Even the boss has to kick back sometimes:
It’s Gabriela LaChappelle’s Birthday!
Keith‘s daughter, Gabriela, is turning 17 today! I can hardly believe it!! Keith is the founder of CSNW, so I’ve known Gabby since 2003 when I first moved to Washington and started working with the chimps at Central Washington University. She’s a beautiful girl (woman!?) with a silly spirit and always has a smile on her face (and if there’s not one, I can make it happen :). I love her and her brother Teddy so much, and think of all of the LaChappelle family as part of my west coast family. So, the happiest of birthdays to you, Gabby! Hope you come visit your friends in Cle Elum soon!
Here’s a photo of one of my favorite moments with Gabby’s favorite chimp, Foxie:
WAKE UP!
I never really know what I’m in for when I arrive at the sanctuary in the mornings. Sometimes the chimps are all grumpy– maybe they had a fight the night before or just don’t feel like getting out of bed– and sometimes they are playful goofs. Othertimes, it’s a mixture of both. When I arrived the other day, I was happy to start the day off by witnessing this:
Foxie, up close
Not only do we have an awesome camera (thanks to our awesome board of directors), but we also have some really photogenic chimps! Here’s an up close photo of Foxie, who was keeping a close eye on the boss, Jamie.
In addition to keeping her eye on her boss, she’s also been keeping her eye on this troll doll for the last two days:
Sweet Jody
On a warm day, Jody loves having the barn doors open. She seems to love the fresh air and the view, and as soon as we open them up for the day, she usually starts going around the playroom collecting as many blankets as possible and makes a giant nest right next to them, either in the sun or where ever she can get the most breeze. Here are a few photos I took of her the other day doing just that in a nest of about 15 blankets.
Today is for Marie Cross!
Today is avid chimp fan and Cle Elum Seven friend, Marie Cross’ birthday, and her husband, Peter, sponsored today in honor of her. The couple has been following us closely on our blog, as well as on Facebook and Twitter, for about a year now, and have, of course, fallen in love with the “magnificent seven”.
We just can’t thank you two enough for supporting the chimps and we wish you the best of birthdays, Marie! As you said to Jody on her Facebook Page on her birthday: “you deserve a million roses on your special day xxx”.
These boots were made for walkin’
Jamie loves her cowboy boots and will often do everything in her power to cram her extra-wide feet into them, no matter what sized boot it is (I’ve seen her try to squeeze her foot into a size 5 boot!). Therefore, supporter Chris Frutiger is Jamie’s new best friend. Chris made a connection with an Australian-based company called Vegan Wares, which sells top quality vegan footwear and accessories, and convinced them to make a pair of custom-sized boots for Jamie. Chris and her husband, Dave delivered them to the sanctuary yesterday– we were all so excited!
(**Please keep in mind that Jamie always has the choice to wear the boots or not. We neither encourage or discourage- see this blog post regarding our take on chimpanzees wearing clothes**)
Since they are wider than most, the boots were made with no sole, which made them easy to roll up and fit through the caging:
It was slightly unusual that Jamie didn’t try them on right away– perhaps she just wanted to thoroughly inspect them first:
She carried them around with her for the rest of the day- nesting with them, inspecting them, smelling them, putting her hand in and out of them, and carrying them around in her pelvic pocket.
But from the moment I arrived this morning until about noon, Jamie was wearing them… and seemed pretty happy about it.
Thanks so much to Vegan Wares for creating the perfect Jamie boot, and to Chris, who spearheaded the whole project! We are all so grateful!! CSNW has the best supporters– is it possible to say that too much? I don’t think so.
