Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Diana

Morning Exploration

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On these summer mornings, when there’s still a slight coolness to the air and the sun is low in the sky, the chimpanzees often explore the outdoor habitat. They head out on their own, in pairs, or sometimes as a group, generally splitting off to do some private exploration. They go to the top of the towers to see if the landscape has changed, and they pick edible plants for an after-breakfast snack.

We don’t often get photos of this morning exploration because the humans are busy starting the cleaning for the day.

Today, however, we have a full house of volunteers! I took advantage of the help and went to the top of the observation tower to take a few photos while Deb, Lynn, Rachel, and Dusty scrubbed and disinfected the playroom.

I had to use the telephoto lens to identify the tiny specs of chimps in the distance and even that lens wasn’t able to zoom in very close with the chimps at the very top of the two-acre enclosure. They would sometimes disappear completely, hidden by the tall summer grass. I love watching them out on their own with no concern for the human activity in the building, just soaking in the day.

 

Missy and Annie:

missy and annie on tower

missy and annie on bridge

 

Missy:

missy holding structure

missy on mound

 

Missy and Annie heading back to the greenhouse:

missy and annie coming back to greenhouse

 

Jody foraging for prickly lettuce:

jody foraging

jody with weeds

 

Jamie doing her own thing:

jamie tightrope walking

 

the privilege of being a caregiver

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I first started working with chimpanzees in 1998, and I have been with the Cle Elum Seven for the entirety of their life at the sanctuary, even meeting them before they arrived on June 13, 2008.

And I still can’t believe that I have the privilege of caring for these amazing, playful, temperamental, intelligent, sensitive, wild, unpredictable, joyful, unique people.

Missy making choices

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Last night, Dr. Steve Ross from Lincoln Park Zoo spoke at nearby Central Washington University. He was invited by the Primate Awareness Network, which is a CWU student organization affiliated with the Primate Behavior and Ecology (PBE) program.

This is a really unique program, so I’m going to take a moment to give it some advertising. It’s the only program that I’m aware of in the country that offers an undergraduate degree in Primate Behavior. A master’s degree is also offered, and now there’s yet a third option for those who are seeking formal education in primate care – a certificate program that provides students with all skills and experiences listed by the International Primatological Society for Animal Technician, and some skills and experiences listed for Senior Animal Technician.

All of the staff who work at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest have been trained at some level at CWU. J.B. and I met there when we were enrolled in the graduate level program many, many years ago when there were still chimpanzees on campus (the last of the group of five chimpanzees who were part of the Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute at CWU, Tatu and Loulis, now live with other chimpanzees at the Fauna Foundation, Canada’s only chimpanzee sanctuary).

Our sanctuary now works closely with the PBE program, offering intern credit for students who volunteer at the sanctuary. This gives students an opportunity to gain hands-on experience caring for primates while learning about their behavior. J.B. is an adjunct professor within the anthropology department and teaches a course on primate care.

Dr. Ross’s talk last night was about applied animal welfare, in other words, using behavioral research and data collection to gain information about primates that can be directly used to inform captive management decisions to improve individual welfare.

Dr. Ross stressed the importance of recognizing individual differences and letting the individuals tell you what they need and want based on their behavior.

And that brings me to my very informal observation of one of the individuals at CSNW today: Missy

 

As Jamie and Burrito were leading me on a walk around the 2-acre hill enclosure (me on the outside of the electric fence, of course), and Negra was taking a nap in the very warm greenhouse, Missy was out and about on her own mission to find and eat wild plants. She traversed across the hill, stopping occasionally to sample a bit of greenery.

 

 

It might be said that Missy has a bit more “wild and free” in her than some of the other chimpanzees. She is comfortable exploring on her own within the landscape of her little piece of nature, while some of the other chimpanzees seem to prefer to the company of others, or, like Negra, choose to venture out only when they are motivated to find a very particular plant during a very particular season.

Choice. This, above all else, is what increases primate welfare the most. When you think about it, much of what we share on the blog are the choices that the chimpanzees are freely making on a daily basis.

 

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HOOT! Sponsors: Merritt and John Atwood

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This is the seventh in our series of blog posts celebrating sponsors of the HOOT! 2017 Spring Fling gala.

Past posts celebrated Poppoff, Inc., Martha Faulkner Real Estate, Darwin’s Natural Pet Products, Jennifer and David Roers, Tracy Headley, and Pam Lehnert & Marc Warner.

 

Today is in honor of HOOT! sponsors Merritt and John Atwood.

 

Merritt shared how she learned about the sanctuary and why she supports the chimps.

 

“I first heard of CSNW in 2010 when I saw an article in the Seattle Times  (I think). Always an animal lover, I wanted to help.  What a great mission: to care for chimpanzees who had been caged up for years and used for biomedical research.”

And she has been a loyal donor ever since!

Merritt spends much of her time helping animals. She was a long time volunteer at the Humane Society in Bellevue, WA. Then, after moving to Whidbey Island, she became a supporter of Whidbey Animals’ Improvement Foundation (WAIF). She is now in the 9th year on their board and is as committed as ever to bettering the lives of animals.

Merritt hasn’t visited Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest in person, but she follows along on social media, as I know most of you out there do too.

