Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

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Posts for climbing structures

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Keith came out for the day and he and J.B. spent a snowy afternoon preparing fir logs donated by Dan Sherman (thanks, Dan!) to be used as the posts for climbing structures on Young’s Hill.

Here are the logs and a view of a couple of the old buildings on the property.

logs

And here are some of them “planted” in the ground on Young’s Hill. They’re about 10-feet tall. We probably won’t be able to work on the climbing structures until spring, but it’s pretty cool to see the start of things going up on the hill. Thanks to Karen and Don Young, Euan and Bethany Menzies and all who donated toward the 2-acre habitat-to-come!

posts for climbing structures

Alamogordo Chimps Update

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New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson is a hero for chimpanzees. Two days ago he filed a complaint with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to investigate the transfer of the remaining 186 chimpanzees at the Alamogordo Primate Facility (APF). Since then he has been busy with press conferences and interviews with the media about this complaint, which is supported by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) and Animal Protection of New Mexico.

The complaint asks the USDA to investigate whether transferring the chimpanzees from APF to a biomedical research laboratory in Texas violates the Animal Welfare Act, which prohibits the transportation of ill, injured or physically distressed primates. Many of the chimpanzees, such as Flo (53 years old), are elderly and suffer from chronic diseases as a result of their age and their history as biomedical research subjects.

Thanks to Freedom of Information requests from PCRM, we now know that Foxie’s mother, Winny, is among the chimpanzees living at APF who faces transfer to Texas. Winny’s birthdate is listed as 1/1/1962. She is almost 49 years old.

Foxie’s son David, Negra’s daughter, Heidi, and Jody’s daughter April also face transfer. Jody’s son Levi has already been moved.

(For the complaint that PCRM filed in September that includes information on the chimpanzees at APF, click here).

For how to help, visit RetireTheChimps.org

Spread some Chimp Cheer

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Are you working on your holiday cards? Would you like to share the Cle Elum Seven with your list? We’d be happy to send you, free of charge, a pack of seven collectible notecards and donation envelopes (see photo below) to include with your holiday mailing. Your list will learn about your chimp friends and perhaps send a holiday Chimp Cheer donation their way.

Just email Jackie ([email protected]) with your mailing address and how many packs of seven you want!

collectible postcards and envelopes

Burrito being playful

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I have pretty much the best job in the world. Thanks to stellar volunteers Jessica and Lynn, I was able to spend some time with Burrito this morning. He was in a particularly silly mood.

It’s easy to forget everything that he’s been through when he’s so playful. Chimpanzees have very good memories, but I think they are better at living in the moment than most humans. And Burrito is definitely better at remaining childlike.

Jamie, the artiste

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Generally speaking, for what ever reason, the chimps here don’t seem too interested in drawing or painting. However, every once in a while, Jamie will draw with a pen or crayon. So, I was pleasantly surprised today when I found the following mask (that was all white yesterday) in the Playroom during cleaning. I can only assume it was Jamie’s masterpiece because I saw her drawing with a brown crayon yesterday, and she is the most likely of the group to draw. I would say when she puts her mind to it (or feels like it), Jamie is quite the artiste.

The artist herself, lounging in the greenhouse: