Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary
A week ago, volunteer caregiver Krissy, had a very sweet moment with Terry during cleaning. While interacting with him through the mesh, she began dancing for him and he ended up joining her. I snagged the clips from our camera footage and it is enough to make your day! Enjoy 🙂
It’s World Chimpanzee Day!
Like Katelyn’s blog post from this morning stated, “July 14 has long been a special occasion being the day in 1960 when Dr. Jane Goodall, DBE started her trailblazing research on the wild chimpanzees of Gombe National Park, Tanzania. Over the last half-decade we’ve made it extra special by marking World Chimpanzee Day on this day every year. This year, like every year, is a day of celebration – of chimpanzees and of our collective impact to help save them.”
Today, I’d like to write a few things about each of our fifteen chimpanzee residents so you can further get to know them. These are all my perspectives of the chimps, maybe other staff would describe them differently, so keep that in mind!
ANNIE
Annie is sweet, sensitive, and very aware. She is one of the least dominant chimps in her group, so she hangs back in certain situations. She is tall, walks bipedally through the grass, and makes the sweetest bird sounds with her mouth when she is completely content. Her best friend is Missy and feels the most comfort when she’s in her presence. Annie is very sweet towards humans, but doesn’t crave too much human attention.
BURRITO
Burrito is one-of-a-kind. Despite being 40, he has the most youthful energy I have ever come across. He is almost constantly playing and the easiest chimpanzee to make laugh. Burrito is always down for a game of chase, tickle, or tug-of-war with his caregivers. He is also perfectly content playing with his group members (like Negra or Foxie). He LOVES watching the neighbors (Cy’s group) out on The Bray or in the chute. The more drama he can watch, the better. Burrito almost always has some type of toy with him, to put in his mouth (typically a toy block or toy tool).
CY
Cy is the alpha male of his group. He is a very good, natural leader. Cy loves to read magazines, ones with exciting pictures of humans are his favorite. Some pictures scare him (rhinos, for example). He craves human attention. When he is in need of some caregiver time, he will let us know by being very noisy. Cy also loves movies, particularly chick flicks. Actually, I don’t know if that’s his favorite or our favorite. Cy is incredibly sweet towards his caregivers and is just happy to be in their presence. He just wants to be included.
DORA
Dora is small but mighty. Also, popular. She has strong relationships with nearly all of her group members. Dora’s best friend is Mave. Anytime there is conflict in their group, Dora and Mave will find one another to hug it out once the drama is over. Dora has unique mannerisms. Sometimes when she is in a silly, goofy mood, she will have to spin twice before beginning to walk somewhere. That’s hard to explain, maybe we will capture it on video someday. When we offer a food item to Dora that she doesn’t want, she will tell us “no” by shaking her head. Dora does not usually pay attention to us humans, but occasionally we will get lucky and she will spend some quality time with us.
FOXIE
Foxie is a silly, unique gal. Foxie loves to carry dolls, specifically Strawberry Shortcake (as of 2023). She is very rarely doll-less. Once a caregiver has been approved by Foxie, she will let them carry her dolls for her and then ask for them back when she’s ready. Foxie is considered lower ranking in her group, but she is close friends with everyone. Foxie is very playful. She is very particular about the humans she chooses to be close with.
GORDO
Gordo is a mysterious guy. Not because he’s actually mysterious, but because he’s harder to read than other chimps. Gordo is a quieter guy, who keeps to himself. However, he does love to groom his group members. When things are especially exciting, he and Willy B will chase each other with big, play faces and Gordo will do his infamous “bunny hop”. Gordo gets most excited over his morning smoothie and after he is done drinking it, he will carefully lower it to the ground, as to not knock the cup over. You can also always tell when Gordo is about to start walking or running somewhere, because he will scratch his torso a couple times beforehand. Gordo seems to really enjoy The Bray, the two acre outdoor habitat for his group. He follows Rayne anywhere on The Bray, but will still go out on his own if she’s not around.
HONEY B
Honey B is highly intelligent, sensitive, and mischievous. Ever watch the hose heist video from a few months ago? We posted a video of Honey B using a tool to steal a hose from outside of her enclosure one night after we closed up. Her process to stealing it and the joy she experienced as a result is highly entertaining, I must admit. It also encompasses Honey B’s personality so well. Go watch it now!
JAMIE
Jamie is the alpha of her group. While female chimpanzees are typically not the alpha in their social groups, it is more common in captivity. Jamie is dominant, highly intelligent, and assertive. She has eyes on everything, both chimps and humans, at all times. Jamie loves shoes, specifically cowboy boots. The first thing she seems to notice about someone is their footwear. Jamie also loves to read. She loves to read anything, but her favorites consist of bonobos. When she especially likes a page out of her books, she will rip it out and carry it in her pelvic pocket. Jamie is a great nest builder and will weave her blankets through the caging so her nest is nice and secure. Jamie likes all foods, but is partial to berries of all kinds, pears, corn, and leeks.
LUCKY
Lucky is the sweetest gal! She keeps to herself a lot within her group. She likes to groom her caregiver’s hands, as well as investigate their footwear. When Lucky is very excited, she will breathy pant while sticking her tongue out. Excited Lucky is easy to spot in a room because she will be sitting on one of the foot chutes, nearly jumping up and down, while breathy panting. She is very even-tempered.
MAVE
Mave is loyal, chill, and Dora’s #1 fan. Her hobbies include hanging with Dora, nesting with Dora, hugging Dora, playing with Dora, eating near Dora, etc. Mave also likes to lounge. Why sit when you can lay down? Mave couldn’t care less about us humans. She is focused on her social group and perfectly content with that.
MISSY
Missy is athletic, independent, graceful, and intelligent. If you ever watched Missy run on Young’s Hill, you would never guess she is in her forties. She is highly coordinated and makes all movements look easy. She is not human oriented and would rather focus on her chimp family. Missy is Annie’s safe space so they are often found together. Missy makes huge, elaborate nests. Missy is small and short in stature.
NEGRA
Negra, also known as Neggie, is the Queen. She is the oldest chimp resident at CSNW. She is wise and highly respected among her group. She will avoid the drama at all costs. She knows what she wants, when she wants it. Caregivers will know when Negra is ready for a meal because she will give us two quick claps to let us know to hurry things along. Negra is a chow and night bag enthusiast. She loves to be in her nest and will take over Missy’s, if Missy leaves an elaborate nest unattended. Neggie likes when caregivers dance for her. She will often nod along or dance a little, as extra encouragement to keep going. Neggie often offers kisses to her caregiver’s hands.
RAYNE
Rayne is socially savvy, confident, and sweet. Rayne is well-respected by her group members and is a friend to all. She loves to build nests, specifically with colorful sheets. When her group got access to their outdoor habitat for the first time, Rayne has no fear and walked out and explored like it was any other day. She still consistently takes advantage of the 2 acre habitat, while Terry and Gordo will typically follow her lead. Rayne is very sweet to her caregivers and enjoys gently grooming their hands. Like Gordo, she is also a smoothie enthusiast. If you offer her her breakfast fruit before she has had her smoothie, she will decline. Smoothie first, always.
TERRY
Terry is the sweetest guy in all the land. Terry is just happy to be here. He is a friend to all, socially savvy, loves shoes, loves to groom, and is even-tempered. He often offers kisses to his caregiver’s hands, then will stick his tongue out to lick them. Terry often makes raspberry noises, which you can hear in nearly all of our videos. Terry loves a game of chase and he loves to spit water on caregiver’s shoes while they are running. I know I said it already, but I want to emphasize it again. Terry is the sweetest.
WILLY B
Willy B is a strong presence, awkward, sometimes serious, and sometimes playful. Willy B works the hardest on his social relationships because it doesn’t come as naturally to him. However, he is quite close with Cy (the alpha), which is beneficial to him. Despite his awkwardness, Willy B has friendships with everyone in his group! He plays with everyone, when the time is right. He loves to watch videos and look at his reflection on camera.
One of the best, most fun aspects of working with chimpanzees is seeing them express themselves in a new way or gain new interests over time. For example, Foxie was originally the “Troll doll Queen” and in the more recent years, she expanded her love to Strawberry Shortcake and Dora the Explorer dolls.
Foxie with Troll doll
Foxie with two newer dolls
In the past, Negra has occasionally carried a doll from time to time. However, nothing ever consistent like Foxie with her dolls, Burrito with his blocks, or Jamie with her boots and books. Until recently. Ever since June 1st (yes, I checked our staff chat where we document things for an exact date), Negra has carried a doll or a plush toy nearly every single day. Thankfully, because of Foxie, we have hundreds of dolls in our collection and Foxie has not seemed to care that Negra has taken a special liking to dolls as well.
While we will never know for sure what switched in Negra to make her start consistently wanting to do this, we are all appreciating this season of Negra being a “doll mom”. Whether it be forever or temporary, that is up to her. Neggie is at sanctuary and she determines how she lives her life.
As you will see, I have collected many photos from staff and volunteers featuring Negra and her “babies”. It’s only been five weeks of Negra consistently doing this and we have plenty of photos to show our human excitement.
Apologies for any lower quality shots as every single one is a phone picture.
Negra with a blonde doll – Photos by Sofia
Negra with a red haired doll in her pelvic pocket – Photos by Anna
Negra with a plush tomato – Photos by Diana
Negra with a blue haired doll in her pelvic pocket – Photo by Kelsi
Negra with a troll doll in her pelvic pocket
Negra’s stuffed Eeyore she often chooses
Eeyore in Negra’s pelvic pocket
Negra’s two dolls she carried around this morning
Negra with twin dolls
Negra holding a Dora the Explorer doll – Photo by Krissy
A few days ago, Grace posted a blog about Burrito having the time of his life with a scooter. In true Burrito fashion, he’s always up to something new and being silly. With that said, yesterday, I caught Burrito playing with an orange ball, which typically is ignored by him and his group members. Watching Burrito play and have fun is always one of my favorite things, as I’m sure it is all of yours too.
