As Elizabeth mentioned in yesterday’s blog post, the good people at Field Roast Grain Meat, Co. generously donated some vegan grain meat for the chimp’s Thanksgiving Dinner. Thanks so much Field Roast Grain Meat, Co.! The chimps really enjoyed it!
Animal Welfare
Thanksgiving
We have had a pretty fantastic Thanksgiving here at CSNW. The chimps came into the front rooms at 8:30 this morning for a breakfast of fruit smoothie, bananas, and cranberry sauce. While Jackie served the meal, the rest of us cleaned the playroom and prepared the Thanksgiving feast. By 10:30, cleaning was finished and we set out the food as a big forage in the playroom: pumpkins, green onions, bok choy, whole frozen apples, potatoes (sweet and otherwise), broccoli, bell peppers, parsnips, whole pomegranates, swiss chard, eggplant, and stuffing (all thanks to supporter Tamela!).
The chimps have been in terrific moods all day. Jamie made a magnificent nest out of blankets, a ball of yarn, a cardboard box, various toys, and a GIANT teddy bear. After she was done, she lounged inside it, quite visibly pleased with things, until Foxie marched over and started a vigorous tickle game. Meanwhile, Burrito and Negra groomed each other in front of Negra’s favorite window that looks out over the valley; Jody napped with a full belly; and Missy and Annie chased each other around the playroom.
For dinner, the chimps enjoyed oranges, strawberries, sparkling cider, and ridiculously delicious vegan meat, donated by our friends at Field Roast Grain Meat Co. Happy Thanksgiving to all of you, and thank you so much for your support and for helping to give the chimpanzees something to be thankful for this year.
Who’s in your wallet
This is in response to a question from Shari on the last post. Below are the images of all of the credit card options with the chimpanzees names above them. We can only have five designs at a time, and Jody is not one of the images. I decided since her image is on most of our merchandise (t-shirts, soon-to-be-added bumper stickers, and tote bags), it was okay to leave her out of this first round of designs. Thanks for helping out the sanctuary by applying for one of these cards!
Burrito
Negra
Missy and Annie
Foxie
Jamie
The most unique cc in your wallet
Give the sanctuary $50 right now without spending a dime, and continue to help every time you use one of five just unveiled credit cards: http://www.cardpartner.com/app/csnw
Bonus for you – you’ll be earning accelerated points (up to 15 points per dollar) at hundreds of national merchants, which can be redeemed for merchandise, account credits and free tickets on over 175 airlines, with no blackout dates!
Choose and use the only card that supports Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest and earns you valuable rewards at the same time. Go to http://www.cardpartner.com/app/csnw – request your card today.
I’m really excited thinking about everyone carrying around CSNW credit cards. Let me know which one you like best!
CSNW featured in Seattle Metropolitan Magazine
Really great article: http://www.seattlemet.com/issues/archives/articles/chimpanzee-sanctuary-northwest-1209/
It’s hot off the presses (or at least recently uploaded to the world wide web) and the print version should be all over the Seattle area soon. Please share on your Facebook and Twitter pages and send to all of your contacts (you can do that by clicking “Email” or “Share This” at the top of the article when you go to the link). It not only tells the story of CSNW, but also the broader plight of chimpanzees in captivity.
I only wish Jamie knew how famous she is.
Missy then and now
Every once in a while it’s good to look back to see how far we’ve come. Though we are very focused on the future – the next celebration, the next event, the next fundraising initiative, the next building improvement, etc, looking back can be really motivating.
One way to do this is to see how much the chimpanzees have changed since their arrival to Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest.
The below “before” and “after” photos appear in the 2010 calendar, which you can purchase through the online store (and, yes, I am looking forward to lots of people buying the calendar and sharing the Cle Elum Seven with friends, family and coworkers this year!)
Missy on her first day at CSNW, after years of living as a biomedical research subject and “breeder”
Missy after one year in sanctuary
Displaying
Given that we share around 99% of our DNA, it is not surprising that chimpanzees and humans have much in common. Both species, for example, are very territorial. We might not think of ourselves as territorial creatures, but imagine how you might feel if you looked out your living room window and saw a stranger standing in your front yard peering in at you. Free-living chimpanzee communities will defend their territories, sometimes violently, against intruders from neighboring communities. (Sound familiar?)
One of the ways chimpanzees express their territoriality is through a display. During a display, a chimpanzee stands bipedally (upright); swaggers back and forth; makes a lot of noise by banging or throwing objects; and exhibits pilo-erect hair (hair standing on end). All of these behaviors serve to make the individual appear much bigger and more intimidating than he or she really is.
Defending a territory isn’t the only reason a chimpanzee might display; displays can also be associated with dominance. Jamie, who is the most dominant member of the Cle Elum Seven, displays several times a day. (Although it is almost always male chimpanzees who display in free-living situations, it is not uncommon for females to display — and to be dominant — in captivity.) Jamie displays to defend her home, to exert her dominance, and even, it seems, to alleviate boredom.
Below is a video of one of Jamie’s displays. You’ll notice many of the behaviors I described above. Despite spending the last three decades in the most unnatural and impoverished situations, it seems Jamie has figured out just how to be a chimpanzee.
