Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

chimp enrichment

Jody to the rescue

by

In order to help Burrito’s recovery from his recent dental procedure, we have been giving him and all of the chimpanzees soft foods. So, today we roasted a variety of fruits and vegetables for all of their meals. And to take advantage of the cooler temperatures we’ve been having, we put out a forage on Young’s Hill for lunch. Let me just tell you, there has been a ton of food squeaking going on over these roasted treats!

As soon as we opened the door to give the chimps access to Young’s Hill at lunch, all seven of them quickly made their way outside, gathering everything they could find. I watched Jody gather roasted onions and beets and quickly put them in her mouth. She went after roasted carrots next and had her mouth completely full before making her way back to the Greenhouse with her treats. Then she stopped, paused for a minute and looked behind her, then turned around and went back up the hill a few steps. I thought maybe she spotted another tasty morsel, but no, she saw something else and quickly snatched it up and practically ran back to the Greenhouse. Can you guess what it was? Hint, take a look at the photos below.

web_Jody_gather_food_forage_treat_mound_rock_YH_kh_IMG_3168

web_Jody_bipedal_forage_food_mouth_dora_doll_in_hand_YH_kh_IMG_3188

web_Jody_forage_mouthful_food_dora_in_hand_walk_YH_kh_IMG_3189

web_Jody_forage_mouthful_food_dora_in_hand_walk_YH_kh_IMG_3191

web_Jody_forage_mouthful_food_dora_in_hand_walk_YH_kh_IMG_3196

web_Jody_relax_nest_platform_after_lunch_yoga_stretch_dora_doll_belly_GH_kh_IMG_6002

web_Jody_relax_nest_platform_after_lunch_yoga_stretch_dora_doll_belly_GH_kh_IMG_6003

web_Jody_relax_nest_platform_after_lunch_yoga_stretch_dora_doll_belly_GH_kh_IMG_6004

Jamie in repose

by

If you’ve been following the blog for awhile, you are probably aware that as boss, Jamie has a lot of responsibility and she doesn’t take this lightly. If there aren’t humans to supervise or fellow chimpanzee politics to stay abreast of, there are projects to complete, and of course, perimeters to walk. I doubt there is enough time in the day for Jamie to complete everything she might be interested in doing.

But even the boss needs a break sometimes. Once she was sure we humans were busy cleaning the chimp house this morning as we were supposed to, she decided to take advantage of the blissfully cooler day (cool breeze included) and have a rest after breakfast. A cozy nest with her favorite sheets, one of her boots as a pillow, and the dozing commenced.

web_jamie_sleep_boot_pillow_kd_IMG_2978

web_jamie_nest_boot_under_chin_kd_IMG_2977

After enjoying a couple of walks around the hill with her caregivers later in the day, she decided an afternoon nap was in order as well and built a nest in front of the barn doors which look out over the chimps’ garden. Warm sun, a cool breeze, a troll, and a boot pillow make for a well deserved rest for a hard working lady.

web_jamie_nest_boot_hold_troll_kd_IMG_2984

web_jamie_nest_pr_door_hug_boot_kd_IMG_2982

You are the tomato of my eye

by

To say that Missy loves tomatoes is an understatement. When she sees them offered at a meal she shakes her head vigorously, hold out her hand and follows the server relentlessly. She has no problem inserting herself in front of anyone lower in the hierarchy to make sure she receives the maximum amount possible.

Missy, and all the chimpanzees, have been watching their garden grow with increasingly impatience. Missy is very focused on the cherry tomatoes planted right outside one of the playroom windows and they are just starting to ripen. And I know this because Missy wasted no time in letting me know. When she saw me today she immediately ran to the window by the tomatoes, swung back and forth from the caging in excitement, and occasionally looked over her shoulder at me and gestured toward the tomatoes.

web_missy_swing_caging_ask_tomato_kd_IMG_2856

Then when it seemed I was a little slow to catch her drift (humans!), she threw herself onto the caging and shook it with all her might:

web_missy_shake_garden_caging_all_fours_kd_IMG_2858

web_missy_shake_caging_garden_kd_IMG_2857

Here she throws me an outstretched arm to further plead her case:

web_missy_hang_caging_garden_kd_IMG_2865

The chimpanzees’ garden helps supplement the wonderful food donations we receive, but it also provides visual and edible enrichment for the chimpanzees. It’s a wonderful thing for them to look forward to and to be able to request something they see, freshly ripened and still warm from the sun. Thanks largely to volunteer caregiver, Denice, the chimps’ garden is really taking off. This year it’s full of onions, scallions, beets, cherry tomatoes, and carrots to name a few.

web_garden_kd_IMG_2875

But for Missy, her eye is on these little guys:

web_first_garden_tomatoes_kd_IMG_2860

web_missy_wait_tomato_from_garden_kd_IMG_2862

Of course, it didn’t take long for boss lady, Jamie, and everyone else to catch on so staff caregiver, Anna, served up a mid-afternoon garden snack. Here Anna serves Burrito a cherry tomato as Jamie looks on:

web_missy_jamie_anna_serve_garden_kd_IMG_2878

Burrito was very anxious for a green onion, but with Jamie lurking next to him, he was reluctant to take it before receiving the green light from her. So he sat very, very still, hair standing on end (pilo-erect) and waited patiently for her to pass by before taking it from Anna:

web_burrito_pilo_waiting_for_onion_kd_IMG_2873

Eventually, the boss gave her OK, but let him know she was watching. Here you can see her hovering over him as he munches his onion:

web_jamie_stand_over_burrito_garden_serving_kd_IMG_2874

Annie loves, loves, loves green onions:

web_annie_anna_serve_garden_kd_IMG_2866

Missy:

web_missy_anna_serve_garden_onion_kd_IMG_2872

Jamie keeping a very close eye on Anna, making sure she is serving things correctly during her training:

web_jamie_anna_serve_garden_tomato_kd_IMG_2868

web_jamie_anna_serve_garden_onion_kd_IMG_2870

I love that the chimpanzees have so many things to look forward to with each passing season.