Today, it’s been quite warm, although nothing compared to last June’s high temperatures, so we put out some ice blocks for Jamie’s group. I’ve never seen Jamie so excited. She practically screamed when she saw me bring them out. Her enthusiasm didn’t stop for at least an hour. All six of the chimps took turns with the 3 blocks we put out. You will even see Missy in the video walk away with one, which she took up for her and Annie. Such a good friend!
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Being a chimpanzee caregiver is exhausting, both physically, mentally, and emotionally. There are many evenings, where after a day at work, I feel like I have nothing more to give, so I engage in some form of self-care, have some dinner, and go to bed. However, with any hard day as a chimpanzee caregiver, there are also 100+ positive, happy ones. Any time I’m feeling fatigued or exhausted, a quiet or fun moment with any of the chimps is enough to fill my hypothetical “tank” right back up.
I’m so grateful to work with chimps. Every day I work, it reinforces the reason why I chose to work with chimps in the first place. Because they are fun. Every day is something new. I love that.
You know those bumper stickers that say, “My rescue dog saved me” or “Who saved who?” with a paw-print next to it? While us caregivers pour our heart and soul into this job, I feel like it is important to note how much the chimps give us too.
Photos from today!
Burrito:
Foxie:
Missy (and toothpick):
Honey B:
Every time I meet a new person and explain my job to them, it is inevitable that they ask about how much contact I have with the chimps. Lots of questions come up, such as, “Do you hug them?”, “Do you hold them?”, or “So you just sit and hang out with them?”. If you are new to our blog and our sanctuary’s mission, the quick answer to all previous questions are NO. At all times, caging separates the chimps and the humans (unless they are under anesthesia). This is for everyone’s protection. Chimpanzees, on average, are 3-8x stronger than humans. Unintentionally (or intentionally), a chimpanzee could easily hurt us.
Any physical contact we have with the chimps is done in a safe manner based on strict protocols.
One example, is grooming. We often let the chimps groom us as it is a natural behavior for them to strengthen relationships and remove debris or parasites from one another. To groom with them safely, we will allow them to groom the back of our closed hand, with the chimp’s fingers fully extended, or use a tool from a safe distance.
Grace and Rayne demonstrating this perfectly:
Jamie grooming Grace with a tool:
We often also let the chimps groom our shoes. We have a few chimps (like Terry, Jamie, and Lucky) who absolutely love footwear. To let them groom our shoes safely, we will present our shoes to them from a safe distance (where they can only touch, not grab or pin). We do not put our feet up against the caging, but only close enough where they can touch the boots with their fingers extended.
Terry grooming boots:
Another way we may physically interact with the chimps is through play.
Burrito’s favorite game is to poke the back of our hands, as fast as he can. I’m sure you have seen many videos of this over the years. Again, to do this in a safe way, we ensure our fingers are tucked and Burrito’s finger is fully extended. We also make sure to not push our hand against the caging but only where he can reach us from a safe distance.
J.B. and Burrito:
Chad and Burrito:
Playing tug of war allows us to hold onto the end of a blanket or scarf from a safe distance, while still being fully engaged with a play session with a chimp. We make sure to not wrap the material around us in any way, to avoid unexpectedly being pulled close to the caging. We also ensure we are fully balanced on our feet before beginning to play. If the chimp pulls hard on the blanket to win the game of tug of war, we immediately let go so we don’t get too close to the caging.
Dr. Erin and Burrito playing tug of war
Food
We hand-serve all of the meals to the chimps. This is the best way to ensure each chimp is getting their own food portions. To serve the food in a safe way, we use two fingers to grab the item at the furthest point, and then push through the caging where the chimp’s hand awaits. That is quite hard to explain. Here are some pictures that show this process!
Grace serving Cy:
Anthony serving Foxie a smoothie (with his hand at the bottom of cup only):
Positive Reinforcement Training (PRT)
Positive reinforcement training is a wonderful tool to allow the chimps to participate in their own medical care. While doing PRT, we can do everything at a safe distance and we never put our fingers inside the caging.
Chad taking Mave’s temperature:
J.B. asking for Burrito’s foot during PRT:
So while we limit our direct physical contact with the chimps, it is for both parties safety, to respect their space, and to let them be chimps! If you do see content online or in-person where the humans are directly next to a chimpanzee without caging, you should be questioning the type of facility the chimp is in. It is not an accredited zoo or sanctuary if you are seeing this type of content.
A gentle reminder, primates are not pets.
I had no idea what today’s blog was going to consist of, then I caught Annie starting to build a nest and I just knew it was going to be something I should capture. Enjoy her nest building with some guest appearances by Annie’s special bird noises.
Bonus photos from The Bray!
Cy out on The Bray:
Lucky out on The Bray:
Willy B out on The Bray:
