Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Kelsi

Theme Scheme

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There is no real theme for today’s blog. Who needs a theme anyways! I just have these great photos I wanted to share with you all.

The beautiful, sophisticated, and distinguished Rayne.

Terry, Terry, Terry. He is too much!

Dora! Dora is so sweet. I posted this photo recently on our Instagram, but I thought it needed to be shared here too.

Mave with her legs crossed, giving that laid back feeling.

Yesterday was pretty warm. Honey B looked as though she was melting into her nest.

And of course Honey B shredding on her skateboard.

This morning as I let the seven onto Young’s Hill they all immediately race out to get a glimpse of the new neighbors.

Jamie spying.

Burrito standing bipedal so he could get a better look.

This guy Cy is the whole package! He is sweet, playful, a big goof, well read, and quite handsome.

Tiny a.k.a Foxie.

Negra was pretty silly today. She even let me snap of few close ups of her!

We are truly lucky to be able to spend some time with Lucky.

Don’t forget to check out the Amazon wish list. We have added a lot of books. The Lucky 6 seem to enjoy reading books and magazine just as much as Jamie!

Grabbing Toes

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We are still in the midst of the heat wave. Thankfully, today is not in the hundreds, still hot, but there is a nice breeze going. With warm weather means lazy play sessions, even Burrito has slowed down just a touch. Today, while Sofia and I were finishing up cleaning the playroom we found Annie laying on the cool floor while Missy’s toes dangled down below. Annie was grabbing Missy’s toes, fingers, and giving her little pokes while Missy sat above her on a barrel. It was a lazy game for Annie and Missy, but it was all they could muster. When these two really play it might start out slow, but eventually it ends with them laughing, wrestling, and running around grabbing toes. As you will see in these photos we are all preserving our energy. Don’t worry though chimps and humans have had lots of fluids and Gatorade not to mention lots of fans and misters going too!

As I drove up the driveway to the chimp house this morning Happy Club popped into my mind. Some of you blog followers are familiar with it, but if you read Diana’s blog a while back. What jogged my memory was seeing 4 or the 6 new chimps watching me pull up the driveway. All of them in the greenhouse enjoying the warm summer breeze. It brought a smile to my face. So, I thought I would share a few happy things over the last week.

  1. Well, first of all I am so happy to have the Lucky 6 home! The fact that they are settling in so well also makes me overjoyed.
  2. Terry and Cy are absolute hams! I am truly smitten.
  3. Yesterday, I had the pleasure of being in Rayne’s company. I was cleaning GH3 and she was in GH2. I sat with her for a while. She is very sweet.
  4. Missy dangling her foot in front of Annie as a taunt to play.
  5. Last week Negra requested that J.B., Diana, Anna, and I all dance for her. We immediately did as we were told. It makes me smile because that is what sanctuary is supposed to be, right? Negra tells us what she wants and then we do it :).
  6. Dora. Just seeing Dora makes me happy.

Burrito staying cool in his castle.

Gordo cooling off in his favorite spot.

Rayne popping in to say hi.

Honey B hanging out in her favorite spot, the chute.

Jamie melting into her nest.

This heat hasn’t slowed Terry down!


They’re Here! They’re Here!

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Today was a wild and crazy day, but they are here. They are home! Words can not describe how excited we are to get to know Cy, Terry, Gordo, Lucky, Rayne, and Dora’s personalities more. For right now they are settling in well. I have to warn you, Cy is going to steal your heart, well Terry too. And maybe Lucky. Oh, Rayne and Gordo! Well, and then there is Dora. She might steal your heart too. We are so exhausted so us humans are going to go home and sleep!  We will share more tomorrow :).

Lucky was the first to go into the playroom. She so brave and after exploring Playroom 3 she ran straight out into Green House 3.

Rayne <3

Terry <3

Going Head to Head & Toe to Toe

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What a wonderful day, especially for Burrito. To no surprise he was playing all day! If he wasn’t making his caregiver’s run until they almost passed out from heat exhaustion then he was playing with other chimps and even a giant stuffed unicorn. There is some video of him playing with the unicorn, but the clip was hard to fit in with all the amazing other play sessions going on. However, I feel I need to describe to you what happened. It was amazing! Caregiver Chad was outside fixing a few holes on the rattle snake fence when he noticed Burrito dragging a giant stuffed unicorn onto Young’s Hill. He was even throwing it up into the air (that part was not caught on camera). Burrito then dragged the unicorn back to the raceway and eventually into the greenhouse. Which led into a lazy wrestling game with Foxie. Later, we found Burrito playing with Jamie. They had their heads together, breathy panting (chimp laughing), and grabbing each other’s toes. All in all it was a good day, but Burrito had a great day.

We have been very busy getting ready for the arrival of Cy, Lucky, Gordo, Dora, Rayne, and Terry and it’s coming up quickly! We have added more stuff to the Wish List in preparation of the 6 new chimps. We are hoping to get some new chairs. They have been really helpful for Honey B, Willy B, and Mave in the new greenhouses. But, the chimps use the chairs everyday. Jamie loves them for sitting and grooming her favorite pair of boots, many like to lay on them, and sometimes they use the chairs as tables to put their food on.

Into the Thick of It

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We cannot contain our excitement! Days like today are the highlight of my job and why we do what we do. Honey B, Willy B, and Mave received access to Green House 2 and 3 today! As I write, Mave is nesting in Green House 3. I mean what could be better than that! It was amazing to watch each chimp warm up to the two new areas. Obviously, not every chimp walks into a new space with confidence; you have to test some stuff out. As you will see in the video everyone takes the plunge in different ways. Honey B takes the leap of faith into Green House 3, avoiding the grass. Mave takes her time looking around at her surroundings finding the best route to explore. And Willy B leaned into the new enclosure by stepping on the grass! I am so inspired by their bravery; for some chimps this could take hours to days to work up the courage to just get through the door. However, I think the anticipation was killing them! With no surprise Ms. Honey B was very busy testing and exploring. Honey B even started playing chase on the grass just an hour after being in their new enclosure. Mave too was going up and down and trying out each platform. I think she has a few good prospects for sunning and grooming. Willy B put on a good display for the ladies watching on Young’s Hill and later as things calmed down I found him and Mave trying out a potential new grooming spot. It’s a peaceful riverside view.

The new Greenhouse enclosures are truly spectacular. Not only is there so much vertical space, but the new structures in the enclosure are so cool. I can already envision groups of chimps having grooming parties up there or baking in the warm sun. It has the most beautiful views and the best vantage point to spy on all the neighbors. Not to mention… did you all notice the grass!! Well, so did Honey B… Luckily she seems to have left it alone for now. As a disclaimer, we knew the bamboo wouldn’t make it and that there was a potential that the chimps would pull up the grass. But, it doesn’t hurt to try, right? We have faith Honey B will leave the grass alone, but the bamboo? Only time will tell. For the moment, let us all take in the beautiful green grass!

Mave.

Honey B.

Willy B.

The Queen

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So much is going on this week! We have Honey B’s birthday in a few days and Negra’s birthday on Sunday with our biggest event of the year, The Queen’s Brunch. Not to mention 6 chimps will be making their way over here! It is hard to believe! This morning as I observed Sam giving the seven access to the Young’s Hill we found Negra in the greenhouse. She looked very comfortable, so I can’t blame her for not wanting to get out of bed quite yet. When I think about Negra and who she is, I feel lucky. Negra is a person that if she wants to go outside of her comfort zone she will and she has grown to have the confidence to do it. But Negra also knows exactly what she does not want to do either. A quality in Negra I really appreciate, but personally am not good at.

Don’t forget to check out all the awesome auction items! I am really looking forward to the Brunch After Party where you can join us live from the chimp house. So make sure to bid on that item, you won’t want to miss out and don’t forget your drink ;).

 

Burrito’s Barrel

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Last week I mentioned in my blog about Burrito playing on top of the barrel while Foxie was below him. Burrito spends a lot of time on that barrel in the playroom. Having Burrito’s kind of energy can be a blessing and a curse because not all of his chimp friends want to go go go all the time. We can often find him on the barrel playing by himself or peeking over at the neighbors waiting for a chimp or human to play. From time to time Jamie and Burrito share the barrel, which is probably the best thing I have ever seen! And the other day I found him dragging the giant wolf blanket onto the barrel with him. Please enjoy this video of the different stages of Burrito on the barrel.

*Important Note* Queen’s Brunch is around the corner so don’t forget to mark your calendars and put a reminder in your phone, June 13th! I have to share with you all that the Royal-Tea Box this year is amazing! Not only do you get a chance to win a virtual visit to the sanctuary, but there is a special tea blend, delicious vegan tea cakes, and so much more! Please do not miss out on Negra’s Royal-Tea box!

Bonus Foxie photos!