Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary
Chimpanzees are natural foragers, but Burrito also has a little bit of scavenger in him. He can often be found hours after a meal prowling the area for any bits of food the other chimps may have overlooked. Today shortly before lunch, he found a peanut that had been missed at breakfast. A single peanut may not seem like much, but for the guy who lives for food, it’s big news.
I think sanctuary means something different to each of the chimpanzees. To Negra, it means the joy that a single peanut brings.
Negra:
Annie:
Jamie (with Foxie in the background):
Jody:
Burrito:
We have so much to be thankful for today: volunteers Patti, Denice, Sandra, and Joel, who spent their holiday caring for the chimpanzees; supporters like Robert Maurer who sponsored today for the chimps; and all of you out there who love the Cle Elum Seven as much as we do. Happy Thanksgiving!
The majority of the time, chimpanzees are silent.
And they are often sweet and playful.
But chimpanzee behavior is much more complex than that. Adult chimpanzees are many times stronger than the strongest humans, their behavior is unpredictable, and they often solve problems with physical aggression. Whereas a typical human family squabble probably won’t progress beyond hurtful words and some yelling, a chimpanzee family squabble is much more physical, and often includes hitting, kicking, and biting. Outside the family, things often get even more violent. Adult male chimpanzees have been known to patrol the perimeter of their territory and seriously injure or even kill intruders – a behavior they share with their closest living relatives (humans!).
As caregivers, we develop close relationships with the chimps we care for. Much of our time with the chimps is spent in silly games of chase or tug of war, or quiet and gentle bouts of grooming. But we never forget that the Cle Elum Seven are not domesticated and they do not and should not act that way. They are not pets; they are individuals who play by their own set of rules and who don’t belong in our world. The best we can do for them is to celebrate when they act like chimps should, and be grateful that we’re lucky enough to share our lives with these ambassadors from the natural world.
Today has been a day of leisure for Negra (as most of her days are, and should be). She spent most of the morning like this:
She did sit up for a moment to check out what volunteer Erika was up to in the kitchen:
But before long she was back to daydreaming:
Jamie often interrupts our cleaning routine to request a drink of water from the hose. She’s quite persistent; we’re usually not allowed to resume cleaning until she’s had her fill. Today, while Debbie and I were cleaning the front rooms, Jamie distracted us for probably fifteen minutes. We’re happy to serve, of course.
As the least dominant chimpanzee in the group, Annie is often a little anxious (though much less than she was five years ago). So I always love to see her feeling relaxed and confident. One of my favorite Annie quirks is her foot clap, which she often does while relaxing on her back.
