Today we celebrated July 4th with the chimpanzees!
It was a whirlwind of a day. Tons of food, fun and sunshine.
We hope that those of you who choose to celebrate the 4th have fun, and most of all STAY SAFE!
4th of july
Celebrating Freedom
The Fourth of July holiday is a time when Americans celebrate their independence from Great Britain. For us here, we celebrate the freedom our residents have from the terrors of biomedical testing and harm from humans. For decades, many of the residents have spent their time in small cages and stripped of their freedom of choice. Today though, they have the freedom to make their own decisions, their own choices, and live the life they want to live.
I am fully aware it’s a bit ironic that I talk about their freedom, yet they are destined to live a life in captivity. It really breaks my heart and the rest of the staff here that we will never see Missy sprint in an un-fenced area, or see Rayne exploring new and exciting places. This is the life they have been dealt. The very least we can do is to provide them whatever freedoms and autonomy we can. When I arrive to the sanctuary every morning, I am no longer in my own world. I am in theirs.
To celebrate, the chimpanzees were treated to a forage of fan favorite: Watermelon Bowls! Each watermelon bowl contained: lettuce, a baked potato, baby back corn ribs, green onions, and blueberries! We even put some on the Bray! While everyone was foraging for the bulk of the watermelons inside, Rayne took the opportunity to collect nearly all the watermelon bowls placed on The Bray, as you can see in the video! It didn’t take the boys plus Lucky much longer to realize there was more food outside!
We wish you all a fun and safe Independence Day!
Here are some photos taken throughout the day!
Rayne
Don’t worry! Gordo came by to grab what Rayne chose to leave behind
Willy B
Terry
Missy trying to sneak pass Negra with her haul
Negra in her Cabin
Burrito
Foxie
Jamie enjoying a pre-celebration browse of currant branches
Viola! The prized watermelon bowls
Fun on the 4th
What a day! The chimpanzees had a terrific 4th of July, starting with a party in the morning, set up by caregiver volunteers Patti and Connie and new staff member Anna.
Here are just a few party photo selections.
Burrito licking a smoothie shot glass clean:
Jamie managed to get both of the piñatas:
But she shared with Missy:
After we finished cleaning the playroom, Patti and Connie put some ice and pomegranate juice in the pool. Jamie dragged the pool around with her as she foraged for the kale that was also thrown about the room, then she and Jody settled in for some ice eating, with other chimps coming by once in a while. Jamie would pick up the ice with her hands, put it in her mouth, dry off her hands, then repeat.
Today was our first summer visit day, led by J.B., so we put out a forage on the hill for lunch that included pea shoots from the sanctuary garden, harvested by caregiver volunteer Denice who dropped by just to say hello and do a little gardening. The pea shoots were a hit, as was the corn. It was another hot day, so most of the chimps gathered food from the hill and brought it in to the cooler greenhouse for leisurely snacking.
Jody:
Annie:
It wasn’t long before Jamie wanted to go back out on the hill to explore and look for more food, and she asked me to tag along after I put on her new pair of favorite boots.
She explored the hill as though it were an obstacle course, definitely appreciating the freedom she is able to have in her sanctuary home:
This is the new shaky bridge that connects the two towers:
Meanwhile, Burrito took a nap in the playroom:
Dinner included a pretty special treat for everyone – Field Roast frankfurters!
Foxie:
Jody:
Missy:
I didn’t get any good photos of Negra today, but maybe that’s okay, since she was the star of yesterday’s blog post.
We hope you all have a great and safe 4th of July!
Happy 4th!
Volunteers Patti, Lynn, and Andrew put together a great feast for the chimps’ 4th of July celebration. It all started with a lunch forage on the hill. Then for dinner, they had corn, potato salad, watermelon, and Field Roast veggie dogs in the greenhouse. Throw in a couple of pinatas and some inappropriately dressed troll dolls and you’ve got a real 4th of July party! You should have heard the food squeaking and screaming as we were setting up the forage in the greenhouse.
Burrito:
Jody:
Missy:
Annie:
Foxie and her new trolls:
Negra:
Jamie:
Freedom
Freedom is a tough concept. You recognize it more by it’s absence than it’s presence, and it’s easier to describe when comparing one situation with another. Yet most people agree that freedom is one of the most important aspects of life for individuals and for groups.
It’s clear that the chimpanzees lacked even the basic freedoms when they were in the laboratory. And it’s clear that the sanctuary has provided them with immense freedoms, like the freedom to chose how and when you want your day to end, like Katelyn wrote about Jamie on the blog yesterday.
One of the things that really struck me about Monday, when Jamie decided to extend the day, was the choice that Annie made to stay in the greenhouse. While all of the other chimpanzees (minus Jamie, of course) were inside the building in their nests, Annie decided to camp out. She didn’t seem the least bit concerned about what Jamie was doing, she was just making her own decision.
This morning, as volunteers Denice and Sandra were finishing the daily cleaning of the front rooms, I grabbed the camera and headed to the greenhouse. Though it was windy, I was expecting to find several chimpanzees out there. Instead, I found just Annie. And this is how I found her:
Just like the other night, she was perfectly relaxed, nesting comfortably, with no one else around.
I think each day the chimpanzees are discovering more and more of the freedoms afforded by a life in sanctuary. It’s such a beautiful experience to be able to both witness and share this process.
It’s especially poignant with Annie, because she was so anxious when she first arrived at the sanctuary. Her confidence just seems to keep growing and growing.
Tomorrow we will have a party for the chimps in celebration of the United States’ Independence Day, but, just like everyday, we will also be celebrating the independence of seven chimpanzees and welcoming, as each day passes, their discoveries of what freedom in a sanctuary means to them.
July 4th Forage
We set up a great forage in celebration of the 4th for the chimpanzees tonight. On the menu: large paper bags full of lettuce and cabbage leaves with a surprise baked apple hidden amongst the greens, and individual buckets with vegan hot dogs, corn on the cob, and watermelon. Diana
