Today was a really nice day, so I was able to give the chimps access to their Outdoor Enclosure and their Front Rooms while Elizabeth and I cleaned the Playroom. Almost everyone was playing outside at some point, and they were very interested in playing with us through the new glass window. This has been such a wonderful addition to the sanctuary. It must be SO nice to look out and not see bars! And they’ve created a very fun (and distracting!) new game to boot!
chimp enrichment
Thanksgiving Field Roast Dinner
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!
Negra and “night bags”
Each night after dinner, we give the chimpanzees treats in the form of “night bags.” These are brown paper bags with a small amount of sugar-free cereal, dried fruit, salt-free nuts, seeds and sometimes dried pasta or other goodies. Our beloved volunteers make these bags up 21 or so at a time to ensure we have a supply for a few nights. Negra in particular likes this snack and sometimes asks for her night bag before dinner is even over. She asks by loudly clapping and sometimes extending an arm out. One night last week when J.B. was serving dinner, I snapped a few photos of Negra making her request, then enjoying her night bag.
Happy Halloween-Birthday, Jamie!
You can give both Jamie and her caregiver Elizabeth a birthday gift through Elizabeth’s birthday wish on Facebook!
Below are a few photos of Jamie (and her special pumpkin) from the morning/afternoon party. Jamie thanks Robbi, Stephanie P., Tamela, Margaret, Cari and Jeanie for the birthday goodies.
Stephanie brought Jamie a pair of cowboy boots for her birthday and she loves them! She picked one up right away and has been carrying it around with her all day. You can see the sole of the boot in the photo above – it’s tucked into Jamie’s groin pocket. It’s very windy today, but Jamie and I just played chase outside for a couple of minutes – a sign that she is in a great mood! J.B. will post a video in just a bit showing more of the party. Happy Halloween everyone!
A window with a view
Here’s Negra earlier today, at one of her favorite lookout spots. She spends a lot of time gazing out the windows here. Early next year we’ll have an exciting project: replacing some of our “caged” windows with bullet-proof glass so that the chimps can look out upon the valley without having to see bars. We can’t wait!
Tutu Retrospective
And enjoy this brief, quiet moment with the fashionista herself:
Mail call
We received a good number of returned auction invitations (be sure to update us when your address changes!) and decided to give them to the chimpanzees. Jamie made her way through them one by one…