Captive chimpanzees walk the tightrope between their ingrained wild nature and their unusual circumstances where they live a life assembled for them by humans. In sanctuary, we do our best to provide all the options for the chimpanzees that are much deserving of the freedom of choice.
Archives for August 2025
In celebration of home, sanctuary, and better lives!
Thanks so much to Donna Hughes for sponsoring this day of sanctuary and including the chimpanzees and cows as she celebrates her and her late sister, Doreen’s, anniversary in their beloved home of New York City:
“August 21 ….the day Doreen and I moved to New York City. It is bittersweet she is no longer here to celebrate, but she LOVED CSNW and all of the residents. So, to each individual who has moved to Sanctuary here, they also moved to have a better life, and boy, do they ever! Looking forward to the great photos I know will be posted, from the “Cle Elum 7″ to new resident George!! Don”
We’re celebrating right along with you and Doreen, Don. Hope your day is full of memories of special moments and places you both shared in your extraordinary home in the city! We appreciate all your love for the chimpanzees and cows!
George!:
Foxie and twin trolls:
Mave and Dora:
The original Cle Elum 7 enjoying their outdoor habitat, Young’s Hill, together:
Honey B!:
Dear friends, Foxie and Jody – always in our heart, Jo:
You Again!
George is one incredible chimp. So far in this intro process, he has surprised us with his adaptability, patience, and maturity that we didn’t know a 21-year-old could have.
Introductions are a process and not every chimp comes in feeling confident, even if it’s gone well in the past, and that is to be expected. Just like us as humans, we may carry anxiety about the unknowns of meeting a new person. It can take a few meetings to get comfortable with or understand an individual. This past Friday, Cy and George visited again for their third introduction. Their first intro was great, their second they both did fine, but overall we would describe it as a, meh. But this third visit, there was no hesitation at all. Cy and George right off the bat were ready to have the door open to see each other. George even let Cy groom him, which is something George seems to be trying to get more comfortable with. Though, we can’t be sure of the full reason, George did live alone for a few years and hasn’t been a recipient of grooming with another chimp for quite awhile, which is a very big component of bonding for chimps.
We are so proud of George for his progress, and we’re excited to see how his relationship with Cy continues to grow.
T.A.P.
The past couple of days you have learned about the meeting between Terry and George during the process of integrating George in to a social group. You’ve probably seen the videos of Terry grooming George and playing with him. Well, today is just a general Terry Appreciation Post. (*whispers* ok, secretly it’s because I’ve had these photos for a couple days and was just waiting for my turn on the blog to share them plus it’s another staff meeting day and time is limited. But that shouldn’t take away from the fact Terry is just an incredible being.)
For those new to our sanctuary, Terry arrived at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest in the summer of 2021. Before his arrival in the Pacific Northwest, Terry was living at the Wildlife Waystation in Southern California, a facility that housed rescued exotic animals before closing. He was sent to the Waystation in his adolescence from the Laboratory for Experimental Medicine and Surgery in Primates (LEMSIP).
From what we can piece together through records and former caregiver stories, Terry did live with Willy B, Honey B, and Dora in the early years at the Waystation. From what we can tell, another group was being put together so Terry and Dora joined Cy, Rayne, Lucky, and Gordo, whom came different groupings themselves. We are uncertain of the circumstances surrounding the decision, but regardless of why, these six would remain with each other to this day.
When the Lucky Six arrived, I had no idea what to expect from Terry. Here was this big, intimidating male who I knew nothing about. I was, in all honesty, terrified of him and Gordo in particular because they were the two I knew the least about from what we were hearing about the group at the time. Luckily, Terry almost immediately showed his true self once he was unloaded from the truck and given his new home.
Terry may look like a big, terrifying male, but underneath all that fluff of hair is the kindest, softest hearts you could ever meet. Hopefully you can see why Terry is such a great person to be one of the first who got to meet George. It is Terry’s kind heart and his lust for fun that makes him a character to instantly fall in love with. If you would like to help support Terry’s care, please consider adopting him in our Chimpanzee Pal program!
Bray & Play – George Continues to Make Progress!
When rescued chimpanzees arrive at the sanctuary, there’s a lot to be intimidated by: unknown caregivers, wide open spaces, and unfamiliar chimps all around. So we try to take things one step at a time. This morning, George went on the Bray at the same time that his neighbors were outside for the very first time and he handled it like a champ! PLUS: Bonus footage of George’s 2nd meeting with Terry!
We also celebrated the anniversary of Honey B, Willy B, and Mave’s arrival today. Can you believe it’s been six years? Actually, when Willy B wakes us all up in the middle of the night with his cage-rattling displays, it sometimes feels like he’s been here for 60. But for the most part, it seems like they just got here yesterday. The party forages included pasta with veggie sauce, Dixie cups filled with juice-soaked chow, berries, tomatoes, figs, and endives. I wasn’t able to to snap too many photos of the guests of honor, or anyone for that matter, but here are a few.
Terry:
Cy:
Gordo:
Beans (Honey B):
Terry Grooms George
Both Terry and George did so well with each other! It’s really interesting to watch George sit still while Terry is grooming him. Generally, chimpanzees reciprocate more readily. He did the same thing when we introduced George to Cy for the first time.
George does groom his human caregivers, so he’s not unfamiliar with it overall – grooming seems to be pretty hardwired in chimpanzees.
It’s hard to say what George is thinking. Maybe he’s playing it safe and making sure he doesn’t send the wrong signal or maybe being groomed by a big male is intimidating.
He’s really doing remarkably well for a 21-year-old chimpanzee who hasn’t had much social experience, and probably no social experience with adult males! Go George Go!
Cow-uality Time
Today’s blog post is all about the cows! Cow-uality (quality) time…get it?!
The sanctuary is home to our own small herd of cattle: Betsy, Meredith, and Honey. These ladies help to fire-wise the property by “mowing” the grass in their multiple pastures which they move around to throughout the year. Right now, they are in the upper pasture, which is my favorite of their pastures. The views are lovely both in the pasture itself, and on the way there and back from the Chimp House.
The view coming back to the Chimp House from the upper pasture.
Another (informal) sanctuary resident, one of many deer, who I saw on my way to care for the cattle.
Summer time with the cows, for me, means both quality time with the cows and some quiet time outside. It can be a nice break when things are more chaotic in the Chimp House to go spend time petting Betsy (the most people-oriented of the cows) while everyone eats their grain, then brushing them (which also serves as a way to apply fly spray), before returning to the Chimp House.
Betsy
Honey
Honey
Betsy
Betsy
Betsy
Meredith (L) and Honey (R)
Meredith
Meredith
