I hope you had as much fun as I did reading the Month of Love blog posts that highlighted the personalities and stories of each individual at the sanctuary. Huge thanks again to all Chimpanzee Pals and Bovine Buddies who are sponsoring the care and memories of all past and present chimpanzees and cows. Your support is important and meaningful.
Sharing the chimpanzee’s personalities and quirks really illustrates how everyone in our care stands out as their own unique, charming, independent person.
I was thinking about this when I was playing with Burrito today (safely, with mesh between us, of course). His charm, energy, and silliness were turned up to eleven this afternoon. In between headstands and other acrobatics, I captured these images of him:
I would never dream of playing with Jamie the way I play with Burrito. I’ve tried it a few times. Sometimes she allows raucous play for a few minutes, clearly indulging me until she can quickly redirect our time together towards activities that she enjoys, like grooming my boots or walking outside, as we did today:
Jamie was a bit distracted on our stroll. She kept her eyes on The Bray habitat. I’m not sure who, if anyone, she was hoping to see or avoid. There was no one outside as we sauntered around the entire perimeter of Young’s Hill. I had my hood pulled tightly over my head to keep my ears warm from the sharp wind, but Jamie didn’t seem bothered by the gales.
When she got to the Raceway / the entrance to return to her Greenhouse, she paused and looked towards The Bray again. When I noticed Terry walking into the Chute, I thought perhaps that’s who Jamie had been waiting for, but I turned around and she was gone. Was she intimidated by Terry? Maybe she was being bashful? Or perhaps she had hoped to catch the eye of someone else in Terry’s group.
Whatever the reason for her avoidance, it left me with just Terry. So I followed his lead. He walked almost to the top of The Bray and stopped. He sat down, looking at the view below. I do the same thing when I’m hiking. I get to a spot, stop, and turn around to take in both the view and to have a sense of the distance or elevation I’ve gained. Maybe Terry was experiencing awe in that moment. I certainly was.
