Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Burrito

In honor of the Cle Elum 7!

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This Christmas Eve was sponsored for the Cle Elum 7 by friends and advocates of not only the chimps, but all our fellow animals, Kery Shaw and Terran Baylor! Kery and Terran give so much of their time and hearts to advocating for the well-being of animals and creating a compassionate world community. We are thrilled to start off almost a full week of sponsorships and celebration with their generous gift for the chimpanzees.

Kery and Terran, thank you so much for all you do to make the world a kinder, gentler, safer sanctuary for us all, especially for those who are most in need of it. Thank you for always holding the chimpanzees in your hearts:

Annie (bottom) and Missy (top):

Annie and Missy top of Twister

Burrito:

Burrito lookout

Foxie and Dora:

Master Forager, Jody:

Negra picking wild lettuce:

And Jamie, Queen of her world:

Staff and volunteers have been like elves in the chimps’ workshop these last weeks processing all the incredibly generous and compassionate gifts pouring in for the chimpanzees, not only for the holidays, but for an even brighter future. From our hearts, thank you. Thank you. You have all given the gift of sanctuary and we are profoundly grateful to you.

However, you choose or don’t choose to celebrate this time of year, all of us here at CSNW wish you holidays and a season full of joy, hope, comfort, kindness, beauty and gratitude. Be sure to check in for the chimpanzees’ Christmas extravaganza tomorrow and have a magical Christmas Eve!

Photo Highlights From Today

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It can be a challenge to get photos of the chimps this time of the year. When it’s as cold as it has been, the chimps tend to hunker down and make themselves comfortable throughout the indoor enclosures. Often times, that means they are out of our sight, other than a foot or hand, or some other various body part. So, I consider it a success when I can get some photos, especially closeups, to share on the blog, because who doesn’t like looking at these chimps?

Annie

Missy

Burrito

Jamie

Jody

Negra

Foxie

A New Day

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Maybe it’s because they spent so much of their lives confined indoors, but the Cle Elum Seven have a wonder and an appreciation of the natural world that’s inspiring. This time of year, the humans at the sanctuary can often be heard grumbling about the frigid temperatures and the icy roads and the neverending piles of snow to shovel. We get so bogged down in the inconveniences of the season that we don’t often take time to appreciate what each day has to offer. But each morning when we open the door to Young’s Hill, the chimps line up to see what Mother Nature has up her sleeve.

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Today is in honor of Carrie Miller!

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Today’s day of sanctuary was sponsored by Sylvia Gandolfo in honor of Carrie Miller! Sylvia and Carrie are long-time friends of the chimpanzees and gift one another with the generous and compassionate support of the chimpanzees. The chimps have so many wonderful friends and we’re so grateful for the love and good they inspire in the world. Sylvia shared this message about today:

“Honoring Carrie to acknowledge her lifelong, passionate understanding of the importance of all living beings and the need to provide rescue and sanctuary for those who have been mistreated. Happy Anniversary!”

Sylvia, thank you so much for choosing to celebrate Carrie and your special day by including the chimps! We greatly appreciate how you both hold the chimps in your hearts and include them in your lives.

Carrie, we’re so happy to celebrate in your honor today! Thank you for all you do to make the world a kind and loving place and for us all. We hope you have a wonderful day of celebration!!

Your pal, Burrito, as his usual adorable self:

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Sylvia’s pal, sweet Annie:

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This one never gets old: Annie and Burrito hugging on the chimps’ first day on Young’s Hill (Negra foreground):

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A couple moments of goofiness

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The chimps have been pretty mellow today, enjoying the intermittent sun warming up the greenhouse and streaming through the playroom windows. So much so no one was even clamoring like usual to get back into the playroom after we had finished cleaning. Before I opened the doors to the playroom up, I caught Foxie and Burrito in the front rooms in a burst of lazy playfulness. So here are a few photos and a couple of moments with a couple of endearingly goofy chimpanzee people.

I asked Foxie if I could take her photo and she responded by making faces at the camera before finally swinging over to have me show her:

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And this guy! The foot, the eyes, the tiny teapot he’s holding…too much!:

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In this photo I was sneaking down the hallway to peek around the corner at him (which of course, he knew) and when I looked, he was peeking back:

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Burrito, Joy, and Giving

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Next to eating, playing is Burrito’s favorite thing.

In case you haven’t seen this morning’s newsletter yet (subscribe here if you’re not already), tomorrow is Giving Tuesday and the donations have already started rolling in. We have currently raised about $1800 toward our goal of $12,000, and we’ve only got until midnight tomorrow! Help keep Burrito and the other chimps supplied with all the food, toys, blankets, and friends (including new chimp friends!) that their hearts could desire by making a donation. We have a group of people pitching in for a matching challenge, so if you want to make a pledge, email Diana ([email protected]) before donating. Thank you!

Evening Enrichment

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Each evening, before leaving for the day, we prepare some sort of puzzle or activity for the chimps to work on. There are a variety of ideas that we rotate throughout the month, including KONGs, Boomer balls, drink buckets and pine cones, to name a few. So, I thought I’d share a few of these on the blog today.

KONGs
We add nuts or a mixture of mashed bananas or avocados into the open holes for the chimps to figure out how to get out.

Missy
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Boomer Balls
We place peanuts inside the balls and the chimps have to shake and move the balls to get at the nuts inside. Some of the chimps use chopsticks as tools to get the nuts out. In the following photos, Foxie used her finger to help get at the peanuts inside.

Foxie
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Kebabs
We skewer small food pieces (grapes are a favorite) inside of paper rolls and tie the “kebabs” to the outside of the caging. Below Burrito demonstrates how to hold onto the caging and use his fingers to try to pull the paper rolls inside.

Burrito
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Pine cones
Add a few raisins in toward the center of the cone and smear peanut butter along the outside and voila, a pretty special treat that keeps the chimps busy for quite a while.

Annie
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Negra
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Jamie
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Treat Buckets
There are a variety of options when using buckets as enrichment. Sometimes we fill the buckets with water, adding lemons or limes for some flavor and give the chimps long plastic straws to drink from. Other times we place seeds and nuts inside the buckets and the chimps have to knock the buckets over and use a tool to “sweep” the seeds toward them. Below, Annie demonstrates how to drink the flavored water from the bucket that was placed outside of the caging.

Annie
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Raisin Boards

Jamie demonstrates how to use a chopstick to push raisins through the holes in this hanging raisin board.
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