Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Animal Welfare

Happy Birthday, Diane!

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This day of sanctuary was sponsored by Diane Koosed who shared this lovely note: “Celebrating my birthday by feeling a bit connected to CSNW!”

Diane, thank you so much for your generous gift to the chimpanzees on your own special day! We are continually amazed at all of the connections these seven special beings draw not only to their lives, but to all our lives. Thank you for helping to ensure that all their days are filled with hope, love, home and sanctuary. May your day be filled with the same in return. From all of us here at CSNW, we wish you the happiest of birthdays!

Jamie:

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Testing Testing…123

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Hello to all the CSNW blog readers! My name is Anna Wallace and I’m the newest staff caregiver to join the team. I’m really excited to be going through training here and getting to know more about the Cle Elum 7! Today, as you may already know, is my first blog post. Not only is it my first blog post, but it is also my first time taking photos of these very photogenic beings. I thought I would share with you my favorites from the series of pictures I took this afternoon under Elizabeth’s watchful guidance.

Negra and her droopy lip.
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Handsome Mr. Burrito, lounging in the portrait studio.
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I hope to share many more photos and a more detailed account of my training in the weeks to come!

Foxie’s evening

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Each night after dinner the chimpanzees receive their food puzzle for the evening. This is typically a pretty exciting time and once everyone has their puzzle they find a quiet spot to enjoy their treats in peace and the chimp house begins to wind down for the day. This evening’s puzzle was frozen applesauce and banana in PVC tubes and I caught Foxie enjoying hers:

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When the chimps finish their food puzzles, they usually head straight to their chosen sleeping spot for the night, blankets in tow, and begin making their nests (with the exception of boss Jamie who still has a lot of things to do). But this evening, Foxie decided to hang out as we finished the closing routine and seemed to be enjoying the peaceful time, occasionally glancing out the window next to her as the sun began to sink lower over the sanctuary.

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About this time we gave Jamie her “boot package” for the evening. Jamie often requests her favorite “boots du jour” before we leave which we fill with enrichment items for the evening (such as a toothbrush, cup, comb, nail file, scarf, etc) and pass to her through a chute. As she also requested the boots she had me wearing at the time, I happened to be barefoot. And at the sight of bare human toes, Foxie thought it would be a fantastic time to play one last game of chase, interspersed with pirouettes, through the chimp house (never mind that people were settling down to sleep).

After a few minutes of play, we said goodnight to everyone and turned off the lights in the chimp area, answered by the chimpanzees giving nest grunts goodnight in return. Nest grunts are a vocalization that chimpanzees make when they are settling into their nests for the night as a way to check in with each other before they go to sleep. (Admittedly, it’s one of my absolute favorite moments of the day).

As I was closing the door to the chimp area I saw Ms. Foxie head out to the solitude of the greenhouse. I went to say goodnight and found that she had decided to camp out on the top platform, looking out over Young’s Hill, as she held Dora (with some wild hair) close to her. Goodnight dear Fox.

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Happy Birthday, Rachel!

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Today’s day of sanctuary was sponsored by Rachel Ruggeri! Rachel recently sponsored a day of sanctuary in memory of her father, Robert. And today she generously chose to celebrate her own special day with the chimps and sends this message: “It is my birthday and since the chimps sent me a card, I want to send something to them!”

Rachel, it means so much to us that you have chosen to mark these special days in your life by making the chimpanzees’ lives better. And it means the world to them. All of the primates here at CSNW wish you the happiest of birthdays and hope your day is filled with all the love, compassion and joy you share with others!

Missy:

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Today is in memory of Robert Ruggeri

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This day of sanctuary was sponsored by Rachel Ruggeri in memory of her father, Robert Ruggeri. Rachel shared this note about today: “My father, who passed away on 7/25/13, loved animals big and small. We miss him dearly.”

Rachel, thank you so much for including the chimpanzees in remembering your father, Robert, today. You have both made a difference in their lives. All of us here at CSNW are so sorry for your loss and we are touched to be able to play a small part in honoring his life. What a lovely thing that he and love of animals continues to live on through you. We are all holding you and your family in our thoughts today.

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Today is for Derek Johnson!

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Today’s day of sanctuary was sponsored by Andrea Ogg in honor of Derek Johnson! Andrea surprised Derek with this special gift last Christmas and shared the following message about today: “Derek has spent a significant portion of his adult life studying, caring for and about chimpanzees. We will be coming to the sanctuary on July 11, 2015. We can’t wait to “meet” your chimps!”

Andrea, what a wonderful gift to give for both Derek and the chimpanzees! That it is complimented with your attendance of our summer visit program makes it even more meaningful and we are so touched that you would think of the chimpanzees in honoring Derek today. Thank you so much for caring about the chimps and making a difference for them.

We look forward to your visit and hope you both have a wonderful day!

Our guy, Burrito:

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