Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Anna

Love for Terry

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Today is all about Terry, who is quite simply, a really easy guy to love!

Terry was born at the Laboratory for Experimental Medicine and Surgery in Primates (LEMSIP) on June 13, 1990. According to his records, his father may have been Conrad and his mother Carrie. He is half siblings with our very own Mave. After LEMSIP shut down in 1996, Terry was transferred to Wildlife Waystation together with more than 30 other chimpanzees and then to his life at CSNW in 2021 as part of the “Lucky 6.”

Little Terry at LEMSIP:

Terry is best known as being a big friendly guy at the sanctuary. He LOVES having visitors of any kind, whether it’s a caregiver he knows well or a brand new volunteer, he’s just meeting. Terry is one of our resident greeters and will push a chair right up to the window so he can say hello to a new friend.

Everyone loves Terry’s unique “kiss.”

Terry would definitely be considered a “bro” if he were a human, but he also has a sweet sensitive side. He has even been known to gently groom tiny little insects out of the petals of a flower.

Terry likes to show his tough side to the girls next door. One of my favorite things is to watch Terry do his unique chest beating displays when he’s outside.

Terry enjoys most food. He’s one of the least picky chimps around here. He uses a raspberry type sound called a Bronx Cheer to get caregiver’s attention.

Terry uses his sanctuary space well. He likes being outside or spending time with his friends grooming in a sunny greenhouse.

Terry currently has 9 Pals who know just how lovable Terry is.  Be sure to join the Terry fan club today!

 

 

Love for Negra

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Today I get to continue the love blogs by talking about my good friend and sanctuary Matriarch, Negra Chimpanzee. It’s nothin’ but all hail the queen on today’s blog!

Negra is best known for her love of giant cozy nests and her ability to stay in those nests for many hours of the day. There are about 3 different nesting spots you can find Negra in, depending on the time of the day…

Her greenhouse nest:

Or her catwalk nest:

A throwback photo of her loft nest:

She is highly motivated by lettuce, peanut butter, baked sweet potatoes and that elusive special party dinner roll.

Negra vacillates between sweet old lady chimp and impatient moody senior citizen on a daily and even hourly basis. You don’t always know what kind of Negra you are gonna meet in the morning but we love and accept her two sides just the same.

One of my favorite memories of Negra is working with her during our Positive Reinforcement Training sessions. Negra is particularly spicy when it comes to participating in the training and it was a pleasure making progress with her.

A memory of our younger selves. Here Negra receives a spray treatment for an injury:

Also, watching Negra progress in confidence going outside has been AMAZING.

One of her most recent outdoor victories, climbing aboard Carlene’s Tower:

Like so many older chimpanzees, Negra was born in the forests of Africa, where she was captured as an infant. She spent most of her life in biomedical research laboratories, though with each passing year that chapter grows more distant. In the labs, she was involved in hepatitis vaccine research and was also used as a breeder. She gave birth to three children, all of whom are now, thankfully, living in sanctuaries. Her daughter Angel resides at Save the Chimps in Florida, along with her son Noah, who is also one of Burrito’s many half-siblings. Her daughter Heidi was the last to reach sanctuary and now lives at Chimp Haven in Louisiana.

Negra on her first day at CSNW. She truly seems to age backwards:

Negra currently has 10 loyal chimpanzee pals who generously donate towards her care and could certainly use more to help keep up her supply of peanut butter Kongs and fleece blankets. Follow this link if you are interested in becoming Negra’s Pal. We can’t thank you enough.

All hail the queen!

 

Where the Wild Things Are

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Follower Diana K asked: How do the chimps react when they see the cattle, BK, deer, coyote, dogs, squrriels, rabbits, etc?

Excellent question Diana! And the answer is… it depends on the chimp(s) involved and the creature they see, also the proximity of that creature to the chimps can make a big difference in the chimps’ reaction! In general, the chimpanzees are very territorial of their space and will frequently patrol their outdoor enclosure to make sure all is in order. If they see something outside their enclosure that they deem to be an intruder, they will often try to intimidate that creature and scare them away.

Exhibit A: Chimps vs. horses

Sometimes it’s not so simple though. Here Jamie investigates from afar, newcomer Benny Dog who is being walked by JB.

Many of you may remember Ellie the Elk was a common face at the sanctuary for a few years.  Since Ellie was extremely comfortable around humans, she wasn’t as easy to intimidate, and the chimps became familiar with her presence:

The cows are very familiar around here as well and are met with a bit of curiosity when they change pastures but are otherwise completely ignored.

Since George is the newest member of the sanctuary, he is still getting used to what “normal” is. You can see in this video he chases off some neighborhood deer. The deer are very common sights around here and are generally ignored by everyone else.

 

Smaller animals such as squirrels, marmots and Barn Kitty don’t seem to be of much interest to the chimps…

So long as those small animals stay out of the chimpanzees’ enclosure… It’s a totally different story if they find their way into the chimps’ territory. While Barn Kitty (BK) smartly keeps his distance, other animals such as marmots and squirrels have not been so lucky.

Snakes of course, are enemy #1 to the chimps. Alarm calls and a dispatch crew are called for in these situations:

 

Crows seem to use the chimpanzees existence to their advantage. They love to get first dibs on an outdoor forage:

Thievery is met with chasing:

Occasionally the chimps will see more unusual sanctuary visitors like coyotes or bobcat. These strange intruders can understandably be off-putting to the chimps.

Here Negra reacts in alarm to a coyote she spotted on the property:

In other news:

The North American Primate Sanctuary Alliance has organized an Experience from the Field webinar. It will be held tomorrow (Friday) at 11 AM PT/2 PM ET. Kate Dylewsky, the Assistant Director of Government Affairs at the Animal Welfare Institute, will be talking about the Captive Primate Safety Act and how we can help to get it passed in 2026!
The event will be held on Facebook Live and you can RSVP here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1121138756608568/