Negra and friend

by

Negra spent the day hanging out with a new friend. And if you’ve been following the blog recently, you may be able to guess who that might be. Diana got some great photos of the Queen enjoying a leisurely morning in the greenhouse and it didn’t take long to spot her new companion.

web_negra_scratch_head_dg_IMG_5244

You can just see a tuft of white hair sticking out from under Negra’s hip pocket:

web_negra_sit_platform_dg_IMG_5249

web_negra_sit_troll_hip_pocket_dg_IMG_5256

web_negra_leg_out_troll_hip_pocket_dg_IMG_5258

web_negra_on_move_with_troll_dg_IMG_5261

Negra heard the train coming and one of her favorite things to do is watch it go past in the valley below. She also loves to bang on the window at it as it passes by and today she seemed to be telling her little friend all about it.

web_negra_hold_troll_bang_at_train_profile_dg_IMG_5287

Similar hairstyles…

web_negra_and_troll_watch_train_closeup_dg_IMG_5294

web_negra_hand_hold_troll_dg_IMG_5276

For reasons unclear to the humans, trolls are the “it” item du jour in the chimp house again. Jody has been wearing a scarf with several trolls tied onto it for two days! She even ran back in before breakfast to retrieve it and put it on during her meal. But no worries about Foxie, she’s been spending her time with Dora today.

Jamie at Rest

by

It is nearly impossible to satisfy Jamie. She has a mind that never sleeps; it needs constant stimulation. She demands a lot of her caregivers. When she’s bored – and captive chimpanzees are always in danger of boredom – she turns to us to entertain her. Most of the time, we are able to figure out what she wants, or to come up with an enrichment idea that keeps her busy for awhile. But sometimes we just don’t seem to be able to please her no matter what we do.

So it’s always a relief and a pleasure when we catch Jamie in a peaceful moment – relaxed, satisfied, and in need of nothing.

web_Jamie_lie_down_hold_feet_troll_scarf_enrichment_look_at_camera_PR_ek_IMG_5185

web_Jamie_snuggle_stuffed_I_love_you_monkey_hammer_toy_enrichment_PR_ek_IMG_5198

web_Jamie_look_at_camera_snuggle_stuffed_i_love_you_monkey_enrichment_PR_kh_IMG_5200

web_Jamie_sleep_snuggle_stuffed_I_love_you_monkey_enrichment_PR_kh_IMG_5201

Dora hitches a lift

by

Much to our dismay, we reportedly have an extended heat-wave headed our way. But this afternoon we took advantage of overcast skies and a cool breeze and the chimpanzees enjoyed a lunch forage on Young’s Hill.

A great thing about forages is that it gives the chimpanzees enrichment for the rest of the day as they will all typically venture out throughout the day to see if anything was missed. Foxie decided to make a second pass and her good friend, Dora, came along. But Foxie ran into a challenge making room for carrots AND Dora.

web_foxie_dora_and_carrots_in_mouth_kd_IMG_4445

web_foxie_walk_dora_mouth_yh_kd_IMG_4485

web_foxie_dora_in_mouth_forage_I_kd_IMG_4484

Foxie and Dora had a lot of ground to cover, so Foxie stopped and tossed Dora on her back. Chimpanzee mothers carry their young on their backs when on the go. Foxie mimics this behavior and often carries her dolls on her back, but while it’s particularly endearing and easy to read into, your guess is as good as ours as to why she actually does this. Regardless of her reasons, it’s pretty adorable.

web_foxie_tossing_dora_on_back_mid_walk_kd_IMG_4487

web_foxie_dora_on_back_forage_yh_II_kd_IMG_4489

web_foxie_dora_on_back_yh_look back_kd_IMG_4490

web_foxie_dora_on_back_stand_yh_kd_IMG_4491

web_foxie_dora_on_back_forage_grass_kd_IMG_4492

After such a long hike, Foxie and Dora came back to take a nap at the top of the greenhouse (you can just see Dora tucked in Foxie’s hip in the background).

web_foxie_dora_rest_top_gh_look_kd_IMG_4479

Handsome Mr. B

by

I went out to the greenhouse this afternoon to snap a few photos of the chimpanzees—most of whom were lounging in hard-to-see spots, so I was out of luck. However, front and center was Mr. Burrito, looking handsome as ever.

web_burrito_handsome_up-close_gh_dm_IMG_3000

web_burrito_handsome_up-close_gh_dm_IMG_3006

web_burrito_handsome_up-close_gh_dm_IMG_3014

web_burrito_handsome_look_at_camera_gh_dm_IMG_3015