Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Gratitude

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I know I say this every time, but I am always in awe of our supporter’s kindness. The chimps are truly lucky to have friends like you. Giving Day for Apes was such a success. We made over our goal! After a big fundraiser like HOOT! or Giving Day for Apes, I always find myself reflecting on how amazing this sanctuary is. We have ten marvelous chimpanzees, the most dedicated care team, unbelievable volunteers, and incredible supporters. Everyone’s generosity this year feels even more special. We know that times are weird and uncertain, so thank you for your donations. These times have been uncertain for us too, but because of your help, we are still on track for our expansion, which means more chimps get to call Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest home! One way to show our gratitude is this video, without your support these three chimps would not be here having this amazing play session this morning. Thank you.

Of course bonus photos!

The handsome Willy B.

Mave relaxing.

Honey B peering into your soul.

Jamie stuffing a troll doll into this sash.

Negra living her best life in this mega nest.

With this last imagine of Negra, we wish you a good night and sweet dreams. 🙂

Giving Choices, Giving Thanks, Giving Day for Apes

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Before we get into the bulk of the blog, lets play a game shall we?

She loves to be in forts, and can build her own quite well, though maybe not as well as some of her group mates. She loves to lay on her back and grasp her feet together in the air. Who is in the fort? Answer is at the end of the blog.

While you ponder who could possibly be in a fort, let’s get into today.

Thank you so much those who could donate for Giving Day for Apes so far! We are not quite at our goal but there is still time to donate. The fundraiser ends at 9pm PST/12am EST. But either way we want to send our sincerest thank you to those who have donated and continue to support us past, present, and beyond! Because of you, you have helped us try to provide the best lives we possibly could for Annie, Burrito, Foxie, Honey B, Jamie, Jody, Mave, Missy, Negra, and Willy B!

One of the things you have helped us provide is choice.

The choice to choose which doll will be the Doll Du Jour.

Today, Foxie choose Dora as her companion.

The choice to nap on a rainy day.

Annie spent most of the day napping. Doesn’t she seem so sweet napping?
Jamie too choose to spent most of the day underneath a blanket in the Greenhouse.
As did Negra!

The choice to either eat inside or outside.

Jody decided to eat her breakfast inside the Front Rooms while the rest of the group ate in the Greenhouse.

The choice to go outside.

Though it rained most of the day, we still gave Willy B the option to enjoy the Courtyard, which he did!

The choice to play with friends…

Mave and Honey B spent the most of the day playing together.

Or the choice to have a quiet grooming session.

Jody and Missy groom Burrito in the Greenhouse. (I’m sorry everybody! I tried to include everybody today, but this was the best I could get of Missy! I’m so sorry!)

And the choice to make the caregivers go on a run around Young’s Hill…

Burrito made caregivers join him go around Young’s Hill multiple times today!

And then play with them upon return.

He stopped for two seconds to allow me to get this photo, before it turned back in to a blur of fur.

With all the generosity throughout the years during events such as Giving Day for Apes, you have helped us provide them with one of the most precious things in life: Choice! So thank you!

And drum roll please!

The answer to who was in the fort…..

MAVE!

Thank you for playing!

And as a bonus:

Right as we were serving dinner, I was indeed able to get a proper photo of Missy!

The choice to enjoy a baked sweet potato!

Wild like the wind

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After a brief spell of steady rain showers the past couple of days the wind arrived whipping like a wild thing, clearing the way for sunshine and blue skies and the chimpanzees seem to follow suit. Everyone was so joyful this morning! Maybe they were relieved to know it isn’t quite winter yet. Jamie was extra zoom-like, fully pilo with her hair standing on end and racing out onto Young’s Hill in every direction for no apparent reason other than she felt too joyous to contain it. Each of the chimps was racing, leaping and laughing throughout the morning. There isn’t a lot that makes me happier than seeing such unabashed and unapologetic joy in their hearts.

Foxie and I got to spend some quality time together recently, just quietly enjoying one another’s company in between occasional bursts of pirouettes, chase, doll toss and headstands (that last one I was just doing in my head, but my heart was in it. 😉 ).

