Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

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Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

A Jamie Walk

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In the spirit of Jamieween, this blog will be all about Jamie. I think we all know how much I adore Jamie. She is such a complex individual. But the thing I admire the most about Jamie is how self assured of an person she is.

As Chad and I were cleaning the Playroom Jamie requested, well first, she demanded the last of the raspberries growing in our gardens. Once the raspberries were gone she requested I put on a boot and go for a walk. I like to call it a Jamie walk. A Jamie walk is when you drop everything and go, even if it means leaving Chad to clean alone. This happens to Chad a lot when we clean together, but he gets it, it’s a Jamie walk! It’s important to remember that Jamie makes the calls, she decides how fast, how far, if we walk or if we drive along side her, wear a boot too small, wear a boot 4x too big, carry a book, and even who can join the walk (chimps or human).

I remember back to my first couple of years of working here, when Jamie would request a walk with me, multiple times a day. Most of the time, she wouldn’t mind when other chimps like Burrito joined or if I brought a volunteers to join us! But there were many times when I would bring someone along and she would turn around and go back inside then request a walk shortly after, this process would repeat until you unfortunately left the other person behind, but you can’t deny what Jamie wants for her walk! Or when she would hide in the culvert to wait out chimps who tried to join us on our walk. These days, I often find that she doesn’t mind people tagging along, especially Burrito.

Over the years of walking with Jamie they have adapted and changed. However, her intent has never changed. Jamie may not do 15 walks in a day anymore, we might not always be sprinting up the Hill as often, but the walks we do go on are quality time with a friend. Walks are a cherished time to spend with the chimps.  Jamie is a very remarkable individual and I have always felt honored each time she has asked me to join her for a walk. Walks with Jamie always feel like a special time to slow down and appreciate this job and the unique experience that this is. Watching the chimps explore Young’s Hill or the Bray makes my heart swell with joy, especially when it adds so much value to their lives, especially for a chimp like Jamie.

Make sure to tune in for Jamieween tomorrow!!!

Countdown to Jamieween!

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October is one of the most exciting months here at CSNW. Between the respite of cool weather after a hot, dry summer and the excitement of Jamieween around the corner, it’s a month that everyone looks forward to. Speaking of Jamieween, we are only two sleeps away from the big party day!

As we countdown, I thought it would be fun to take a trip down memory lane and look back at previous Jamieween celebrations. 🙂

Of course, our Great Pumpkin Thief herself a la Jamieween 2011:

Jamie, circa 2013, enjoying party festivities:

2013 Negra enjoying a chunk of the great pumpkin:

2013 Foxie & Great Pumpkin:

2015 Burrito enjoying a pumpkin bowl:

2021 Annie, A Scarecrow, & A Pumpkin:

Missy, last year, with her pomegranate loot:

We’re prepping and getting excited for this year’s Jamieween celebration! Let us know your favorite Jamieween party memories in the comments so we can re-live all those good memories, together.

Also! There’s two other exciting things happening on October 31st. First, our annual Comfort & Joy Quid Pro Throw online auction opens up! Register to bid on items for the chimps that we will give to them on your behalf and also bid on unique items for yourself or for a loved one! We will be adding new items regularly, so you’ll want to check back in throughout. Plus, registering means you will have the opportunity to join us for a live zoom on Lucky’s birthday (November 6th). Be sure to register and get your account set up today, so you’re ready for when it goes live!

Also, Jamieween is the last day to vote for our 2025 CSNW Calendar Cover Photo. You can vote once a day through October 31st, so be sure to vote for your favorite!

Around the Corner!

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Can you believe our favorite time of the year, Jamieween, is just around the corner? There is a whole bin filled up with new boots and books, all just waiting for Jamie’s big day. Thank you to everyone for donating gifts for Jamie’s 47th birthday! She is going to be very excited when she sees all her new boots!

With the big celebration coming up, Jamie needs her rest, so she snagged Negra’s nest in the green house:

A taste of what’s to come!

Bonus of Negra in her greenhouse nest this morning:

And DON’T FORGET!  We want you to help us choose the cover photo for our 2025 CSNW Calendar! You can vote once every 24-hours through the end of October, with the poll closing at 11:59pm PT on Jamieween!

A Moment with Gordo

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Today has been a very busy day here in the chimp house, so I am here with a photo blog from today’s lunch forage! It’s been a bit of a rainy fall day here, but the rain came later in the afternoon so we were able to do lunch forages for both groups. I took the camera out to see what everyone was up to and boy, was Gordo ready for a close-up!

