee family. We love you always, Jo.

Jody, Foxie and Annie:

Jody and Annie:

Burrito and Jody pretzel:

Jody, Foxie and a Strawberry Shortcake friend:

Jody, Foxie and Jamie:

Missy and Jody:

Negra and Jody:

Jody, Missy, Foxie and Annie:

Moments With Cy’s Group

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Let me tell you, those toy keys are the most exciting thing to happen in a while. Some of the chimps in Cy’s group are prone to chewing up and ingesting enrichment so we’ve been introducing new items very slowly and cautiously over the last couple years. These are made by Nylabone and we’re optimistic that they will hold up and won’t pose any danger. It’s rare for nearly everyone in the group to have an interest in the same piece of enrichment—since they’ve been introduced, the keys have only been put down a minute or two at a time before they are snatched up again!

As I was sitting down in the foyer to upload some video, Chad noticed Rayne on the security monitor flipping through her magazine on the greenhouse catwalk. It’s amazing how much we would miss without those cameras.

 

Happy Birthday, Maureen, from Erin!

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Our heartfelt thanks is going out to two of our long-time chimpanzee friends as Erin Yuhas is sponsoring today for her mom, Maureen McHorney!

“Happy Birthday, Mom! I love you even more than I love chimpanzees, and that’s A LOT!

This donation is a present for my mom’s birthday! My mom loves chimps as much as I do and donates regularly to help support their lifelong care. She has visited several sanctuaries and has even volunteered–helping to prepare meals and enrichment, and even feeding the chimps and observing their medical training sessions. We both love your daily blogs and updates and watching the chimps enjoy their freedom. Thank you for all you do and for sharing their lives with us.”

Happiest of days to you, Maureen! We so appreciate your and Erin’s dedicated support of the chimpanzees. We’re all wishing you a gorgeous day of celebration!

Foxie and Negra:

The gift of Burrito:

Jamie!:

Lucky and Rayne:

Annie play biting Missy’s toes:

Another Day, Another Food Puzzle

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As I have taken on more responsibilities as a part of the CSNW team after my initial training, I have taken on the role of Enrichment Coordinator from Chad as he moves into a new position within the team. I started out by working to add new food puzzles to our existing enrichment, which has been especially rewarding as we get to watch the chimps’ problem-solve new puzzles and have even greater variety in their daily lives! I recently finished making “fishing buckets” for the chimps, which is a 5-gallon bucket with several holes cut into the sides and chain covered in firehose attached to the bucket to allow it to hang from the caging. We can put a variety of goodies in the bottom of the bucket which allows for even more variation in their daily food puzzles (things like applesauce, mashed potatoes, etc.) then hang the bucket from the outside of the caging. The chimps then must use tools (often a bamboo stick) to maneuver the goodies out of the bucket and into their mouths.

In today’s video, you can see Lucky’s group trying out these new food puzzles for the first time. Lucky herself was particularly careful and precise when using her bamboo stick tool, and seemed to enjoy these puzzles a lot as she continued to work on them throughout the afternoon, and even came back to them after dinner.

Enjoy a bonus photo series of Annie brushing her teeth with a giant toothbrush!