A tiny little ball of Foxie. If you’re new to the blog, don’t let Foxie’s diminutive size fool you. She is a fierce little woman and has a no problem donning her sassy pants when she takes a mind to and like most chimpanzees, can go from zero to 100 in the blink, or blur, of an eye:

By day’s end, even Negra’s wilder side made an appearance as she stomped around the playroom, hair on end, commanding quite a presence. This is usually Negra’s way to say enough is enough in the hopes of getting everyone to calm down. But most of the day she spent swaddled in the most beautiful pink aura:

And don’t forget! Tomorrow is the big day! Giving Day for Apes! It’s an incredible way to help so many amazing sanctuaries around the world who will be participating to raise funds for the rescue and care of the primates we’ve all committed to providing life-time care and well-being for. And you can help Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest reach our goal of raising $40,000 for the direct care of Annie, Burrito, Foxie, Honey B, Jamie, Jody, Mave, Missy, Negra and Willy B as well as our continued expansion to bring more chimpanzees home. Whether you’re able to participate through donation or sharing the event with others, from our hearts, thank you for all YOU make possible for these amazing chimpanzee people and those to come.

And as an exciting bonus, anyone who donates $500 or more on our Giving Day for Apes page at any time will be invited to Jamieween (!!), Jamie’s 43rd birthday celebration on October 31st via Zoom! And ALL donors of ANY amount who give during the hour of 10-11 AM PST (1-2 PM EST) will be entered to win a spot for this special visit.

Happy Anniversary, Adam!

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Raina Cincoski sponsored a day of sanctuary for the chimpanzees and bovines in honor of her husband, Adam, with this lovely message:

“This day of sponsorship is for my husband Adam on our 21st wedding anniversary. Seeing his love of all things furry touched my heart decades ago and told me that I would be safe spending my life with this gentle and caring soul. He reminds me of a certain chimpanzee – handsome, strong, courageous and kind to the women in his life. Please share some photos of that fine Willy B for our special day.”

This is so sweet, Raina, thank you for including the chimpanzees in your and Adam’s special day and especially, in your celebration of kindness and good hearts! And thanks for the smiles you brought to our faces with your love for Willy B! And if Adam’s like Willy B, well, it’s gotta be rough putting up with all the screaming that happens every time he steps outside. 😉

Happy Anniversary, Adam and Raina! We hope you have the best day!

And now, without further delay…<3

Honey B and Willy B:

Giving Days and Days of Gifts

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Today’s theme: gifts, giving, and gifts given.

Before we get to today’s update, though, I want to remind everyone that Giving Day for Apes is this Tuesday! It’s not too late to set up your own fundraising page via the sanctuary’s Giving Day for Apes page (just click on the big “Fundraise” button to get started). To see pages that others have created, scroll down on our page and look under “Campaigns supporting this organization.” All donations made on any of those campaigns will go directly to the sanctuary and will be eligible for the cash prizes offered!

Of course, the special fundraisers aren’t the only times that our supporters make generous gifts to the sanctuary.

Earlier today, we posted the following message:

Mary Horton sponsored this special day of sanctuary for her mom and long-time friend of the chimpanzees, Vicki Fagerlee… Vicki, you make a lasting difference in the chimpanzees’ and cattle’s lives, helping us ensure their joy, well-being and comfort for all their days forward. We’re so grateful to have you as part of our chimp and bovine family. Happy Birthday, from all of us here at the sanctuary!

It may have been Vicki’s birthday today, but she has been the one buying gifts for the sanctuary lately. Last week, we received notice that someone purchased a new mirrorless digital camera from our Amazon Wish List. Shortly after, the device arrived at our front gate with all the accessories we need to keep taking photos for the blog. The new Canon RP is much newer, lighter, and versatile than the donated Canon Rebels we have been using, and it has many new features that we have yet to master. Today, I spent some time to tinker with the auto-focus settings, low-light capabilities, and preset modes, but it definitely feels like learning to take photographs all over again. This technology has advanced quite far over the last ten years, so we appreciate that Vicki is helping us to stay current. I can’t wait to see what content we can create with this generous gift, and I really can’t wait to share the final products with you all.

