Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary
For Jody, comfort reigns supreme. We placed 30 blankets in a big pile in the play room after cleaning today and she was the first to make her way to it. The chimps will usually each take an armful when we do this and be on their way, but today Jody decided to take advantage of a “pre-made” nest. The only adjustment she made was pushing the pile into the sun and then she promptly rolled into, snuggled and stretched to her heart’s content. Just as it should be.
This post concludes the series on my first impressions of the Cle Elum 7. Last but surely not least, I get to write about Foxie chimpanzee. Jamie did not make this an easy photography session for me today. The boss kept insisting I model a selection of new cowboy boots that she just received. I walked at least 3 laps around Young’s Hill wearing her boots before I could sneak into the Playroom to see what Foxie was up to. What Foxie did next made my afternoon exceedingly better. She came down from her perch on the playroom catwalk and began to somersault, spin and do some “break-dance” like moves all around her enclosure. Intermittently, she would get large gulps of water from the spigot. These mouthfuls would serve as both hydration and playful ammunition that she would aim at my feet. There are so many challenges to taking photos of a chimpanzee that won’t stop running around doing flips. Foxie is a joy to be around!
While Jamie and I walked around Young’s Hill yesterday, Missy decided to make her way across the hill via the highest points of the climbing structures. I think she traversed every climbing structure the chimps have on the hill, taking in the view from each spot. Walking is boring, if you’re Missy.
As Jamie and I reached the top of Young’s Hill, Missy raced pass to the next climbing structure and we were greeted by Foxie, Dora and troll, who were on their way over to check out what was happening on the neighbor’s property. Foxie spent most of the morning sitting on the very top of the new structure. Balancing precariously (from my perspective, not hers) on the railing to be precise. She spent over an hour all on her own, seemingly taking in the view in every direction from the highest lookout on the hill.
Back to Missy, who took Jamie’s and Carlene’s Towers across the top of the hill. My heart will never tire of watching the chimpanzees as they take in the views from the hill. My heart swells thinking of the courage they’ve found to climb to such heights and sit peacefully in solitude. Can you just imagine the awe they must feel after having survived over 30 years in cages the size of bathroom stalls to now find themselves with the freedom to run, roam, and climb to their hearts’ content? The awe they must feel when taking in such a vast landscape after having lived in a windowless basement?
You can just see Missy’s head at the bottom of the ladder as she looks toward Jamie and I at the bottom of the hill. At this point Missy ran full speed all the way down the hill and back to the greenhouse. But then, why walk when you can fly?
Thanks from the bottom of our hearts for the support and love you so generously share with the chimpanzees. And thanks to all of you who were able to participate and make our amazing auction as amazing as it was. It’s each of you that make this life of awe, wonder and hope possible for the chimps.
Just after the chimpanzees had eaten lunch, I wondered into the greenhouse to find Annie, Negra and Missy napping on this cool afternoon. I had a mission to take photos of Annie because she and Foxie are my final “first impressions” blog candidates. Annie was doing some interesting yoga-like stretches that I wanted to photograph, but Missy had other ideas. She brought a small piece of stick over to me and pressed her shoulder against the caging for some grooming. She used the twig she had found to groom herself and I found a small tool to gently groom the arm she had presented. Meanwhile Annie was doing more yoga moves that I wanted to catch with my camera so I decided to try and split my time between grooming Missy and photographing her good friend Annie. Missy wasn’t sold on this decision. She moved over to Annie and received a much more attentive grooming. This was an excellent choice. While Annie may be low in the group’s hierarchy, she is high on the friendship scale.
Annie (right) grooms Missy (on the left).
Gentle Annie
After a summer full of heatwaves in Cle Elum, we’re greeting this week’s cooler temperatures (and even rain!) with open arms. Today the chimpanzees have been making the most of the break from the heat and spending lots of time outside on Young’s Hill. While adventure is great, it’s important to mix in some quiet time here and there. Here are my favorite portraits of the day.
Negra:
Missy:
Jody:
Jamie:
Foxie:
Burrito:
Annie:
We had a slight sprinkle of rain and a breeze as we put out the forage on Young’s Hill this afternoon. This seemed like appropriate weather for Negra to venture out and collect some tomato slices.
She quickly returned to the greenhouse where she enjoyed her bounty under an orange fleece blanket. This photo and the weather remind me that fall is just around the corner.
Negra reminds me of comfort. She has favorite foods, sleeping spots, and outdoor temperatures. An early morning ritual that caregivers enjoy with Negra is the wrist kiss and grass request. When temperatures are warm, we will usually find her sleeping under a blanket on the top platform in the greenhouse. She will usually greet us with a gentle kiss on the wrist (her prehensile lips extend outside the caging) and then immediately clap her hands. I learned early on that this was an appeal for a couple fresh sprigs of grass that are growing just beyond the chimpanzee’s reach. “Queen” Negra will munch on the grass and go back to bed where she waits in her nest for us to present her with an offering of peanuts. We have hopes that she will accept the offering and shift into the building so we can close off the greenhouse for cleaning. Negra knows what she likes and she sticks to it.
If you’ve been following the blog for awhile you are probably aware that we talk a lot about enrichment for the chimpanzees. Things for them to play with, nest with, investigate, use as tools, make projects with, encourage natural behaviors, or use for whatever comes to their minds. Even the best facilities for captive chimpanzees will never be able to fully replicate their natural lives in the wild. And chimpanzees, who experience the world in much the same way that humans do emotionally and intellectually, are going to get bored in captivity at some point, despite the best of care. Keeping their active minds busy and their days interesting is one of the biggest challenges we face as caregivers.
We provide a variety of items for the chimps each day and everything comes out each morning to be cleaned and is replaced with new items. For the humans, there are two enrichment calendars hanging in the chimp house, one for daytime enrichment and one for evening enrichment. Each day, thanks to Keri, our Enrichment Coordinator, notes a particular “theme” for the day and a particular food puzzle for the evening. For example for daytime enrichment it might be “trolls in socks” day, “yellow” day, or “garden” day. The themes are really a way for the humans to think outside the box and try to present the same things in a new and interesting way for the chimps.
The enrichment theme for today was “giant pile” meaning that after we cleaned the chimp house, we put their fresh blankets and enrichment for the day in a giant pile in the middle of playroom. The chimps each took turns collecting the items they wanted from the pile and went their way. Jody took her time and pulled together quite a array of items she needed to nest with. After choosing an armful of blankets, she found a paper bag and decided to make a lovely wadge as she looked out over the garden. A wadge is a ball of food or something fibrous that chimps like to place in their bottom lips to suck on.
Once Jody had her blankets and wadge situated, she chose the dolls she needed. She decided on two trolls and a Dora doll, sticking two in her pelvic pocket and carrying one. Then she headed upstairs to find a quiet corner to construct her nest.
But it can be precarious carrying all of that stuff upstairs and once Jody reached the loft, she dropped one of the trolls down below. Much to my surprise, she came all the way back downstairs, rescued the fallen baby, and decided while she was at it she should grab some more blankets. Then she headed back upstairs with another precarious load covering her head. It’s hard work gathering the perfect nesting accessories.
