During Foxie’s decades in biomedical research she was used as a breeder. We know of five children that Foxie gave birth to, two of whom were twins. It’s heartbreaking that Foxie was not given the opportunity to raise any of her children. Since arriving at the sanctuary she seems to have found a special affinity for her beloved troll dolls and more recently, Dora dolls. When Foxie chooses to join us for a walk around Young’s Hill she can often be seen carrying one of her many dolls on her back just as chimpanzee mothers do with their children in the wild. It’s a bittersweet glimpse into how life should have been for her and each of the Cle Elum Seven. While we can never know for sure what Foxie is thinking about her “babies” it makes my heart happy to see she has found something to call her own.
I’m also very glad that Foxie has so much pleasure with her dolls!
Did anyone back then keep track of where her children went? I’d be extremely curious to know if she recognizes the Dora dolls as twins. So many questions and no way to find out. 🙁
Thanks for your interest, Cody. I think we all have many questions regarding each of the chimps histories and unfortunately records are often sparse. We do know the location of some of Jody’s, Negra’s and Annie’s children. In Foxie’s case I believe we are only aware of the location of one of her daughters, Angie “the 2nd” who resides at Save the Chimps. Angie is the spitting image of Foxie and despite having been taken from her at only 2 days old, I understand they share many of the same characteristics.
Cody, my mistake, it’s actually Angie the 1st at STC who is Foxie’s daughter. We also know that Foxie’s son, David, one of the set of twins, is at Alamogordo Primate Facility. Sadly, the other twin, Steve, is deceased.
Thank you so much Katelyn! I’m glad to hear the kids are at least in sanctuaries but sad to hear of Steve’s passing! I can’t believe how cruel people can be to separate a mother from their child in any species! Bless you and the others at CSNW for taking such great care of our Cle Elum friends! <3
Oh my gosh! Angie does look just like Foxie!!! Does Foxie shake her fists at you there though? lol
Cody, Foxie doesn’t shake her fists at us but she does have the same endearing behavior of staring/gazing intently into people’s eyes. Personally, those are some of my most favorite moments.
She has the maternal instinct I am sure. How heartbreaking that their babies where taken away from them. I love Foxie, her Troll, and Dora dolls. To me she is very special and my favorite gal. It’s not hard to love them all! They are all special in their own way.
Yes, it is very bittersweet to see Foxie with her trolls and dolls.
No one can make up for the anguish anyone else experiences in the past but merely make the present much better – and that you all do for the “7”
You wonder how Angie would react to being given a troll or Dora doll.
What would happen if a baby chimp or youngster was introduced to this group? Would they shun him or her, or do you think the chimpanzees would accept it? How would a defacto primary caregiver arise out of the group?
It’s impossible for us to say what might happen if a baby chimp was introduced to the Cle Elum Seven, or who among the group might be a primary caregiver. Jody and Foxie definitely do NOT like stuffed chimpanzees (even baby-like ones) and treat them as though they are an intruder, quickly destroying them. But we can’t really go on what the chimps do with inanimate objects to guess what might happen if a youngster was introduced.
What girl doesn’t love baby dolls! Adorable!
If and when CSNW DOES expand,, would CSNW entertain the idea of having young chimps around,, I think a few youngin’s would bring allot of healing to the ladies of CE 7 , especially ,, Miss Foxie.
it s quite possible Foxie thinks of her babies, when she cares for her Doras and Trolls,
At all the other sanctuaries, infant chimps have always brought out the chimps motherly instincts . Young chimps seem to bring them all closer as a family unit,
Rita, it’s true that having youngsters changes a group – bringing out motherly instincts and the playful side of chimps (although the Cle Elum Seven are already the most playful group of adult chimps I’ve known!). If / when we are at the point of introducing new chimpanzees to the group, we would of course first concentrate on who is in need of a sanctuary, then we would consult with someone who has expertise in introductions so they could help us decide if the chimps in need would be a good fit with our group and how to go about introducing them. If there were youngsters in need, we would consider that, but we probably wouldn’t be looking for chimps of a specific age. It’s difficult to know just what the future might bring.