When presented with one of the most challenging questions there is: Who is your favorite chimpanzee?, her response was: “It’s really hard to say which chimpanzee is my favorite.  Maybe Burrito for holding his own with all the ladies,  and looking as though he is enjoying himself immensely!”

Based on the video posted yesterday of Burrito playing with Foxie, I would say the assessment of his enjoyment is pretty accurate.

In true animal-lover form, rather than sending me a photo of herself and John, Merritt shared photos of her beloved companion animals.

 

This is sweet Nelson, who came from WAIF and passed away last year:

 

And this is Henrietta, who the Atwoods brought to their home in 2009 from Seattle Purebred Dog Rescue. She is about 12 years old now:

I have absolutely loved doing these HOOT! sponsor posts. It’s uplifting to me to share information about caring people and to be able to thank them for their generosity in this way, and I’ve learned new things about each of them in the process.

Big thanks to Merritt and John for your support of the Cle Elum Seven chimpanzees and for all that you have done for animals in your local communities – you have made a tangible difference in so many ways.

 

The 2017 HOOT! Spring Fling is just a few days away! There’s still time to support the event with your donation, and there are just a few seats left if you’ve been procrastinating buying tickets. Anyone can also preview auction items and put in absentee bids on three items right here.

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HOOT! Sponsors: Poppoff, Inc.

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Today is in honor of HOOT! sponsor Poppoff, Inc.

This is the sixth in our series of blog posts celebrating sponsors of the HOOT! 2017 Spring Fling gala.

Past posts celebrated Martha Faulkner Real Estate, Darwin’s Natural Pet Products, Jennifer and David Roers, Tracy Headley, and Pam Lehnert & Marc Warner.

 

Poppoff Logo

Poppoff, Inc. is a family-owned concrete contracting business based in Washington, though they work all over the world.

 

Gay Dorsey, wife to Mike Poppoff, was the first to become aware of the chimpanzee sanctuary. She learned about the chimps when former executive director Sarah read her fashion blog “Not Quite Palm Springs” and decided Jamie should be featured because of her wardrobe of cowboy boots, scarves, and tutus (yes, Jamie used to wear tutus quite a bit – we are happy that her fashion sense has evolved since those days).

Gay had no idea that there were chimpanzee living so close to her Yakima-area home, and when Sarah invited the Poppoff family for a visit, Gay fell in love with the chimpanzees immediately. Her favorite chimp is Missy because she’s fun-loving and friendly.

Missy with sunflowers

Gay later served as a dedicated board member for the sanctuary, which she described as being, “an eye-opening, educational opportunity.”

Not long after that initial introduction and visit, the Poppoff’s graciously offered their professional services to help with the construction of the greenhouse “human area” when we converted the chimps’ original outdoor space into a greenhouse.

 

greenhouse construction

 

Here is Matt Poppoff (right), who now helps to run the company, demonstrating his dedication to the sanctuary by working on a cold day:

matt working

 

When Matt first visited the sanctuary he thought it was so cool that there were retired lab chimps in his own “backyard” of Cle Elum, then he gained even greater respect for Jamie because Jaime spit on Matt’s sister Julie during a visit – rising Jamie to the rank of Matt’s favorite chimpanzee of the group (a spot previously held by Burrito because Matt lives with three women and gives props to Burrito for living with six!)

 

A few years later, Mike (Poppoff Sr.) and Matt arranged for a Poppoff, Inc. crew to install sidewalks at the chimp house. The staff and volunteers were incredibly excited about these sidewalks, and we are still so thankful for them. I personally have been known to go into a zen-like trance when shoveling or sweeping the sidewalks – something that is just not possible when dealing with dirt pathways.

The main purpose of the sidewalks was not so much to bring me personal peace and mindfulness, but to allow us to be able to wheel a stretcher carrying an immobilized chimpanzee from the building to the back of the trailer, where our current veterinary clinic is located. We’ve done this three times now for necessary medical procedures, and the sidewalks have made all of the difference in the world.

 

sidewalks

When I asked Mike, Gay, and Matt why the have chosen to support the sanctuary and the HOOT! event, this is what they had to say:

 

Gay: “We love supporting the sanctuary because we know how you & J.B. manage the donations to stretch as far as possible. We know our donations will be wisely and well spent with the well-being of our chimps being the first and only priority, and we are so excited to see the expansion of the sanctuary!”
Matt: “We we always do and it’s an amazing cause even if we cannot attend the event.”

 

Mike: “You have given these chimps much better lives than they had for decades. It is so neat to see them grow and become much happier at the Sanctuary. This is all because of you and your staff’s unwavering dedication to do what is right for the chimps. I know that every dollar that we donate to CSNW is used wisely and is not wasted on things that are not needed. You guys spend the money you receive very wisely. I don’t know how you do it all with such a small budget. CSNW is not a money crunching machine like many non profits are. And it’s nice that you are soooooo appreciative to every donor that helps. We are very glad to be able to help out.”

 

And that made me cry a little.

 

Thank you, Gay, Mike, Matt, Amber, Julie, and everyone at Poppoff, Inc. for all of your past support, including your Chimpanzee Champion level HOOT! 2017 sponsorship. We are over-the-moon grateful for all you’ve done for the sanctuary and the chimpanzees here.

 

Speaking of HOOT! – there are three items available online for absentee bidding that are part of the auction items available at the gala event next week.

 

Anyone anywhere can now place their highest bid on these three things right now: