Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

chimpanzee retirement

Valentine’s Thank You Video

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Enjoy your day tomorrow!

As the video above expresses, everyone here is incredibly grateful and honored that you choose to spend your time on this blog and thinking about the chimpanzees and bovines at the sanctuary.

I received an unexpected call today about a Valentine’s Day gift that I will be sharing tomorrow to e-news subscribers!

In the meantime, the news from the day is that Burrito has a new favorite toy. Another gift from Trees for Tigers! Below are a couple of photos and I posted a short video clip on our Instagram account.

Coniferous Cold Cabbage

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It began snowing on Sunday and hasn’t really stopped since. Though it hasn’t been a heavy snowfall, it’s enough for it to start to feel like winter finally is here after several bouts of warm weather. When the caregivers began to arrive at the sanctuary in the morning, they were greeted by something to remind them it is indeed near to end of January and still winter.

This is one of the Christmas trees that has been adorning the outside of the Chimp House. As some of you know, it’s somewhat of a tradition to plant the trees that decorate the enclosures for the chimpanzees’ Christmas celebration on Young’s Hill when the weather is better. Until then, it sits right outside the door.

While the conditions outside thwarted any ambitions of going outside today (though they did have access to go outside), they seemed pretty content inside the warm indoor enclosures.

After cleaning was done, Willy B, Mave, and Honey B were treated to some cabbage that was spread out in their enclosure.

After lunch, Mave and Willy B spent most of their afternoon grooming.

Honey B was busy supervising the construction workers and couldn’t be bothered with grooming or most photos today.

Meanwhile on the other side, while most of the Seven were cozy in their nests all day, there was one individual who had a lot of energy he had to burn through.

There was a good game of chase between him and I from the Greenhouse doors to the door that leads to Young’s Hill. If you’ve seen J.B.’s post a couple of weeks ago, then you know this route. A common question we get is why does Burrito ask for snow from caregivers when we can just grab it himself during winter? We don’t really know why, but let’s be honest, who wouldn’t like a hand delivered caregiver made, artisan snowball?

Plus, we, as caregivers, have a hard time deflecting Burrito’s charm when he asks for his zero-calorie treat.

With the weather seemingly on different ends of the spectrum lately, who knows what tomorrow may hold. Though Burrito may hope it holds more hands full of snow.

Stay warm, friends!

Sleight of Hand

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One common question that we are asked right here on the blog, as well on Facebook and Instagram is how do we know what the chimpanzees are trying to tell us, or how do we know what they’re requesting. A lot of it has to do with gestural communication.

Throughout the years, studies have been conducted to study to what length nonhuman apes can learn a human language, specifically American Sign Language. Washoe and her chimpanzee family, Koko the gorilla, Chantek the orangutan, and even Kanzi the bonobo has learned to communicate using a Lexigram. But what about those who didn’t learn a human language or other human form of communication? What about just natural gestures?

All of the large-bodied apes use gestural communication. This includes chimpanzees, bonobos, orangutans, gorillas, and of course us, humans. So hopefully it won’t come as a surprise there is some overlap. Not just within the gestures themselves, but how he learn and use them.

In some of the more recent studies, researchers have been looking for the intentionality of gestures. They adapted some methods child behaviorists look at in infant’s ability to learn and communicate using gestures. The some of the key things researchers look for are audience checking, response waiting, and persistence.

Audience checking is just as it sounds. Is the person who is about to try to communicate aware the intended recipient is paying attention to them? If so, they will proceed to gesture. If not, the communicator will adjust their position to ensure the recipient sees them, or do an attention getter. There’s no point in trying to do a visual form of communication if the recipient isn’t looking at you, right? In the case of some of the chimps here, the attention getting comes in different forms. For instance, Burrito will usually blow Bronx cheers or start kicking the caging. Honey B will blow Bronx cheers or clap her hands loudly. Jamie will sometimes throw things such as toys, alfalfa cubes, cowboy boots, etc.

Response waiting is when the communicator waits to see if you got the correct message. Did you fulfill their request?

If that message is not received correctly, then persistence comes about. Maybe you didn’t understand the first time, so the communicator will give you the gesture again or modify it to some degree to make sure you understand, which may include the use of additional gestures.

Most of the gestures the chimpanzees here use toward human caregivers are requests. And one of the simplest gestures to look for is pointing.

When Jamie wants to go for a walk around Young’s Hill, she will deploy her attention getter. Once she has our attention, she will point until we get whatever combination of caregiver and boots she has in mind. When a caregiver comes back with a pair of boots, but they are the wrong boots, she will proceed to continue point and waving her fist again. As we get closer to her perfect walking combination, her gesturing slows down. However if we are way off mark, it speeds up and usually includes her patting her own head and/or stomping her foot. Once the combination is found, she races to the Hill, with caregiver and boots in tow.

We, as caregivers, don’t just look for the pointing. We have to put into consideration the context of the situation. As some of you know, Jamie also loves Gator races. About half way up Young’s Hill, Jamie will stop, look at us, then turn to point in the direction of the Gator. This is one of the easiest ones caregivers caught on too because it’s unmistakable. The second we take a step in the direction of the Gator, Jamie stops her gesturing, and prepares to get a running head start.

Here is her Gator request in play.

Burrito, when he’s on his snowy treat kick, starts his Bronx cheers and points in the direction of snow.

This is another one we have come to understand very quickly. When I first started here, I would ask him what he was pointing at. As I would head outside looking around, his Bronx cheers would become louder, and he would point in different directions (if snow was everywhere), or if there was only a single patch of snow, he make sure he is pointing to that patch and start nodding his head. Once I give him his snowy treats, he will *usually* stop because his request was fulfilled.

However, as some of you know, Burrito’s snow addiction sometimes knows no bounds.

He will only stop until he has the right amount he is requesting.

One of the other easiest ones we know is when we are about to serve a food item that isn’t as high on there priority list. Negra and Foxie are masters at this one. Four fingers will protrude through the mesh to sort of push away the item.

If we attempt again to serve that item, the gesture occurs again and sometimes with a little swipe to let us know this is not what they want right now. Today, Kelsi was serving onions, both Negra and Foxie did the same gesture to let her know it was not time for onions. The time was for sweet potatoes.

 

There are many resources to learn about chimpanzee gestures. One of the most informative is The Great Ape Dictionary created by gesture researchers from the University of St. Andrews.

There is also a great NOVA Wonders documentary episode on PBS called What Are Animals Saying?

 

out of the shadow

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In the past, we’ve described Burrito as being tentative and unsure about things.

It took a while for him to join Jamie on her perimeter walks of Young’s Hill. In July of 2013, about ten months after the 2-acre enclosure was complete, J.B. writes that Missy, Annie, and Jody were often seen taking part in Jamie’s adventures at the top of the hill and all around the perimeter, while Burrito, Foxie, and Negra tended to stick to the lower half of the enclosure.

By October of that same year, Burrito was occasionally joining Jamie on her perimeter walks, On these walks, he was always the follower.

In March of 2015, Katelyn describes how Burrito was joining more perimeter patrols, and even relaxing a bit. A few days later, Burrito started to invite caregivers to go on walks without Jamie, which J.B. excitedly wrote about (read to the end for one reason he was excited).

Jamie’s walks still far eclipsed Burrito’s in quantity, and most of Burrito’s were with other chimpanzees with him following behind.

Burrito would often appear to be hesitant when Jamie veered off the usual pathway. Katelyn described Burrito gingerly following Jamie as she effortless climbed the Twister structure in September of 2016.

Today Burrito took twice as many walks / runs as Jamie around the perimeter. Some with just him and me and some with a chimpanzee group.

He was the occasional leader, sometimes even waiting for Jamie to catch up.

He and Jamie appeared to decide at the same time to climb up Twister.

But Burrito was the only one to go to the very top.

Before going back inside, on his own, he took a path less traveled to explore a different part of the hill.

Choices, opportunities, and space that allow for gradual gains in confidence and incremental steps towards discovery – this really is what sanctuary is about.

Slight Change of Plans

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I planned on posting a blog about chimpanzee gestures since a common question we have received in the comments on Facebook, Instagram, and even here within the blog is about when any of them request something from us and how we know. I.e. Jamie requesting to go on a walk, her requesting the Gator, Burrito requesting snowy treats, Foxie asking for a doll, etc. Also because gestures are near and dear to my heart, and has consumed most of my life for the past couple of years as part of my studies. However, as we all know every day is different and what you had planned in mind could change within an instant.

Today was one of those days. Not because anything bad happened. In fact, today was a really calm and smooth day. The chimpanzees were very cooperative in going where they needed to go so we could clean enclosures. Cleaning was done at a relatively fast pace. There were virtually no fights (there were minor arguments, but nothing too serious that resulted from them). All this calm on a day nobody has decided to go outside since it had snowed a little bit last night.

What caused me to change course and post something different were these:

Honey B and Mave had one heck of a play session earlier today. It reminded me of the old Andy Capp cartoon. Just a cloud of fur with feet and hands flung everywhere, and every so often a head would pop out. Except it wasn’t a fight like in the cartoon strips. This was play.

Then there was Honey B at lunch, enjoying her leek.

Kelsi and I debated for a longer time than we would like to admit about which of the two photos were better and to include. So we decided the best decision would for me to just include both of them. Though they are extremely similar, there are some minor differences that add a little pizzazz to each them, respectively. For instance, in the top one you can really see the coloration of Honey B’s eyelids and detail in her face. While the bottom one has the slight little turn away from the camera with a little side-eye that adds a little sass.

For me, these photos HAD to be shared today and could not wait. But don’t fret, I will post the blog about gestures soon enough. Maybe with photos a little better than the ones I currently have. As I mentioned before, every day is different.

Here are some bonus photos from today:

Jamie resting on her favorite barrel.

Willy B looking dashing, while also about to dash to the camera to review this photo.

Tracks

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The chimps did some phenomenally interesting things today. Unfortunately, these moments rarely overlapped with the times when I had the camera nearby.

As lunch passed and the afternoon rolled on, I needed to get some content for the blog but was still uninspired. At moments like that, I usually decide to grab the camera and take a walk.

Over the past week or so, the sanctuary has received a lot of snow. However, the weekend’s medley of rain, sunshine and freezing temperatures quickly converted the snow into a patchwork mosaic of slush, mud and ice. The surface provided poor footing as I slogged up the hill from the Chimp House, but I soon realized it was preserving my boot prints with almost perfect detail. Sure enough, as I passed the electrified barriers of Young’s Hill and crossed into the cattle pasture, I began to see tracks left behind by all sorts of critters. There were countless rodent trails furrowing their way through the grassy fence-lines, but I was distracted by the signs of larger animals.

The bobcat prints were easily noticeable and went just about everywhere. Katelyn also saw some bobcat tracks while patrolling a couple of weeks ago. They look like a domestic cat’s paw print, but larger and awesome-r. Much like other felines, though, they slink from cover to cover while hunting and thus leave a meandering track behind them. They’re not incredibly social animals so the numerous trails were almost surely created by only one or two individuals traveling alone. (FYI, Katelyn is a better tracker than I am. I had to text her recently to confirm that I had found goose tracks in the pasture, which were way bigger than I expected them to be).

I also found some coyote prints which reflected the purposeful demeanor that is typical of wild canines. The individual who created these prints seems to have loped through in a hurry last night, surveying the landscape with its ears, eyes and nose without breaking stride. Although roughly equal in size to the paws of an average domestic dog, the coyote prints are easily distinguished by their overall shape and the negative space between the toe pads. Also, unlike dogs, coyotes don’t continuously veer off-course to investigate every last scent. The only creatures who have time for that kind of aimless curiosity are those cared for by humans.

Of course, as far as large-bodied mammals go, mule deer are responsible for 99% of our wildlife encounters at the sanctuary. Their tracks were also ubiquitous, often crossing over the paths of other animals and obscuring their prints.

 

In the following image, you can see the coyote tracks going left, parallel to the creek, while the deer seemed to have gone right, trudging straight across the ravine.

Even with all of the tracks left behind by wild animals, it’s still only a “drop in the bucket” compared to all of the trodden earth left behind by the sanctuary’s cattle and the horses that live next door. You can see that the neighbor’s horses have been using the energy company’s access road quite frequently.

Of course, the walk ended with a view of the new chimp enclosures being built. The following image shows the framework of the new greenhouses and the exterior façade of the new playrooms.

One chimp who will be residing in that wing of the building, Willy B, did not leave any tracks in the snow today. Instead, he preferred to look down at the snow with what appeared to be confusion, annoyance, and/or wonder. It didn’t help that he seemed to have lost track of a walnut somewhere in the slush-covered outdoor courtyard.

 

Top Caregiver Posts of 2020

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Being a caregiver for captive chimpanzees in a sanctuary is not always easy. It can be physically and emotionally exhausting. Burn out and compassion fatigue are not unusual. As someone who has worked at varying levels within sanctuaries, I know the difficulties as well as the many perks. I’m so grateful for those who choose this field.

We have a truly incredible team of caregivers. They are dedicated beyond what their positions require and strive to give the chimpanzees good days, every day. They are talented, witty, and kind. I admire each of them as individual people and as coworkers. I learn from them all of the time, and I love reading their blog posts for their unique perspective and insights.

For a sanctuary, the staff are the most important, and often the largest, expense in the budget. No one is getting rich as a caregiver, but they do need to be paid fairly so they can continue their good work. Some sanctuaries attempt to rely on volunteer labor, but this more often than not is unsuccessful in the long term. We miss all of the CSNW volunteers greatly, and are beyond thankful to those who have been able to meet our strict guidelines and worked so hard alongside us this year.

The pandemic was a big reminder of just how crucial paid staff are in providing for the care of the chimpanzees and cattle and the running of the sanctuary.

Donors to sanctuaries get this. You get this! You all are so wonderful, and every single staff member here is grateful every day for your support. Thank you for your donations and your nice words as 2020 came to a close. We are buoyed by your generosity and the love of the chimpanzees and bovines that you have.

With the start of the new year, I thought I’d nominate my favorite 2020 blog posts from the non-director staff (that would be everyone except me and J.B.). It was very challenging to narrow this down!

I’ll start with Chad.

Chad is our newest caregiver, though now that we’ve all been through a pandemic year together, and with all his time as an intern before he was on the staff, it seems like he’s been here forever, in a really good way. His post A Morning Stroll and Confession of a (New) Caregiver from the end of September makes me cry and smile every time I read it. One reason I smile is thinking about how many times he’s gone on walks/runs around the hill with Burrito since he wrote that. J.B. and I have a good view of the hill from our house and the office, and it’s not unusual for me to look out the window on my weekend and see Chad in his red shirt running on the other side of the fence as playful Burrito leads the charge.

Anthony started his job at CSNW about two months before Honey B, Mave, and Willy B arrived at the sanctuary. I think they call that baptism by fire. He wasn’t an unfamiliar face, however. Like Chad, he had interned and volunteered at the sanctuary while working on his master’s degree in the Primate Behavior and Ecology program at Central Washington University. I can’t imagine 2020, much less the later half of 2019 without him as part of the team.

I’m going back pretty far in the year for this one, but I really appreciated the blog post Anthony wrote that he entitled The Tough Questions about public perception and the potential for videos and images of captive primates (and all wildlife) to perpetuate misconceptions and even contribute to their continued harm. It provides much fodder for contemplation.

Anna has had quite a year in her personal life – she has a one year old now! My favorite blog post of Anna’s in 2020 is What Did I Miss?, mostly because of the glimpse of her daughter Luna meeting the chimpanzees for the first time, but also because I am reminded of the happiness I had that she was back from maternity leave and ready to whip the chimp house into shape.

I’m pretty lucky because I get to work with Kelsi on Saturdays. As I put this blog together, Kelsi is doing the approximately one hundred chimp house chores in her usual efficient and upbeat fashion in between entertaining Honey B and Willy B and giving snow snacks to Missy. My favorite blog post of Kelsi’s, one that I go to whenever needed, is Breathe in Mave. It’s perfect, and really everyone should bookmark it.

Katelyn’s work life during 2020 has changed quite a bit. Like thousands of other people, instead of coming in on her office days, she works from home. Office cat LouLou really misses crowding her out of her chair and licking her lunch, and I miss chatting with her about how amazing our supporters are. When Katelyn is in the chimp house, she makes the most of her time with the chimpanzees, posting to the blog on Mondays. My favorite blog post of Katelyn’s is Being Honey B because she beautifully captured the essence of Honey B and why just about anyone who has ever met her has loved her.

I could have chosen any number of other blog posts these great caregivers have written. Maybe you too have some favorites?