Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Anthony

Official Party Business

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Today, we have three blog “topics” to cover, all related to upcoming celebrations. (I’ve dotted the blog with recent photos as well.)

Foxie sitting in the front rooms

First and foremost, this day of sanctuary was generously sponsored by our friend Laura Bradshaw to honor the birthday of her son, Ben.

To accompany her gift, Laura wrote:

I’d like to celebrate my son, Ben’s birthday. He is an avid animal lover and counts the CSNW critters among his very favorites (including barn cat and office cat and dog). Thanks to your wonderful blogs, he counts chimps and cattle among his dear friends. Thank you for all you do.

We’re ecstatic that she thought of the sanctuary on this special occasion and hope Ben has an amazing birthday. Thank you so much for your kindness, Laura and Ben!

Terry relaxing in the Oakwood Greenhouse

Additionally, we have a big anniversary coming up this Thursday, August 18th: the third anniversary of Honey B, Mave, and Willy B’s arrival at CSNW.

It will be the first arrival anniversary celebrated as members of a larger social group, so the party will be bigger than ever. Be sure to check out the blog this week to see the festivities!

Mave lounging in the Marmot Mountain playroom

On top of all that, we’re also finalizing plans for Missy’s upcoming 47th birthday celebration which will take place on Tuesday, August 23rd. Enrichment Coordinator Chad has filled our Amazon Wish List with an eclectic assortment of items that will help us to give Missy and her friends a special party! You may even be able to guess the party’s theme if you’re particularly astute…

You can access the wish list directly via the following link: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2L5WRNKBKB8B2?ref_=wl_share

Missy grooming her friend Jamie

Have a great week, everyone!

Foxie’s 46th

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I think that the title of this morning’s post (It’s Foxie’s birthdaaayyy!!) accurately reflected our staff’s enthusiasm for today’s big celebration.

It was a busy day for the humans, but the sanctuary’s chimpanzee residents seemed to enjoy every minute of it. First, this morning’s caregiving team prepared fruit-filled watermelon bowls and berry smoothies for both groups of chimps, sending them all into excited frenzies. While the chimpanzees were enjoying those in their groups’ respective greenhouse enclosures, Dr. Erin swung by with some fresh grapevine from a neighbor’s property which we passed out as forage and nesting material. On top of all that delicious food and browse, Foxie also received a unique gift from our supporters: a pile of new dolls from which to select her new favorites!

We hope you all enjoy the video showing some of the festivities. Thank you all for helping us to give Foxie and her friends another special birthday!

“Watermelon Bowls”
Missy, Negra, Burrito, Jamie, Jody and Foxie (L to R) foraging in Young’s Hill
Jamie snagging one of the last hidden bowls

Between Two Burns

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This morning, the staff were greeted by cloudy skies, relatively cool temperatures, and even a tantalizing sprinkle of rain.

The overcast weather created a welcome break from the blistering sun and oppressive heat of the past few days. With the worst of the Northwest’s heat wave now seemingly behind us, the sanctuary’s chimpanzee residents have resumed their routine of patrolling the outdoor enclosures, lounging in the greenhouses, and playfully chasing their caregivers between areas. We humans also appreciated the respite as opportunity to properly ventilate the Chimp House and get some chores done outside.

Negra lounging in her group’s greenhouse
Cy sitting in the Oakwood Greenhouse
Jody peering over at the neighbors
Foxie playing with a favorite doll
Gordo hanging out in the Riverview Greenhouse
Raspberries growing in the raised beds outside the Chimp House
The chimps looking down at the driveway in the morning
Honey B relaxing in the indoor front rooms
J.B. working on the new enclosure: The Bray

We’re well aware that the nice weather may only be an intermission between difficult times. With the air staying hot and dry and the wind picking up again, the risk of wildfires has dramatically increased in the region. E2xperts are warning of extreme fire danger and have implemented a burn ban for much of eastern and central Washington (including the county where we are located).

Still, we’re quite prepared for fire season and continue to make the property more fire-wise each year. Earlier this summer, we gave the rescued Jersey cattle access to the upper pasture where they can trim down the vegetation that would otherwise be potential fuel. Our ongoing efforts to renovate the outdoor habitats (and add irrigation to both the existing and new areas) will also improve our defensible space around the Chimp House!

Meredith pausing on her way to the upper pasture

Hydration Stations

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Local temperatures are expected to reach (or exceed) 99°F for the rest of this week. For comparison, NOAA reports that our average high for the month of July is only 80°F.

“Big yikes.”

When the weather gets this hot, our staff deftly adjusts the daily routine to keep the residents cool, comfortable and entertained throughout the day.

One popular activity is drinking from improvised hydration stations (i.e., containers of cold water). Sometimes, we add pieces of fruit or chunks of ice for the chimpanzees to fish out and snack on. Occasionally, we also mix in a little bit of Gatorade® powder to create a diluted sports drink.* The chimps always have access to fresh running water via the Lixit® drinking fountains in each enclosure, but they seem to prefer drinking from the oversized tubs of cool hose water on days like today.

*The best Gatorade flavor is “blue” because it tastes exactly like the color blue.

