Grooming is an important part of chimpanzee life. It serves many functions, from forming, building, and maintaining social bonds, to helping ease tensions and facilitating reconciliation following a fight among the group. It is a part of everyday life.
Terry grooms Cy
Cy grooms Rayne’s lips (through the caging, although the door is open!)
As caregivers, we exist within the social sphere of the chimpanzees in our care (as Diana discussed in her blog earlier this week). We each have different relationships with each chimpanzee, which have developed and grown over time. Some chimpanzees are quick to accept new human friends (like Burrito and Terry), while others are less interested in the new person, and more interested in making sure that new person knows where they stand (at the very bottom!).
(I am taking advantage of my momentary mention of Burrito to share this somewhat blurry but very sweet picture of a sleepy Burrito from today!)
Grooming helps us forge and grow relationships with the chimpanzees in our care, and occurs when a chimpanzees invites us to join them for a grooming session. Sometimes this invitation comes in the form of a chimp pressing their back to the caging to be scratched with a tool or rubbed with our knuckle. Other times it may look like Cy poking his finger out of the caging making a raspberry sound, requesting to groom your elbow. One of my personal favorite invitations is when Honey B sticks out her very small thumb to request to groom you. Many grooming sessions have served as mile-markers for me in my personal relationships with different chimpanzees, such as the first time I felt comfortable allowing Honey B to groom the back of my hand, when Rayne initiated a lengthy grooming session with me for the very first time, the first time Lucky genuinely wanted to groom me (without any stabby fingers) or when Jamie first presented me with a chopstick to groom her with. In today’s blog video, I wanted to share a couple such special moments with you all.
And for those keeping up with Willy B’s recent injury and return to his group, check out J.B.’s blog from yesterday about his reintroduction if you missed it!
