Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Anna

Saying good morning!

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Most mornings at the sanctuary are filled with the raucous sounds of Burrito’s displaying. He seems to think that the mornings are the ideal time to rattle doors and chase the girls around the playroom. For a chimpanzee, especially a male chimpanzee, this is typical behavior. Some mornings are quieter than others though, and on these more peaceful mornings (or in breaks between Burrito’s whirlwind of chaos), caregivers get the chance to say proper hellos to the chimps.

Negra and volunteer caregiver Yuri:

Roses with dessert!

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Before caregivers close the chimp house each evening, we make sure to hand out or set up an evening puzzle for the chimps to work on. Yesterday, as the chimps came forward to get their peanut butter/banana filled PVC tubes, they each were offered a fresh Valentine’s Day rose to go with their puzzle.

Annie:

Chimpanzees appreciate roses in their own unique way..

Missy:

Several members of the Cle Elum 7, discovered a practical tool to scrape out the delicious contents of their treat tubes.

Clever Missy:

Carrying stuff

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Since the chimpanzees don’t generally use backpacks or wear clothing with pockets, they can be pretty creative with how they choose to gather and carry items around.

Chimpanzees rely a lot on their mouths…
Negra:

Foxie:
Foxie with troll in mouth

Jamie:

But sometimes their mouths are full and they still need to carry more..
Jody:
Jody carrying cattail

Missy:

Missy carry her stash

And sometimes their mouths are full and their arms are busy climbing, so they might rely on their feet..
Jamie:

Chimpanzee mothers carry their babies on their backs…

Foxie demonstrates with a doll:

Last but not least, a little live action carrying…

An update

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As many blog followers may know, Negra’s toe was injured during a fight about a month ago. After monitoring the injury closely, we knew we had to perform a minor surgery to help it heal properly. I’ve been gone for a few weeks (one week vacation, one week out sick), so it’s been a little while since I’ve seen the Queen of the sanctuary. I’m happy to report that she’s all rested up and she’s recovered back into the fiery (maybe a little bit demanding) chimpanzee we all know and love! As an added bonus, her blood work (done during her procedure) just came back and everything looks normal.

A few photos of Negra from today’s lunch:

Food envy

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Sometimes a chimp will savor something that’s so delicious, that another chimp will feel the need to come over and watch them intently (sometimes awkwardly close) as they eat. We call this behavior food peering. Today Burrito had a wadge (a lip full) of chewed up primate chow. After he added a couple chewable vitamins to the wadge, Foxie came over and peered jealously at his hoard.