Annie
Foxie and Missy
Jody and Foxie
Burrito
Burrito

P.S. Even the newest cameras have a difficult time focusing on Burrito’s face when he plays chase and tickle like an absolute maniac. In this case, I think I focused on his tiny white nose hairs. I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Happy Birthday, Vicki!

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Mary Horton sponsored this special day of sanctuary for her mom and long-time friend of the chimpanzees, Vicki Fagerlee, with this sweet message:

“Happy Birthday to a wonderful mom and gram who loves her kids and grandkids and chimps.”

Mary, thank you so much for giving us the opportunity to celebrate Vicki with you all! We appreciate you including the chimpanzees in her special day.

Vicki, you make a lasting difference in the chimpanzees’ and cattle’s lives, helping us ensure their joy, well-being and comfort for all their days forward. We’re so grateful to have you as part of our chimp and bovine family. Happy Birthday, from all of us here at the sanctuary!

Sweet Mave:

Negra:

Honey, Betsy and Nutmeg:

Honey B:

Meredith:

Willy B:

Jamie:

Burrito, Annie, Jody, Missy and Jamie:

Tuesday is the Big Day + Feeling Good

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First, a reminder to all that Tuesday (just a few days away!) is Giving Day for Apes.

In addition to our main fundraising page, if any one person or group out there wants to create their own fundraising page to raise funds for the sanctuary, you can do that! It’s pretty easy. Just go to our Giving Day for Apes page and click on the big “Fundraise” button and it will walk you though the steps. To see pages that others have created, scroll down on our page and look under “Campaigns supporting this organization.” All donations made on any of those campaigns will go directly to the sanctuary and will be eligible for the cash prizes offered!

Did you go look? Okay, good, now here’s the blog for the day:

Yesterday during the video event with Senator Tom Udall hosted by Animal Protection of New Mexico, animal welfare scientist Dr. Katie Cronin said something that really struck me. She said that having an enrichment program is not about what you provide but rather about how the animals feel about it. This is obviously true and yet somehow profound because it is not historically the way enrichment programs have been talked about or evaluated.

Enrichment is all about engagement and finding things that interest the individuals in your care, so if you give some type of enrichment to an animal and they don’t engage with it all, well, it’s not enriching for them and that means new things should be tried and evaluated.

So, fast forward to today. Kelsi and I were cleaning the greenhouse and I looked up at an eye bolt that Anthony had put under the top platform of the structure last year sometime. I said outloud that we should hang something there, so Kelsi and I talked about it for a bit and she mentioned wanting to get another hay feeder like the one filled with lettuce that Mave and Honey B enjoyed so much recently.

That made a dim light bulb go off in my (above my?) head, and I got to work filling the hay feeder with layers of blankets and lettuce to hang from the aforementioned eye bolt. I admit that I thought I was being quite clever. I had to stand on a step stool to hang the feeder and thought to myself that this was going to be a great challenge for the group of seven.

After letting the group into the greenhouse, I anxiously turned the corner to spy on the chimpanzees to see if they were engaged with the hay feeder. I was presented with a very rewarding scene: Annie was on top of the platform lying down to reach the lettuce and Missy was down below standing as tall as she could to reach the enrichment.

I left, once again feeling very clever.

I returned just a few minutes later, and Missy had solved the puzzle her own way, beating me at any contest for cleverness.

Soon, Negra came out to the greenhouse from the playroom and discovered all she had to do was sit below and wait for the lettuce to fall down as Missy picked through the blankets.

Meanwhile on the other side of the building, Mave and Willy B enjoyed some enriching social time in the outdoor chute in between rain showers:

While Honey B performed magic tricks with some new scarves:

All in all, I would say today was enriching for both the chimpanzees and me, and now I hope for you too.

If you enjoy the blog, please do consider making a donation to our Giving Day for Apes page. To get the most bang for your buck, donate between 10-11am PT on Tuesday, October 13th, but any donation at any time helps! Thank you for helping enrich the lives of the chimpanzees!