Also- a reminder that one of our favorite holidays is right around the corner, Jamie-ween! We have some new boots for her up on our Amazon wish-list, because what better way to celebrate than a new pair of boots? 🙂

A montage à la our handsome Gordo:

Bonus shot of Lucky in the latest fashion:

Grooming with The Boss

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The chimp house is laid out such that depending on where you are standing in the foyer, chimps from either group could see you and might be working to get your attention. Whether it’s Burrito trying to get you to come over for a game of chase or Terry inviting you for a grooming session, it’s easy to get pulled in different directions.

Jamie is another who will work to snag a few moments of your time. 🙂 She might want to go on a patrol around Young’s Hill, or maybe she wants a specific book that’s on the windowsill, or perhaps she is wanting to groom.

Earlier this week I shuffled through the foyer and into the kitchen to work on some afternoon task list items, when I looked down the hallway and spotted Jamie sitting in one of the front rooms, staring right back at me- intensely. I thought she might want a book or a boot, so I went over to see if I could get something for her. When I got close and crouched down, she shifted her sitting position and pressed her right arm / side against the caging. This was her way of inviting me to sit for a grooming session, so I asked her to wait while I went and grabbed a grooming tool.

An example of Jamie presenting her arm for grooming.

We engage in protected contact with the chimps and we will often use our knuckle (with our fingers tucked into our palms) to knuckle rub them when their body is pressed against the caging enough so that our fingers do not penetrate through the caging. We will also use tools (in this case, a long flexible plastic tube-like thing) to groom with them and this allows us more range. I was hoping for a longer grooming session, so I went and grabbed one and Jamie kindly waited for me to hustle back.

Jamie presenting her shoulder / side for grooming (from another grooming session, this one in the greenhouse).

We sat together, quietly, for about twenty minutes while I groomed Jamie. We use species-specific behaviors with the chimps, which means that I was teeth clacking and lip smacking throughout. Every now and then I would pull the grooming tool back and breathy pant, to gauge if she wanted to continue or if she was done. She would make eye contact with me and give slight head nods, which was my cue to continue. Every now and then she would shift her position to give me access to her back, or her shoulder, or her left side. We would also pass the tool back and forth, with her taking turns grooming the dirt off my legs or my scrubs. When she was ready to be done interacting with me, she got up and walked into the playroom.

Jamie taking a turn grooming me with our grooming tool.

Grooming is a great way to spend quality time with the chimps. It builds your relationship with them and allows for quiet moments in each other’s presence. I eventually found my way back into the kitchen and continued on with the to-do’s of the day, but it’s those moments that stay with you.

Also! In case you haven’t heard, Giving Day for Apes is coming up on Tuesday, October 8th. We need your help to reach our fundraising goal and every dollar goes to the care of our deserving residents and two important projects here at CSNW. We have grown quite a bit over the last few years and one of these projects is building a support building for staff. The other one is to honor the individuals who have called CSNW home and passed on. This will be a space to honor the individuals we have loved, said goodbye to, and continue to love. It is located at the base of the hill where both outdoor enclosures are built. I have to say that watching the construction over this last week has been emotional for me personally. It will be a lovely area to reminisce, honor, and ensure that their stories live on.

Construction on the Memorial Garden. 

Early Giving is open now, with day of prizes for organizations in a variety of categories (Most Donations Raised between 10:00-11:00am PT, for example). Be sure to save it in your calendars and maximize your generosity!

And a preemptive thank you, for all that you do to support the work we do here. The support of this community is truly felt every day.

Never Miss a Moment

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Burrito is not the type to ever turn down a friend! He will never miss a moment to play, groom, or even display! He is a special guy who does not take life for granted. And because of that his caregivers also will never miss a moment with him as well!

Bonus photos!

Yesterday, I gave Jamie some lavender from our garden, she seemed to enjoy it:

Rare portraits of Missy:

Annie’s 50th Birthday Bash!

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The highly anticipated birthday video is here! We had such a fun day celebrating one of the sweetest chimps we know, Annie! I think Jenna explained Annie perfectly in her blog the other day. Yesterday, It was a pretty mellow party day for all the exciting food that was made! However, Annie is a low key gal, so I think she might have appreciate the exciting party that wasn’t so exciting to drew too much of Jamie’s attention. Though I do think Negra thought the party was for her, I guess we know what Negra wants for her birthday next year!

Annie Bird: