Yesterday we celebrated Dora’s 36th birthday! Caregiver Kelsi planned Dora’s party and made sure that we had all of her favorite miniature foods stocked for the occasion. Everyone enjoyed baby bananas, mini apples, baby lettuce, mini carrots and mini cucumbers in honor of ‘Lil Dora!
Archives for June 2025
Willy B’s Choice
First of all, today is Dora’s 36th birthday! Many thanks to our staff as well as interns Sarah and Taylor and Dr. Erin for pulling off a party for the birthday girl even when we were somewhat short on staff. And many thanks as well to Paulette Wrisley for sponsoring the day on Dora’s honor! We’re excited to share photos and video with you all tomorrow when we have time to prepare them.
In the meantime, I wanted to share a video about our boy, Willy B, and the journey he’s been on to become comfortable with the outdoors. I can’t tell you how often I want to be frustrated with this confused, self-sabotaging, sometimes-sweet-and-often-a-jerk, man-child of a chimpanzee. But I know what he’s been through. And I wanted you to get a glimpse as well. It’s really a miracle that he made it out at all. Every time I see him sitting in the grass or walking to the top of the Bray, I feel so proud of what our team has done and what you all have made possible.
My motive for sharing this now, if I’m being honest, is that I thought it would be a good lesson/reminder as to what might lie ahead for George. I know that many of you are excited for what’s next once George completes his quarantine, but I want to prepare everyone to be patient. We don’t know how George will react to other chimps after living alone for so long and we don’t know how he’ll react to a 2-acre habitat after being restricted to small cage for most of his life. Some chimps rush to embrace every new opportunity in sanctuary. Others take their time. It’s all up to them.
But at least now George, like Willy B, will have a choice.
Lunchtime with George
George, our newest chimpanzee resident, has been settling in quite nicely. Every day, he seems more comfortable and more trusting of us caregivers. He is still in quarantine, although we are hoping that will be over shortly.
George has experienced the outdoor chute a few times already. The first chute video we posted received a lot of comments about his facial expressions. Commonly confused as a smile, chimpanzees fear grimace when they are scared, nervous, anxious, or overstimulated. Unsurprisingly, George was fear grimacing when he explored the chute for the first time because it was a new environment. However, he also sat with a droopy lip shortly after, which told us he is relaxed and content. These are all normal behaviors of a chimpanzee, especially one that is now living at a new place for the first time in 11 years. George is doing exceptionally well! ☺️
If you’re interested to learn about more chimpanzee facial expressions, you can check out this blog of ours here.
George:
Happy Birthday, Jeffrey!
Many thanks to Jeffrey Abramczyk for sharing his birthday with a day of sanctuary for the chimpanzees!
“Sponsoring a day for the chimps to celebrate my birthday with me and to welcome George to CSNW!”
Happy Birthday, Jeffrey! All of us here hope you have a fantastic day! Thank you for sharing it with the chimpanzees and for the George love and support!
Cutie George:
Cy:
Missy and Annie:
Lucky:
Happy Pride Month!
This blog is dedicated to our volunteers, Primate Awareness Network (PAN), and the walking participants. We could not have done it without your help!
Though my main role at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest is a chimpanzee caregiver, but I am also the Outreach Coordinator. I help organize the Summer Visitor program for our donors, as well as organize table events year-round. We participate in many tabling events in hopes to share our mission, educate people about the chimps, connect with potential donors, and maybe even spark interest in new volunteers. However, my personal favorite events are when we get to be engage with our community. As a closed-to-the-public sanctuary, we often fly under the radar, even in our own backyard. Because of this, being a part of something like the Pride Parade is so meaningful to us! We love being able to show up and support.
Last year was our first year we participated at the Kittitas County Pride parade. We only had a handful of people and carried a sign while handing out stickers, but it had a big impact on us. Experiencing the parade for the first time actually made myself and a few others emotional, rounding the corner of our downtown to see hundreds of people cheering in support. That moment made me feel such a deep sense of pride for our little town, and it reminded me how powerful community can be.
This year, we wanted to do more! With the help of our volunteers and PAN (Primate Awareness Network) we were able to build a float and get more people involved! We would not have been as successful without their creative minds, time, and effort. Personally, one of my favorite moments was having all the volunteers come over to my house the night before, to plan how we wanted to decorate our float. They all got to work right away making hearts and troll dolls out of cardboard while painting them to represent different flags. The team worked until sun-down and then showed up at 9:30 am the next morning to finish decorating! Their dedication is truly inspiring. What touched me the most, though, was how deeply they cared—not just about representing the sanctuary, but about showing up for the LGBTQ+ community. Their energy, compassion, and commitment make me incredibly hopeful for the future.
Being part of Kittitas County Pride reminded us just how powerful it is when we all show up for one another.
The night before:
Day of parade:
Benny (JB & Diana), Birdie (mine), Poppy and Tucker (Erin)
Our crew:
Downtown:
Lucky Day
I recently was graced with a sweet and fun play session with Lucky! See today’s video to join in on the fun. Usually when Lucky wants to spend time together, she invites me to groom, so this was an extra special treat. She loved being tickled with a durable spoon, and we drew a small crowd of chimps as the play session went on who wanted to join in on the fun…Gordo, Cy, and Terry all wanted to be involved at different points (and got some one-on-one time once Lucky and I were done!). I’d like to credit my original chimp friends from Chimp Haven (Agnes and Juan especially) for teaching me all the best chimp tickle spots. Lucky seemed to approve.
I thought I’d also provide a brief George update as I know he has many friends that are wishing him all the best. He is getting more and more comfortable in his new home and exploring his surroundings by the day! We have been thrilled to see him start nesting (to learn more about nesting and see it in action, see previous posts here and here), both with blankets and paper. We learned that he enjoys paper towels and uses them to wipe his hands and face, especially after his morning smoothie to take care of that pesky smoothie mustache.
It’s easy to see how George has captured the hearts of so many, he is such a sweet and gentle individual. We are enjoying getting to know him, and hope you all are enjoying getting to know us and the other 15 chimpanzees, 3 cows, and one very handsome barn cat (aptly named Barn Kitty – pictured below) who also call CSNW home! We are so happy to have you here!
Happy Birthday, Carrie, from Jenara!
Thanks to Jenara Miller for sponsoring a day of sanctuary for the chimpanzees and cows in honor of long-time friend of the sanctuary, Carrie Miller, for her birthday!
We appreciate you and yours, Carrie, and hope your birthday celebrations extend in joy as long as you like!
Foxie and Burrito being silly:
Dora and Honey B:
Honey B and Mave:
Honey B and some celebratory spaghetti:
