Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary
Today was a very low-key day at the chimp house where everyone seemed to be very much OK with doing their thing, even if it was absolutely nothing.
Missy on the top platform of the green house
Missy grooming a resting Jody
Burrito, wooden toy in hand and wearing a slinky as a sock
Cy and his version of random patty cake through the glass
Rayne with her favorite enrichment: Raisin Boards!!
Terry winding up for a display
A Willy B thread
Today’s blog is brought to you by a very tasty lunch menu: leeks and sweet potatoes.
Rayne and her leek
Cy enjoying some sweet potatoes
Lucky patiently waiting for her leek from Caregiver Sam
Negra saving the best for last: Leeks
Holiday preparations continue as caregiver elves now take on the challenge of wrapping at record pace all the toys that were so nicely donated by our amazing supporters. For the chimps today is just a normal day. Willy B, Honey B and Mave got some hanging puzzles as enrichment this morning to encourage foraging behaviors. Willy B was all about it!
Here’s two sequences of Willy B getting going nuts about nuts!
Sequence #1
Goal achieved
Sequence #2
Goal achieved
Willy B about to catch an almond as it falls
Mave was also very excited about nuts
One of the many reasons why chimpanzees should never be pets is their natural destructive behavior. On the daily basis we enter enclosures for cleaning and find destroyed toys, ripped blankets, broken night time enrichment, and on many occasions stuffed animals with severed limbs and stuffing coming out. This is why we follow rigorous rules that dictate the type enrichment and toys that each group is allowed to have. Ranging from choking hazards, to possible obstructions if ingested each item is checked by at least two caregivers before the item is placed inside an enclosure to ensure that the chimpanzees, as individuals and as groups will be safe. Every item that is placed inside is potentially going to be destroyed, and sometimes we encounter crime scenes that may never be solved. I mean we could, we can just watch security footage, but working around mysteries is more intriguing.
Case #1
First on the scene: Special Agent de Bree
Victim: Stuffed teddy bear
Cause of death: Severe stuffingloss by limb amputation and decapitation. Strangulation has not been ruled out.
Location: Greenhouse 1
Evidence collected: Plaid ribbon scarf
Case #2
First on the scene: Special Agent Castro-Loza
Victim: Stuffed tiger
Cause of death: Severe stuffingloss by amputation of left hind leg and tail.
Location: Front Room 3
Evidence collected: Unopened pumpkin seed
Number of suspects: 7
But three individuals matched our previous offense data base. Jamie, Annie, and Burrito are on the top of the suspect list pending investigation and forensic analysis.
Jamie de-stuffing a lion
Click here to access our Amazon Wish List with an assortment of approved enrichment. The Holiday list is up!!!
Click here to view our Enrichment Database.
A normal chill Tuesday with a side of giving! Most individuals were interested in taking naps or hanging out where the camera does not reach, but I managed to get photos of chimps that were very much OK with some close ups. While I’m still working on my photo taking skills, I was specially surprised with Rayne letting me grab a close up. She was very patient while I struggled to get the camera to focus how I wanted it to and seemed to not mind my lack of skills. On the other group, Honey B and Mave spent a significant amount of time together. Every time I would walk past the front rooms they were either grooming or playing, a very relaxing afternoon for the two I would say. Honey B also gave me a chance to capture a close up with my phone which explains the quality or lack of but still I was very grateful for her kindness.
Rayne unbothered by a close up.
A Honey B close up.
Honey B on her red rocking horse enjoying the rays that came in during the sunny morning we had today.
Mave and Honey B mid play. Note the sock inside Mave’s pelvic pocket. It doesn’t matter if its Fall, polka dots are always in.
Big thanks to everyone who has helped kick off year-end fundraising today on #GivingTuesday! If you received our e-news yesterday, you know that we have $110,000 in matching donations to raise in the next 30 days! There are lots of ways to give, including donating stocks or giving online now. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions, and thank you again for your generosity and caring.
Lucky interacting through the glass with caregiver Anna
Tuesday has been a normal day consisting of cleaning, preparing meals and enrichment, a one-on-one introduction, and also about getting ready for Thanksgiving day. As usual the chimps will get an entire feast just for them with their favorite food items and Fall themed enrichment. On the other hand, the humans will be getting together for an early thanksgiving pot luck tomorrow night. This will consist of homemade traditional Thanksgiving meals, or what we each consider to be traditional. In my case, I’ll bring a vegan sweet potato and marshmallow casserole and although it is not a dish commonly made back home in Puerto Rico on this occasion, I like it so much that I would always require my family to make it just for me. I’ve been told that caregiver Chad makes a mean Nasi Goreng fried rice that is very famous in the chimp house so there is a lot to look forward to.
Enough about food, let’s taco about today’s introductions. I know we have said it before, but even though we plan ahead for possible introduction pairings, the chimps get the final say and that is exactly what happened today. Honey B and Willy B conspired together to not allow us to access the Mezzanine for cleaning, which directly dictated the fate of today’s pairing options for introductions. During lunch time, Willy B shifted out and Honey B remained up there meaning she was the one that was going to hang out with one of the California Six. On the six’s group, Cy was the one that wanted to stay in the front rooms so that made the decision easy for us. This introduction ended up being very low-key, with an on edge Honey B and only a few direct interactions but all in all positive.
Cy reading a magazine. Not pictured here are Cy’s happy sounds while reading.
Dora hanging out in the green house.
Lucky in her favorite spot of the front rooms with a slinky.
BONUS: A beautiful rainbow over Young’s Hill taken by caregiver Chad.
Today was busy busy. While the usual daily tasks were in process, we continued introductions that featured a Honey B, Willy B, Cy, and Terry quad. During the beginning they spent a lot of time divided by the mesh while Cy and Willy B sorted things out with plenty of displays. When they calmed down we opened the mesh and they were together interacting for around 50min. A lot of grooming and playing went down today.
Willy B and Cy grooming – Willy B’s lip smacking was epic.
Honey B and Terry engaged in some intense playing. Terry’s mouth says it all.
