Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary
Those of you that read this blog regularly know that Foxie has been coming out of her shell. Every day now she seems a little more playful, and this huge personality is emerging from a formerly reserved and guarded chimpanzee.
My favorite part of this video is when Foxie does a “pirhouette”, a behavior more often seen in juvenile chimpanzee play. The “new” Foxie does seem younger.
We were very fortunate to receive another camera lens from our wish list (thank you Stephanie and Kurt!). This is a telephoto lens, so we can get great close-ups. Diana and I tried it out this morning…
Annie:
Annie close up:
Burrito:
Missy:
…and Foxie:
Good news…we’ve purchased the new washer and dryer! Thanks to a fundraising drive initiated by our blog readers, we’ve been able to upgrade our old residential machines to new commercial machines that will save us money and time. Can’t wait until they arrive!
In the lab, Jamie plucked the hair from her belly, possibly from stress or frustration, but more likely due to sheer boredom. She has such an active mind, and it is painful to imagine what she went through day after day such an impoverished environment. Here’s a photo of her on Day 2 of her new life in the sanctuary – if you look closely, you’ll notice the tattoo across her chest (522 – her lab I.D. number):
The moment she arrived at the sanctuary, the plucking stopped. The hair grew back in on her belly and became much thicker overall. Thankfully, the tattoo is getting harder to see. Here are a couple of photos taken this morning:
Yesterday, while we were cleaning the playroom, Jamie amused herself by scribbling with a pen. Even though she’s not drawing anything in particular, you can see that she really enjoys the process. She grips the pen with precision and puts tremendous concentration into her drawing. Diana caught it on video:
Here’s a photo of one of the pages she scribbled on:
And here’s a photo of Jamie drawing, taken by Diana:
Here’s the funniest thing: Last night, while I was doing closing rounds, I went around the building to say goodnight to each of the chimpanzees. Jamie was laying on a bench in one of the front rooms, with blankets pulled up to her chest. But she wasn’t sleeping – she was drawing in bed! I felt like a parent that discovers their kid reading comic books in bed with a flashlight. Of course, Jamie can draw anytime she likes!
One of the most profound experiences of my life was the death of a chimpanzee named Pablo. Pablo was a friend, and it was the first time that a chimpanzee that I had known personally had died, so it was quite difficult emotionally. But it wasn’t the loss that affected me most. Instead, it was the way the other chimpanzees in the group reacted that moved me so deeply. The day he died, I witnessed a chimpanzee funeral. And as far as I’m concerned, I saw the entire range of emotions that would be on display at any human funeral – confusion, grief, anger, denial, and, among the older laboratory veterans, even a wise and knowing acceptance.
The memory of Pablo’s death was evoked today when I read this tribute written by our friend Sheri Speede to a chimpanzee named Dorothy. The letter is touching, and it reflects the compassion that Sheri and the people at Sanaga-Yong bring to their work caring for orphaned and abused chimpanzees. But, similar to my experience with Pablo, what struck me most was the photo of Dorothy’s chimpanzee family watching her burial. I would challenge anyone to see this photo and not be moved.
Chimpanzees are like us in so many ways, as you can see from the photos and videos on this blog. But some of the similarities are so profound as to render the others insignificant. When I think of why chimpanzees deserve our compassion, I think of Pablo’s friends and family, and now, I will think of this photo.
I’ve always loved the way chimpanzees sit. They each seem to have their own unique pose when they’re relaxed. They might cross their arms a certain way, or prop an elbow on their knees – some even clasp their toes together.
