Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

J.B.

Jamie’s exam

by

A while back, Jamie developed an abscess on her swelling that would not resolve. Thanks to our positive reinforcement training program, Jamie was letting Diana flush the wound twice a day with an antibiotic solution, but unfortunately it still wasn’t healing. So today, with the help of our wonderful vet, Dr. Erin Zamzow, and the long-distance support of board member Dr. Mensching, we decided to anesthetize Jamie to get a better look.

To say that Jamie was cooperative would be an understatement – it’s more like she’s a part of the veterinary team. We always have to isolate chimpanzees prior to anesthesia so that we can make sure they have an empty stomach and most chimpanzees quickly figure out what’s in store for them. As you can imagine, that can be quite stressful and scary. But Jamie spent the entire morning playing with her caregivers, seemingly without a care in the world. When the time came to induce anesthesia, she willingly presented her arm to Diana for injection.

Along with Dr. Zamzow, we were so grateful to have help today from Dr. Fuller of Ellensburg Animal Hospital, who brought a digital x-ray machine so that we could determine the extent of the wound and ensure there wasn’t a foreign body inside.

All in all it was good news: the injury wasn’t as extensive as we feared, and the x-rays all looked good. Dr. Zamzow was able to sterilize the wound and Diana will continue with the cooperative treatments until Jamie is fully healed. Right now, Jamie is enjoying some quiet time by herself in a room filled with blankets, with waiters on hand to give her sips of Gatorade whenever she desires.

When we are done with procedures, we position the chimps in a way that protects their airway as they recover, and to facilitate this we lay them on a couple of scarves with the ends passed through the caging so that we can gently roll them back into position if they slump over the wrong way. As soon as Jamie was up and about, she put a scarf right back to use as a fashion accessory. You can tell she’s feeling better already.

Jamie_recover_scarf_drink_gatorade_FR1_jb

 

 

The view from the top

by

It’s not uncommon to find Missy on one of the towers at the top of Young’s Hill, just taking in the view.

web_Missy_sit_tower_look_at_camera_YH_jb_IMG_4688

web_Missy_lookout_tower_YH_jb_IMG_4690

web_Missy_enjoy_view_tower_YH_jb_IMG_4702

Jody tagged along with Missy on one of her little adventures this afternoon.

web_Jody_Missy_walk_bridge_new_towers_YH_jb_IMG_4719

web_Missy_Carelenes_tower_YH_jb_IMG_4742

web_Jody_look_at_camera_bridge_new_towers_YH_jb_IMG_4731

web_Missy_climb_down_carlenes_tower_YH_jb_IMG_4746

On the way back down, Jody made sure to grab a snack to bring back to the greenhouse.

web_Jody_bamboo_in_mouth_YH_jb_IMG_4766

web_Jody_more_bamboo_in_mouth_YH_jb_IMG_4770

When we got to the bottom of the hill, I got what I’m pretty sure is the world’s only photo of a chimpanzee watching an elk watching the UPS man (you may have to look closely to find Ellie in the middle).

web_cropped_Jamie_watching_Ellie_watching_UPS_man_jb_IMG_4713

Trust

by

It takes a lot of trust for two chimpanzees to play together. Many play behaviors are variations on fighting behaviors – chasing, wrestling, stealing, slapping, hitting, etc. – and as play gets more aggressive, it’s easy to misunderstand your partner’s intentions. When the chimps first arrived at the sanctuary, Foxie and Annie would occasionally attempt to play, and it almost always ended up as a fight. They just didn’t have enough trust in one another.

Things sure have changed.

web_Foxie_and_Annie_on_platform_pasture_in_background_trolls_YH_jb_IMG_6529

web_Annie_and_Foxie_with_troll_logs_YH_jb_IMG_4841

I wouldn’t say that Foxie and Annie are best friends now, but they certainly have come to understand each other more and they even engage in rough and tumble play from time to time without it erupting into a conflict. This morning, Foxie even allowed Annie to playfully steal (and dismember!) one of her Dora dolls. That’s when you know you are a member of Foxie’s inner circle.

A moment to celebrate

by

In ten days, all invasive research on chimpanzees in the United States will cease. Let that sink in for a minute.

Burrito hugging Foxie

In response to a petition by a coalition of animal welfare groups, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is elevating the status of all chimpanzees to endangered, thereby granting them a greater level of protection. Beginning on September 14th, any activity that causes harm to chimpanzees will require a permit, and permits will only be issued for research that benefits wild chimpanzees or conservation efforts. According to the Humane Society of the United States, the effective deadline for obtaining a permit was today, due to public notice requirements. And as of today, no permits have been issued.

It’s hard to overstate how important this is. For nearly a hundred years, chimpanzees have suffered and died in our pursuit of scientific and medical advancements. Later this month, all invasive research on chimpanzees will, at least for a moment, come to an end. Whether any permits will be requested in the future is uncertain, but this much is clear: the era of widespread chimpanzee research in the United States is over. And that’s worth celebrating.

web_missy annie open mouth kiss

Now we need to get these chimpanzees into sanctuaries. We told you at the beginning of this year about our plans for the future of Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest, and we’re excited to report that, thanks to your generosity, we are ahead of schedule. We’re looking forward to sharing our vision for expanding the sanctuary as it develops and working with you to see it to fruition.

At CSNW, these seven chimpanzees have found a home where they are loved and respected and supported by people around the world. But inside every laboratory, there is a Missy longing to run free, an Annie aching for companionship, a Jody yearning for comfort, a Foxie wishing for someone to play with, a Burrito dreaming of a good meal, a Jamie desperate for a sense of control, and a Negra who wants nothing more than to bask in the sun. They all deserve a life in sanctuary. We, as a community, will make that happen.

Waiting for the rain

by

After a hot, dry, and smoky summer, there’s a chance we will finally get some rain this week. Though we didn’t get any today, the clouds were a nice change of pace and the chimps took advantage of the cooler weather to spend more time outside climbing and foraging.

Annie:

web_Annie_sit_on_beam_bamboo_in_background_YH_jb_IMG_7410

Jamie:

web_Jamie_on_skybridge_YH_jb_IMG_7401

Missy in the foreground, Foxie in the background:

web_Missy_foreground_Foxie_background_YH_jb_IMG_7419

Burrito, Jamie, and Foxie:

web_Jamie_shakey_bridge_Burrito_tower_YH_jb_IMG_7426

Burrito:

web_Burrito_walk_shakey_bridge_towers_YH_jb_IMG_7443

Foxie keeping an eye on the cows:

web_Foxie_look_at_cows_towers_YH_jb_IMG_7430

Jody harvesting bamboo:

web_Jody_eat_bamboo_from_grove_YH_jb_IMG_7479

Jody with a wadge:

web_Jody_with_alfalfa_wadge_YH_jb_IMG_7413

Negra and Jody foraging during lunch:

web_Negra_Jody_forage_YH_jb_IMG_4062

Jody:

web_Jody_stuffed_mouth_YH_jb_IMG_4064

Foxie and Dora’s friend:

web_Foxie_dora_friend_in_mouth_YH_jb_IMG_7506

If you haven’t done it yet, go check out our online auction, which began today at noon. Things are going fast, but there’s still plenty of bidding left!