animal play

Today I discovered a new game with Foxie. I was having difficulty throwing her troll doll back to her (some days my aim is just off), so I put it in a sock and tossed it up, my thought being that she would have more to grab on to. It worked like a charm, and Foxie actually really liked the sock! She almost immediately flung it over her neck, walked down the stairs and began playing with it in front of the mirror. I am sure other chimpanzees have done this before, but it was the first time I have personally seen a chimp play in front of a mirror. She was so enamored with her own reflection playing, that she completely ignored Missy’s attempts to get her attention. For the rest of the day, Foxie carried around the sock, sometimes in her hand, sometimes over her shoulders, and once on the top of her head. Every once in a while she would go back to the mirror and play.