This spring we enthusiastically welcomed 6 new interns to the sanctuary as part of our relationship with the Primate Behavior program at Central Washington University. CWU students start as Level 1 interns where they work 3 hours a week in our kitchen and foyer spaces, helping us do laundry, make enrichment, prepare the chimpanzee’s meals, etc. If they are seeking to earn a Captive Care Certificate, interns move on to do Level 2 training at the sanctuary their next quarter. As Level 2 interns, they spend 6 hours a week learning to clean enclosures alongside staff (in addition to the tasks they learned as a Level 1). There’s also a bit of down time here and there allowing for some special moments of chimp observation. Here are just a few of our interns in action this past year.
Sienna organizing:
Cy staring intensely into Quaid’s eyes:
Katie scattering a forage:
KC mopping the kitchen:
Bonus! Gordo and Negra:
What a wonderful opportunity for students to learn about chimps. Hopefully, there will be more and more opportunities as more and more primates are released from labs and into sanctuaries.
I couldn’t agree more, Gaynell, and it’s a win win situation as both interns and those beloved promates will benifit so much.I would love to be an intern.
Thank you interns! I am sure the chimps appreciate all your time and hard work. Best of luck as you pursue your education and careers.
They’ll always be with you, even if you end up somewhere else after the internship!
I noticed that Save The Chimps published three videos this week of chimps who had passed on, and that they were in their 30s and 40s. granted, every chimp will be different, who knows what happened to them in the labs? But it reminded me of what a wonderful job you guys are doing here, bringing almost all of your original chimps into their fifties! ( knocking on wood)
I wish all the interns lots of unforgettable and funny moments at the sanctuary! :monkey_face::cow2::evergreen_tree::hugging: