Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Diana

Browsing

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As you probably know, the Cle Elum Seven love food. Most of their diet at the sanctuary consists of fresh fruits and vegetables, plus nuts and seeds and primate chow, but they also enjoy chewing and wadging on browse (I just looked this up – Merriam-Webster defines browse as, “tender shoots, twigs, and leaves of trees and shrubs used by animals for food.”)

I know we’ve defined wadging on the blog a few times before. Here’s one post that mentions it. Maybe some of you avid blog followers can find the other posts that talk about wadges and wadging – the Merriam-Webster definition, shockingly, doesn’t cover chimp wadging. Basically it’s when chimps gather up food, browse, or even paper or cardboard, put it between their lower lip and bottom teeth and suck the juices out. Sometimes they add a bit of water to the mix. If they are wadging a food like primate chow, they will eventually ingest it, but often they just spit out the wadge when they’ve finished getting the good stuff out.

J.B. recently bought some loose alfalfa and some condensed cubes of alfalfa, and the chimps have been enjoying both. Providing the chimps with browse is great because it’s not only potentially nutritious, but it also creates a time consuming activity.

Below are a series of photos of Missy in a window sill perch going down to get some more alfalfa and bringing it back up to her spot:

missy sit window sill

missy swing down

missy walk annie sit

missy get alfalfa

missy turn, alfalfa in mouth

missy swing alfalfa in mouth

missy climb alfalfa in mouth

missy chew alfalfa

missy enjoy alfalfa in window sill

 

and here are a couple of photos of Jody from today chewing on some alfalfa cubes:

Jojdy chew alfalfa cube

jody chew alfalfa cubes close up

Nesting in the Cabin!

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We are having another spring-like day at the sanctuary today. I can’t tell you how great it feels! I just got back from playing a very exhausting game of chase with Jamie. She wanted me to chase her while I was holding a very specific pair of boots that her friend Wanda T. sent her recently. While I was being run around the outside of the fence by Jamie and then Missy, J.B. was taking some photos. And, guess what? Annie was making the first nest we’ve seen anyone make in Negra’s cabin!

annie nesting in Negra's cabin

Annie was repeatedly distracted by Missy, who kept coming by and inviting Annie to chase and wrestle, but J.B. said Annie went back a few times to work on her nest.

Today is just the kind of day that is perfect for Negra’s Cabin. With the lexan walls blocking the wind and maximizing the warmth of the sun, it’s the coziest spot on the hill. We definitely still have some winter ahead of us, but the first nest in the cabin is a hopeful sign of spring days to come!

Speaking of the cabin – the sign is almost done and will be installed soon! The sign has all of the names of those who donated towards our 4th Anniversary Fundraising, helping to exceed our goal amount so we could spend a little of that raised to build Negra’s cabin. Thank you to everyone who contributed to that fundraising campaign. It’s probably one of the most unique cabins ever built, and we can’t wait to see the chimps, maybe even Negra, spending time out there soaking up the sun. It’s truly amazing what we’ve been able to give the chimpanzees since their arrival, and it’s all because of you.

Here are some sneak peak photos of the sign:

Negra's Cabin donor sign 1

Negra's cabin sign 2

Captivity

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We’ve been talking a lot about Jamie recently. She provides us with a lot to talk about, both on this blog and amongst the staff and volunteers at the sanctuary. We’ve told you about her artistic side, her love of cowboy boots, the challenges she presents to her caregivers to keep her busy mind active, and we’ve reflected on her complicated personality. There’s one thing that I sometimes mention to people when talking about Jamie in person. It’s something that I was thinking about as I took the photos below, and I don’t think I’ve shared it on the blog yet. So here it is –

I think Jamie is acutely aware of her captivity. I don’t say this about all of the chimpanzees. I don’t think Foxie, for example, with her goofy, please-everyone personality, thinks about how unfair it is that she is on the other side of the fencing from the humans, that we make a lot of decisions for her, and that we go off somewhere else at the end of the day. It’s impossible to know for sure, but I believe Jamie is very aware of all of these things, and she knows it’s not fair. I agree with her. Chimpanzees don’t belong in captivity. We do the best we possibly can with the resources we have to provide a happy life for the Cle Elum Seven, but we could never provide them with everything, especially the true freedom that they deserve (If you’re wondering why we don’t offer the chimps more freedom, take a look at this blog post and the link in it about the true nature of chimpanzees).

But things are getting better. More and more people are accepting the simple truth that chimpanzees don’t belong in captivity. The release of the NIH Council of Councils working group report the other day could be a watershed moment for chimpanzees in biomedical research in the United States, and the growing awareness of who chimpanzees are and what they deserve has played a huge role in this moment. It’s the countdown to the end of chimpanzees in biomedical research, and, in fact, someone is counting down – Lori Gruen launched a new website today called the Last 1,000. It is a list of all of the chimpanzees still in research and a tracking of these individuals from lab to sanctuary by highlighting their name or number in green. Lori’s already been able to highlight some of the chimpanzees who went from New Iberia to Chimp Haven just this week.

Though chimpanzees do not belong in captivity, those who are deserve the best quality of life we can provide them. Thank you for being a part of providing for Jamie.

Jamie top of structure in greenhouse

Jamie profile close up

Jamie side glance

jamie eyes closed

showing off sanctuary merchandise

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Every once in a while supporters send us photos of Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest merchandise that they’ve purchased. I love seeing the chimps represented in people’s private homes or office spaces (or, in the case of clothing, on people). Here are a couple of recent images that we’ve received.

Here’s a 2013 calendar in the kitchen of the Edwards all the way in the UK! The calendar was a surprise gift and actually served as an introduction to the sanctuary for both the gifter and the giftee. (In case you’re wondering, we do still have a few 2013 calendars left, so get yours before they’re all gone).

Edwards' CSNW 2013 calendar

And this is from a little while ago, but one of my favorite images because supporter Debbie C. personalized what she purchased. She had one of Jamie’s art prints framed, alongside a photo of Jamie and her artist’s bio that came with the art print. It makes me so happy to think of Debbie seeing Jamie everyday like this.

Jamie print framed

Team Burrito Wins

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Burrito is sending a great big thank you to everyone who donated towards Team Burrito! He is now officially the Team Chimp winner, and aptly so with his 30th birthday happening tomorrow. We received 17 donations or pledges yesterday, totaling $1,200. One generous donation was “from” a dog named after a chimpanzee! I know I’ve said this before, but the Cle Elum Seven have the very best supporters. Burrito has quite a few admirers, and if you’re not yet one of them, below are some photos from over the years which will surely win you over. A big thank you to all who participated in the Team Chimp fundraising, making every one of the chimpanzees winners.

web burrito popper toy cute funny playroom PR _MG_5864 web burrito missy playface close up cute greenhouse gh IMG_6951 Burrito with peas web burrito popper toy cute funny poke playroom PR _MG_5881 web Burrito sit arms crossed cute framed by ladder gh IMG_8975 web Burrito cute face hold coconut birthday party playroom IMG_0022 burrito biting log Burrito eating snow web Burrito cute toy outdoor area greenhouse DSC_0804 burrito-cute-with-chow burrito hugging coconut web Burrito cute face greenhouse outdoor area IMG_0839

burrtio end of plank web Burrito Annie hug Negra foreground youngs hill release day first time yh DSC_0740 Burrito in the distance young's hill web Burrito eat snow Young's Hill YH IMG_0125 web Burrito sit in Negra's cabin blanket hold chow look at camera Young's Hill YH IMG_9701web Burrito platform on back Foxie Jamie YH IMG_0868 web Burrito sit on beam YH IMG_8894 burrito eating grass web Burrito sun in face YH IMG_1042 web Burrito stand on log YH IMG_8414

Burrito in box close-up web Burrito close-up greenhouse GH IMG_3639

Team Burrito

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Although the Team Chimp fundraising was set to end on December 31st, we’re still getting donations (thank you, everyone!) so I wanted to set one last goal and see if we can reach it by Burrito’s 30th birthday this Sunday.

Team Burrito is just $355 away from winning the contest – let’s get him there! A donation of $65 will pay for his heart medication for one month. So, the initial goal is to raise $355 so Team Burrito can win the contest by his birthday, and the stretch goal is to have enough donations to pay for his medication for one year – $780 total. I’m going to start by pledging $30 in honor of his 30th birthday. Will you consider making a $30 or a $65 donation for Mr. B? I will update this page in the comments section as donations come in; feel free to leave your birthday message for Burrito there too!

How can you resist when you  look at the photo below? This is the photo for January in the 2013 calendar, so many of you have it hanging by you right now:

Burrito - January calendar photo

Happy Birthday, Tracy Headley!

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Today was sponsored by Elizabeth Porter as a gift to her daughter, Tracy Headley. Tracy is a fan of Foxie, so I found a few photos of Foxie to go with the blog post.

Tracy will be happy to know that Foxie had a really great day today. I put a big bucket of snow in one of the front rooms and Foxie snacked from the bucket all afternoon (troll dolls in hand, of course). At one point, Foxie noticed that the cover of the television was partially removed. When I asked her if she wanted to watch a movie and moved toward the t.v., Foxie became really excited. So I put in a dvd that included some Dora the Explorer episodes. She was so immersed in the cartoons, that she barely noticed lunch being served by volunteer caregiver Connie. Foxie also played chase with Jamie and Missy.

All in all, I’d say Foxie had a great day. We hope you did too, Tracy! Thank you and your mom for being such great supporters of Foxie and her friends. Happy Birthday!
foxie with new trolls

web for tracy Foxie sit playroom troll doll pr IMG_0142

web Foxie string of trolls5_MG_2561

web Foxie throw blue troll doll in air about to catch playroom IMG_0100

web for tracy Foxie troll doll look close enrichment party birthday outdoor area sent to birthday donors IMG_5403