Cy

I took some photos of the chimps in Cy’s group as they utilized the splashy enrichment this afternoon. It can sometimes be difficult to identify them as they lower their faces into the containers, obscuring their distinguishable features.

Gordo

Mave

Willy B

On the other side of the building, the individuals in Jamie’s group had already filled up with hose water and floating berries and were lounging in the cool front rooms. I managed to capture a photo of Foxie in the “studio,” staring back at the camera with doll in hand.

Foxie

Staring Contest

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Honey B’s spicy personality includes extra spoonfuls of inquisitiveness and vigilance: two traits that are often expressed through an intense, unblinking stare.

Even when she’s presumed to be resting, we typically encounter her alert and wide-eyed, ready to pop out of her nest at a moment’s notice.

Her resolute gaze is both a beloved quality and a source of comic relief among our on-site personnel and blog readers. One conversation that comes to mind occurred in the comment section under March 14th’s  “Takin’ It Beezy.”

“Speaking of napping….since Honey B is always photographed looking intensely wide awake, I can’t imagine her napping but she has perfected looking quite comfy no matter where she rests.” – Kathleen

“I challenge you all to see who can be the first to get a pic of Beezus actually sleeping!” – Linda C

“yes! I challenge you too! (because I have been wanting someone to stay late and get pictures of their nests and of them sleeping)” – Paulette

Well, Kathleen, Linda and Paulette…

…WE DID IT.

More specifically, I just took an opportunistic portrait of Honey B laying sound asleep in one of the front rooms, comfortably surrounded by old and new friends alike. It warms my heart to see her casually snoozing in proximity to them all. Also, please take note of her adorable freckled eyelids.

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P.S. If you like staring contests just as much as Honey B does, you might want to check out this hilarious YouTube gem from a few years ago: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjY615PZD80

Greenhouse Energy

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Although the next season is still a sunset away, the chimpanzees are already exhibiting typical summer behavior.

This transition has been most notable on warm days when the chimps spend most of their time in the greenhouse areas. The first of these unique enclosures was built shortly after the first group of chimpanzees arrived, and we added the Oakwood Greenhouse and Riverview Greenhouse just last year. These enclosures offer the best elements of the indoors and outdoors, especially when a few select panels are removed from the outside and the cool breezes can pass through. It’s not surprising that the residents choose to hang out in those spaces more often than not during this time of year.

Here are some photos of the chimpanzees enjoying their favorite summer digs.

Annie letting a foot hang off the edge of the platform
Willy B
Gordo
Dora (left) grooms Mave (center) while Rayne (right) sits nearby
Missy
Gordo
Annie
Burrito (right) and Foxie (left) grooming each other
Burrito returning to the greenhouse after racing around Young’s Hill
Foxie
Cy looks down at caregivers from an elevated area
Jody
Gordo
Negra
Jody

The 2022 Trifecta Jubilee

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As many of you are aware, June 13th has been a special day for the sanctuary for a long time.

On this date in 2008, the first group of rescued chimpanzees (the iconic “Cle Elum Seven”) arrived at the sanctuary from a private facility in Pennsylvania.

Among them was the beloved Negra, an older female chimpanzee whose actual birth date is unknown. The team decided that her birthday should be celebrated annually on June 13 and it’s been honored as sanctuary tradition ever since. What better day to recognize the passing of years than the day that she reached her permanent home?

Negra

The Seven were the only official residents of the sanctuary until 2018 when we welcomed four rescued Jersey cattle to the property. Chimpanzees Honey B, Mave and Willy B followed close behind; they were transferred from the closed Wildlife Waystation in the summer of 2019. When it was formally arranged that we would receive another group from the Waystation in 2021, we were surprised to see that one of the individuals, adult male Terry, coincidentally had June 13th listed as his date of birth. It’s almost as if we needed another reason to pop champagne on a random day in early summer…

Terry

With so much going on, it is no longer fitting to just call today’s event “The Queen’s Brunch” (as we did last year and the year before). Instead, this year’s bash was dubbed the Trifecta Jubilee (thanks to Kathleen Corby for that winning name and the graphic to go along with it!) to reflect today’s joyous confluence of three major anniversaries. The party menu featured many of Negra’s favorite foods, including oat waffles, peanut butter smoothie, whole leeks, fingerling potatoes, Brussels sprouts, and sparkling cider. (As for Terry, let’s just say that he’s not a picky eater and seems happy to be there regardless.)

Notably, the Trifecta is also precursor to the much-anticipated HOOT! 2022, our first in-person gala since 2019! You can visit the event’s official web page to learn more and buy tickets: https://chimpsnw.org/events/hoot-2022/

So, on this blustery thirteenth day of June of the year 2022, we’re not just celebrating Negra’s 49th, Terry’s 32nd, or the sanctuary’s 14th…

We’re toasting to the entire past, present, and future of the sanctuary and the twenty magnificent individuals who call it their home!

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Days like today are only possible because of the generous donors who follow, support, and love the organization. Officially, three donors chose to independently sponsor today: Debbie Reintzell (in memory of Terry Lee and Theresa Hood), Tami Roy (in honor of The Queen herself), and Paulette Wrisley on behalf of the birthday chimps! We are eternally grateful to all of them- and all of you- for helping us to throw a birthday bash worthy of these amazing individuals.