Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary
I can’t believe it’s already almost half-way through February! That means Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, and we have a super spiffy card you can send to your special someone. Just make a donation in honor of your Valentine before noon tomorrow and they’ll get a nice “It’s Good to Be Loved” card. (Check out this morning’s newsletter for more info).
Here’s some pictures of the chimps enjoying a pomegranate forage the other day:
Negra:
Foxie:
Annie:
Now that the snow has melted and the sun has returned, the chimpanzees have been really enjoying being outside on Young’s Hill. This morning we witnessed an impressive burst of activity. I can imagine how good it must feel to them to be able to stretch their legs.
Even though the chimps have had access to it, it’s been too cold and windy to spend much time out on Young’s Hill lately. But they definitely love having the option! I love that even though we put snow in the playroom and greenhouse almost daily, the chimps sometimes see it as worth it to brave the cold to enjoy a snack on the hill. The other day, the large tub in the greenhouse was filled with snow so that the chimps didn’t have to go out to get it if they didn’t want to, but that didn’t keep everyone inside!
Annie on the hill:
Missy:
But I guess Foxie and Jamie saw it as more appealing to keep their feet dry and enjoy their snack in the greenhouse.
Foxie in the greenhouse:
Jamie:
You may have noticed a lack of Young’s Hill photos and videos over the last month or so. That’s because when the snow gets so deep, it reduces the voltage of the electric fence, making it unsafe to allow the chimpanzees out there. Well, yesterday, J.B., Sarah and I (mostly J.B.) all went out and shoveled around the entire perimeter of the fence (who needs a gym membership?), freeing up those bottom wires covered in snow so that the voltage was sufficient to let the chimps back out! It was very hard work, but the chimps were so excited that it was well worth it! There were lots of hugs and kisses in the chimp house (between the chimps 😉 ) and breathy pants echoed in the greenhouse. Sometimes our job isn’t glamorous but it is certainly rewarding, especially when you see a face like the one below (Jody’s).
Jody was the first one to go back out. She was food grunting (we had lettuce out there, plus look at all that snow!) and had a huge playface!
Annie used Jody’s head for support as she passed her on the log bridge. Jody didn’t seem to mind.
Look at the joy in her eyes!
The snow was really deep, so J.B. and Diana shoveled paths along the log bridge to the first climbing structure and to Negra’s cabin. Most folks just walked along the paths, but Missy chose to walk on the fire hose.
From left to right, Jamie, Missy, Annie and Jody, enjoying the lettuce forage on top of the first climbing structure.
Did I mention the snow was (is) deep? Foxie walked along the paths but she looked so tiny from our vantage point (tinier than she already is, even!).
Annie figured walking bipedally made more sense. Gotta say, I agree!
While everyone else foraged for lettuce, Annie climbed up to the top of Negra’s cabin a couple of times.
And Missy discovered a TON of lettuce Sarah put in the cabin!
I think she was pretty pleased!
All of the chimps went out at some point, though Negra didn’t leave the comfort of the raceway (and only so she could grab some lettuce and snow) and Burrito was only out for a couple of minutes (also just to grab a little bit of lettuce and snow) and didn’t venture out very far, but everyone seemed very happy to have the option of the hill back! And that’s what sanctuary is all about.
Annie following Missy back to the greenhouse:
It’s a good thing the Cle Elum Seven like to eat snow so much, because we’ve got a lot of it!
We’ve been putting snow in the kiddie pool and other large tubs and containers on a pretty regular basis, and it keeps the chimps happy for hours. Today, I walked into the chimp area and found that Missy had grabbed a large handful and taken it upstairs to enjoy by the window.
She may have been sitting in the sunshine, but with eating all that snow she was obviously still cold. She was shivering quite a bit and used this washcloth to dry her hands off.
Jody was laying next to her in her nest. You can’t tell but she had a mouthful herself.
Later, Missy went to enjoy some snow with her best friend Annie
and while she was gone, Negra had taken over Missy’s pile of snow
it wasn’t long before Missy joined her
How do you celebrate food-loving Burrito’s birthday? A day in which the entire focus is on FOOD, of course! This morning we set up a huge forage in the playroom – coconuts, blackberries, pineapple chunks, nuts and seeds, and a pool of snow with blueberry juice drizzled over the top of it. The coconut elicited some of the loudest food squeaks I’ve ever heard and the chimps are still munching on the snow, taking breaks only for the occasional brain freeze. Volunteer Stephanie outdid herself yet again and brought several food-shaped pinatas and tons of decorations, both for the party and for the humans (naturally, we humans have been wearing glittery “happy birthday” hats, sunglasses and tiaras all day). I’m not so sure the chimps are too impressed with the human decor, but they were definitely impressed with the pinatas!
True to form, Jamie was first to go after them:
Annie used her foot to keep her ice cream cone-shaped pinata balanced:
Dick and Robbi Brown brought some pretty epic new enrichment, which definitely added to the excitement! Foxie loved a new troll doll:
Naturally, Burrito checked all the bags for food
some interest in a ukulele a while back and actually played it for a while, so Dick and Robbi (and several other folks) are always on the lookout for another one when they shop at Goodwill or other thrift stores. She was the first to pull the new one out of a gift bag and strummed it a couple of times. But I guess playing a ukulele is more of a thing you do in your spare time because after a few “notes” she went right back to the forage. Missy didn’t play it, but she was curious to see if we maybe hid some food inside (does it seem like everything had to do with food today??).
And speaking of food- the coconuts were definitely the focus this morning! And Burrito couldn’t have been happier!
And the party didn’t end there. Aside from the usual meals, we’ve been serving surprise snacks periodically throughout the day. About 30 minutes ago, we handed out a small handful of blueberries and Elizabeth is now serving gum. Thanks so much to Dick, Robbi, Stephanie, and to everyone that made Mr. B’s day so special! Way to go Team Burrito!!
As we were finishing up cleaning the playroom this morning, we caught two unusual suspects — Annie and Negra — in a pretty wacky game. For those of you just tuning in, Annie is the least dominant chimpanzee at CSNW. She is gentle and shy, and when she arrived here in 2008 she didn’t have the confidence to play with anyone except for her best friend Missy. And Negra is the oldest of the Cle Elum Seven, and prefers to spend the vast majority of her time under a blanket. So it was pretty special to see these two ladies letting loose this morning.
