Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary
The grass is so lush that sometimes it feels like we are playing I Spy. This morning, especially for Jody I could barely keep up. Jody was weaving in and out of the tall grass and bamboo bushes. When she finally emerged Jody had stuffed her face with so much prickly lettuce!
Bubba and Annie spent some quality time outside together:
Jamie and Foxie went on a perimeter walk together:
Foxie and her doll having a moment:
I love this photo of Jamie hidden behind the tall grass:
It’s been another extra busy day in the chimp house for the humans with unexpected occurrences and cleaning to navigate in addition to the usual. Which of course still means the usual for the chimpanzees: doing whatever strikes their fancy every moment of the day. Just as it should be.
Jody and Annie spent the afternoon luxuriating in the greenhouse, grooming one another:
And if you’re Foxie, it’s just looking fabulous because you were born that way:
Here’s a bonus short story about Jamie and her never-ending ability to amaze us. We were in the midst of cleaning the playroom this morning when Jamie got my attention and had me follow her (immediately!) to the frontroom that the trash can sits across from. She immediately climbed up onto the food chute and frantically gestured for me to show her the trash contents. Well, this was new! But it didn’t take long for me to realize that some of her valued reading material had mistakenly (per Jamie) been throw away during cleaning. So I found myself dumpster diving for Jamie. Rifling through a can full of papers to see what she might be thinking of, holding up each page and getting her nod of approval or her gesture to keep looking. In the end, we found what she’d been missing: two magazine pages of cowboy boots and *GASP*, her beloved Dwell magazine! Whew! Crisis averted. I adore her.
We had a very busy day at the Sanctuary today! Luckily I was able to snap a few photos this morning. I hope you enjoy these on this wonderful Saturday!
Sweet sweet Annie:
Neggie enjoying the summer morning sun:
Wonderful Jody:
You can barley see Missy in the tall grass:
Jamie enjoyed her morning supervising:
And Foxie let Jamie borrow her new Strawberry Shortcake doll:
I could look at Burrito all day:
I mean look at this dreamboat:
Dylan Most sponsored this beautiful day in celebration of the summer solstice (or winter as the case may be 🙂 )!
Dylan, thank you so much for helping the chimpanzees welcome this lovely time of year at the sanctuary! We love these glorious days of chimpanzees hidden in the wilds of Young’s Hill amid the tall, green grass, afternoons spent lounging in the sun-filled greenhouse and air filled with birdsong and flowers.
Whether your summer or winter, we hope all of you enjoy the particular beauty found in the season just as you make possible for the chimpanzees:
Negra:
Annie:
Mr. and Ms. Bluebird:
Foxie:
Jody:
Burrito:
Missy:
City HOOT! (our annual gala and auction) and Country HOOT! (the chimpanzees’ version of the party) were both wonderful successes! We’re beyond thrilled and grateful and we can’t wait to share the exciting details of our annual gala with you soon!
In the meantime, the chimps have been taking it pretty easy today. But then it’s been a big week of celebrations. In addition to last night’s festivities, June 13th was the chimpanzees’ 11th anniversary since their arrival to sanctuary and also the day we celebrate Negra’s honorary birthday (she turned 46 this year!). And since the chimp house looked more like a frat house this morning, it makes sense that they are enjoying a leisurely day (as they should) and the humans’ not so much (but of course it’s worth it).
Best friends, Missy and Annie, had the greenhouse to themselves this afternoon while everyone else napped inside the cooler chimp house, so they enjoyed a good amount of quality time together, grooming the warm late-spring afternoon away:
That leg in the air! Missy!
We hope you are all having an equally enjoyable end of spring, almost summer kind of Sunday!
It’s here!! Our annual gala and auction, HOOT! 2019 The biggest, most exciting party of the year for the humans, who of course are gathering for their love of the chimpanzees and bovines who call Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest their home. The number of people who come together whether as staff, volunteers, guests, or online supporters is truly incredible and we could not be more grateful. The lives that the chimpanzees and cattle are living here, not to mention the humans who care for them, would not be possible without the amazing community that has come together to ensure hope, love, home, and sanctuary for them and for all those who may be calling this their home in the future.
While so many wonderful humans are partying in the city, the chimpanzees, mistresses and master of partying, will of course not be outdone. So while City HOOT! 2019 is happening in Seattle, Country HOOT! 2019 is happening right here in Cle Elum.
On the menu for Country HOOT!: Field Roast celebration roast, rose petal and chive smashed potatoes, green beans, and cherry tomatoes served a bed of lettuce. (Those of you attending the gala may recognize some similarities on your menu, though try not to be jealous that you probably aren’t being served Gatorade in Dixie cups and having whole coconuts smashed on your table. Though if you decided to try something like the latter, you’re at least in the right crowd. And those of you at home, we support you smashing a coconut on your table if you’re so inclined. I mean, it’s your home, right?!):
Apologies for the low lighting and blurry-Jody-in-full-on-the-move-forage-mode, nevertheless…
Jody’s tactic, as is classic Jo, was to gather all she possibly could and eventually find a comfortable spot to lie down and enjoy it:
I’m not sure you’ll have peanut butter pinecones in the Dessert Dash, but one can always hope:
Jamie enjoying chives and a peanut butter Kong:
Annie:
Missy enjoying a firehose knot (we stick nuts inside) after dinner:
Belly full, Burrito is partied out. Again, for everyone at the gala if you, too, are partied out at night’s end, you’re probably still with the right crowd that you could pull this off. At least Burrito won’t judge:
And rest assured, Foxie and Negra had a great time, they were just ladies of the loft and I couldn’t capture a photo. 🙂
Whether you’re attending the gala or following from home, thank you again to every one of you for your support in all it’s varied and amazing ways, every day of these last eleven years, tonight, and for all the chimps’ days forward. HOOT! from these chimpanzees! MOO! from the bovines! Goodnight, all!
Dear friend to all the primates (and bovines) at the sanctuary, Kathleen Corby, also sponsored this extra special day of celebration! Woot! Or rather, Hoot! Kathleen shared this beautiful, heartfelt message about her gift today:
“Happy Birthday Negra! For eleven years you have been blossoming into your true self and during this time you have shown us what a brave and beautiful chimp woman you truly are. It is an extraordinary pleasure to witness the small, consistent transformations you have made over this short period of time. The love in my heart that I hold for you expands each and every year so I sponsor today to celebrate you on your honorary birthday. Much love to you from me. XOXO And I celebrate eleven (11!!!) years of Sanctuary. Happy Anniversary to all! Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest, like Negra, is always growing, expanding, transforming — especially now with your Bring Them Home Campaign. You are one of the finest animal welfare organizations, every thought is filled with compassion and care for the Cle Elum Seven and the new Bovine Gang. Best of everything to you in your 11th year of Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary…. 7 (Seven amazing chimpanzee people). 11 (Your eleventh anniversary). 13 (the lucky day the Cle Elum Seven came to their new sanctuary home) Forever Lucky Numbers now!!!”
Kathleen, we are so grateful for the abundance of love and compassion that flows from your heart. The lives of so many beings are enriched by your presence here on earth. So much gratitude to you for helping us celebrate this special day!
Negra:
Jamie:
Jody:
Foxie:
Annie:
Missy:
Burrito:
And of course, we also celebrate Betsy, Honey, Meredith, and Nutmeg, the bovine members of our sanctuary family:
