Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Diana

Boat Bumper Ball Antics

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One of the first nearly chimp-proof enrichment items the chimpanzees had after arriving to the sanctuary was a “boat bumper” donated by long-time supporter Kathy Benson, who found it at a garage sale.

Below is a photo of Annie (yawning) holding the toy. This was taken in July of 2008, less than a month after the chimpanzees arrived.

Annie with boat bumper

 

Recently, I searched on amazon for the same thing, remembering how much fun it had been for the chimps all those years ago. It turns out the big ones are fairly expensive, and I didn’t know if it would last as long, so I opted to get a small version and see how things went…

 

I do like how portable this version is –

MIssy carrying boat bumper

but given Jamie and Missy’s keen interest in “opening” the ball, I’m not sure how long it will last. What do you think?

The Winter’s Calm for One Chimpanzee

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I think that of all of the seven chimpanzees at the sanctuary, Annie could be described as most like a poet. She can frequently be seen in serene moments by herself, seemingly lost in thought.

Today, while I was busy filming Missy in the greenhouse, I realized that Annie had been outside for quite some time alone, so I ventured into the snow to see what she was up to.

To highlight her inner poetic nature, I found this poem to pair with the photos of Annie below:


Winter is the slow-down
Winter is the search for self
Winter gives the silence you need to listen
Winter goes gray so you can see your own colors…
~Terri Guillemets

 

Annie snow background

 

Annie look away

 

Annie profile 2

 

Annie sit

 

 

Annie profile, arms crossed

 

Annie look camera

Top Videos of 2015!?

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The other day, I was looking back on the year and watched a few of our videos from 2015. I had this idea to compile some of my favorites and/or some of the most popular videos from the year in a blog post.

This turned out to be harder than I thought it would be. I really love all of the videos for different reasons, so the narrowing down process was not easy.

But, here goes…

Epic tug o’ war session between Foxie and Jamie:

 

Burrito and his stuffed gorilla friend:

 

The new structure completed in the spring:

 

Burrito playing with staff caregiver Keri:

 

This one of Negra simply because she is was so happy on her birthday:

 

Foxie being oh so very Foxie:

 

This one due to the pumpkin thieving incident:

 

I really think that this one is near the top of the list, even though J.B. put it together just a week ago for Christmas:

 

OMG – this one, especially beginning at the 2:01 mark:

 

Okay – I really could just to on and on. The positive reinforcement training videos are also great, and the video of the process we go through when Jamie wants to take a walk around the hill. And so many videos of the chimpanzees enjoying food. And several videos of Missy and Annie playing. And…

 

Did I miss your favorite? Let me know – I’m curious to hear from the chimps’ fans. You can go to our You Tube channel and take a look at 7+ years of video!

 

Winter Beauty

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We’ve had our first real snowstorm this week. Here are some scenery shots:

The bench outside of the greenhouse, used for observing the chimpanzees during summer months when the greenhouse panels are removed:

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Negra’s cabin (the triangular structure) and the bamboo and climbing structures in the background:

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The lexan-enclosed human area of the greenhouse:

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The snow falls off the roof of the greenhouse and creates snow banks that require frequent shoveling:

web_snow_winter_property_bank_outside_greenhouse_dg_IMG_7216

 

This is what I saw Missy doing most of the day:

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For a quick video of Jamie’s snow-eating technique, take a look at our instagram account (@ChimpSanctuary)

 

The Carrot Saga

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Usually, when we serve the chimpanzees a meal the food disappears right away. With some food items and some individuals, however, the food is not eaten as quickly. This is often the case with Jamie and carrots.

Today, Jamie brought her large carrot from lunch into the playroom. In the process of eating this carrot, several pieces dropped to the floor.

Jamie sitting with carrot

 

It was unclear if these were discarded pieces or if Jamie intended to eat them later:

Carrot pieces up close

 

Missy decided to find out, but she knows Jamie probably better than anyone, so she proceeded with caution. Her first movement toward the carrot pieces turned into grooming Jamie’s hand instead.

Missy reaching for carrot

 

Missy grooming Jamie's hand

 

Several minutes later, she made another very slow move towards the pieces of carrots as Jamie watched:

Missy going for carrot

 

This was Jamie’s reaction:

Jamie fear grimace

 

So Missy immediately reached to groom Jamie to reassure her that she didn’t intend to overstep her bounds and her respect for boss Jamie remains at the highest level:

Missy grooms Jamie's head

Missy reaching for Jamie

 

Jamie responded by reciprocating the grooming, letting Missy know that all was forgiven:

Jamie and Missy groom up close

 

Annie was interested in the carrot saga too, and watched as Missy continued to groom Jamie:

Missy grooming Jamie

 

I kept my eye on things for 20 minutes or so, but I’m not sure how the saga ended. Jamie may have decided to let Missy or another chimpanzees take the pieces she had left, or she may have continued to guard them and ate them herself. This is the delicate treading that we all do with boss Jamie, as J.B. eloquently described in his blog post “The Power of Personality” yesterday.

Jamie laying with carrot

Pick your favorite November unseen photo

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Going through the photos from this month, I found some gems that hadn’t been posted of each of the chimpanzees. There seems to be a yellow theme going on. Do you have a favorite?

 

ANNIE:

Annie on yellow blanket

 

BURRITO:

Burrito pilo

 

BONUS BURRITO:

Burrito sitting on post

 

FOXIE:

Foxie in the rain

 

JAMIE:

Jamie sitting on chair

 

JODY:

Jody nesting

 

MISSY:

Missy in profile

 

NEGRA:

Negra side glance

 

BONUS – ANNIE & MISSY running together:

Missy Annie running behind

Take Action: Trunk Monkey Ads

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Take Action Tuesday banner

 

Today, we’re asking for your help. We’ve reached out to the Suburban Auto Group multiple times over the years about their “Trunk Monkey” ads using chimpanzees who were abused during their years in entertainment.

 

web_chimp-driving-car-trunk-monkey-no-sign copy     No Trunk Monkey

 

Instead of listening to our concerns, retiring the old and tired campaign, and coming up with more creative advertising, the car dealership outside of Portland, Oregon keeps bringing the Trunk Monkey ads back.

Please help us in continuing to reach out to them today by learning more and sending a polite email to Erinn Sowle, Suburban Auto Group’s general manager, via this page.

Thank you for speaking out and sharing the action alert with your contacts. Your voice makes a difference!