Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Cheers to Elizabeth!

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I feel as though I should start out with, I am sorry Elizabeth, you are going to hate this, but we are doing it anyways. Elizabeth has dedicated over 10 years of hard work to this sanctuary and she deserves a shout out to say the least. Words can’t express the amount of love we have for Elizabeth, so here goes this blog anyways! As many of you followers may know, our wonderful and amazing Elizabeth received a full time job on her new career path to becoming a librarian. We are fortunate enough that Elizabeth is not leaving! She will still be volunteering, and honestly thank goodness! I don’t think any of us could handle not seeing her!

Anyone who has been around Elizabeth feels lucky to know her. Each one of us staff members have written a little note to Elizabeth. We also have included a video of Elizabeth playing with the chimps because of all her years volunteering and working at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest, she has managed to stay out of almost all of photos. If you know Elizabeth, that sounds just like her. But again I am sorry Elizabeth, because I did find a few photos and they will be on this blog!

So here it goes:

“CSNW would not be what it is today without Elizabeth – she was a volunteer in the earliest days during the construction of the sanctuary, she became one of the first volunteers to help care for the chimps after their arrival, she then went on to become the longest-serving caregiver on staff, and – most importantly – she is and will always be one of the chimpanzees’ closest and dearest friends. We humans are fortunate to call her a friend, too, and we wish her the best of luck in her new career!” – J.B.

“For as long as I’ve known Elizabeth, she’s been a calm and caring presence at Chimpanzee Sanctuary NW. She kept the volunteer program in tip top shape at the sanctuary and is a great teacher and leader. I’m so relieved she is sticking around as a volunteer because saying goodbye to her would be the worst!” -Anna

“Elizabeth was our longest-serving caregiver, starting as a volunteer when the sanctuary was brand new and we were all still figuring things out. Her organizational skills stood out right away in those early days. I would turn around and the sprawling and unruly enrichment would suddenly be neatly put into labeled bins, thanks to Elizabeth going the extra mile on her volunteer shifts. She was the perfect person to lead our budding volunteer initiative; she took it from a bare-bones outline to a thriving, well-executed program. The sanctuary wouldn’t be able to do everything that we do for the chimpanzees if it were not for volunteers, and Elizabeth is responsible for bringing so many great people into all of our lives and helping the sanctuary expand and do more. She also added her own touches to the program that helped volunteers and staff continue to learn about primates and become more engaged in the big picture of what Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest does. I have no doubt that her keen organizational abilities and people-management will translate quite well into her new career in library work. The chimpanzees, perhaps Burrito in particular, is very pleased that she is sticking around as a volunteer. He will have many more games of tug-of-war with one of his all-time favorite people, and we will continue to benefit from Elizabeth’s ability to whip things into shape on days that might otherwise be less than orderly.” – Diana

“It takes courage to leave one’s chosen path, especially a path one is emotionally connected to, to pursue a new one. To make all the life changes, tune out the squall of uncertainty that’s always there storming and brewing in the back of your head takes a wild leap of faith. I always celebrate seeing people take such leaps. Elizabeth’s years of dedication made a lasting difference for the chimpanzees and the sanctuary. And it’s also true that Elizabeth was born to be a librarian. She’s a champion of the book through and through. The book, ink on paper, scent of the pages, that you hold in your hand and hug tight to your chest and cherish the difference it makes in your heart and your life. And these days, the book, and all those who need them, deserve such a champion. So in the words of Matilda (via Roald Dahl), “Never do anything by halves if you want to get away with it. Be outrageous. Go the whole hog. Make sure everything you do is so completely crazy it’s unbelievable…” -Katelyn

“Elizabeth was such a great person for me to train with at the sanctuary, I feel very fortunate to have been able to work with her and get to know her! I remember first meeting with her in the trailer/clinic/break room as I was embarking on “official” chimp interaction training. She helped teach me all about chimp interaction protocol and was endlessly patient and encouraging along my learning curve and with my ever shifting work and family schedule. I’m so happy for Elizabeth that she is pursuing her career goals in library science, she will be a huge asset to the program. Her smile and quick wit are very missed at the sanctuary but I’m thankful she is staying involved as a volunteer and hope I am lucky enough to catch her there often!” -Erin

“When I first got involved with CSNW as a student intern, Elizabeth was the person who made me feel welcomed, valued, and comfortable as I learned about the sanctuary and the chimps. Her lighthearted and friendly personality made her a great person to engage with and organize volunteers, and she has enriched all of our experiences through her dedicated service as a volunteer coordinator and caregiver. Most of all, her knowledge of and love for the chimpanzees is inspiring and I am glad they will still have her in their social circle. I am honored to call her a mentor, colleague and friend, and I am excited to continue working alongside her at the sanctuary!” -Anthony

“I am fortunate to be able to call Elizabeth a mentor and a friend. If you have ever been lucky enough to be around Elizabeth, you know how kind, funny, & hard working she is, but most importantly how great of a teacher she is. Elizabeth was amazing at showing volunteers compassion for the chimps. Teaching people how to put the chimps’ needs before your own. She is a wealth of knowledge and is irreplaceable. Elizabeth truly has the best of both worlds, exploring her passion in all things books and being able to continue her work with chimps. We are excited for you and support you!” – Kelsi

 

Cheers Elizabeth!

Also Jody this morning (just had to share):

 

What’s In?

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Are you keeping up with the latest styles? Do you want to be a trend setter? In case you were wondering what is in fashion this summer, Annie can tell you! The waistband is back! Annie started this trend back in 2017 and she was seen again sporting it in 2018. Today she brought the sweatband back again and is looking more fierce than ever. The sweatband is so versatile! Put it on your head to help beat the heat, wear it as a cute belt, or use it as any sensible accessory. Annie has confirmed this is definitely a summer look. The wonderful part about Annie picking her own style is that it is her choice and no one forced her to wear it.

Here are photos of Annie wearing her waistband throughout the day:

Annie and Missy grooming:

I just love photos of chimps hands and feet:

A little extra Jamie

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It’s no revelation to say that Jamie is a unique individual. Each of the chimpanzees are, of course. Jamie makes her wants and needs known each and every day in no uncertain terms. She isn’t always an easy person to be around, but she is a delight, a surprise and a mystery all at once. And some days, a little extra so.

I’m sure in no small part due to Jamie’s early childhood history of having been raised living in a human home with a trainer until the age of nine, her extreme intelligence, curiosity, willpower and general “Jamie-ness” were set on a path to blossom in ways they wouldn’t have otherwise. And through no fault of her own, the natural consequence of an unnatural situation, many of those ways tend to be very human oriented. We certainly wish for her that this hadn’t been the case. That she’d been born allowed to live her life as her wild-living brethren. But one thing I know for certain about Jamie is that regardless of the path her life took and the lack of choices she had in the matter, she is herself through and through. And I couldn’t admire or love her more for it.

Our volunteer caregiver, Miranda, went out to serve the chimps lunch in the greenhouse and a few minutes later she radioed to ask, “Do you know where Jamie is? She’s not here for lunch.” Well, that’s something that makes you stop what you’re doing and go to find Jamie. Immediately. I assumed she was involved in a DIY project or perhaps, supervising the construction from Young’s Hill. As I quickly strolled down the human hallway on my way outside I stopped short upon finding her in the front rooms on top of her beloved barrel, cowboy boot nestled in her hip pocket, looking sleepy and showing zero interest in heading out to lunch. Now if you know chimps, you know that they do not want to miss mealtime. So I sat with her a few minutes trying to determine if she wasn’t feeling well, or if perhaps she’d gotten overheated having just made staff caregiver, Anna, walk around Young’s Hill on this extra hot summer day and needed time to cool off.

After checking in with her, I decided to go and collect her lunch and bring it back inside and drop it in the food chute for her in the hopes she’d eat. Well! She spun around on her barrel, began hooting and breathy panting with me in excitement. I could barely breathe by the time we were done with all the breathy panting. Finally, continuing to recline on her barrel, she dug into her private lunch service, low moaning, food grunting and occasionally hooting, the entire meal. She wanted to dine in the privacy of the cooler front rooms at her leisure. As she should.

After lunch, I passed out a few plain ol’ ice cubes for everyone to enjoy, along with an offer of a small breeze from the handheld mister fan. Jody and Annie lowered their heads and then spun around and presented their backs for a quick misting. Foxie was, as I knew she would be, incensed that I would even offer to do such a thing and declined the offer. But Jamie in particular loves the fan and couldn’t get enough of it. She spent several minutes having me mist and fan her while she cooled off with her ice cubes.

Once everyone dozed off for their routine after lunch nap, I strolled through to check on them. And there was Jamie. Wrapped in a cool sheet, foot on her shopping basket, nestled in with her favorite boot du jour and magazines. At once, and always, her own person. As she was born to be. As it always should have been. And just as we love her.

Watching from a Distance

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Hanging out with chimps is fun. Watching them hang out with each other is even better.

Chimpanzees grooming each other. From left to right: Foxie, Annie, Jody, Missy and Burrito

For sanctuary personnel who are trained to engage in protected contact with the chimpanzees, developing close relationships with the individual chimps is undoubtedly one of the most rewarding aspects of the job. I cannot think of another experience that comes close to having Missy approach the caging and ask to be massaged, or being prodded with a wooden tool by Jamie as she inspects your freckles, or stomping around the hallways with Burrito to begin the day. There is something surreal about greeting, grooming, and playing with beings who are not quite human but are definitely something similar. To call these exchanges “perks” would be an understatement.

These aren’t my favorite moments, though.

What brings me the most joy is to see the chimpanzees being independent and going about their activities as if I didn’t exist. A true sanctuary allows chimpanzees to do this, if and when they choose to do so. There are times when I see the chimps foraging way up on the hill, far from the bustle of the Chimp House, and I think that this is how our relationship with chimpanzees would be in a perfect world. Our interactions would be limited to fleeting glimpses in a forest, and chimps would not be kept in captivity or subjected to exploitation. They could go wherever they wanted to go and be whatever they wanted to be.

Missy

Today, Level II volunteer Dusty prepared a mixture of chopped vegetables and chow and we spread these items outside for the chimps to forage. As the chimpanzees fanned out across the grassy landscape and climbed over the maze of wooden structures, keeping them in our line of sight became a challenge. The chimps didn’t seem to notice the group of human visitors sitting at the bottom of the hill, and I felt irrelevant as I tried to observe them with binoculars and capture them with the camera lens.

Jody
Annie
Negra (left) and Missy (right)
Jody

Negra was more interested in exchanging an open-mouthed chimp kiss with her friend Missy, Annie was busy searching for food in the prairie grass, and Jody was determined to collect the rest of the cat-tails and bring them back to the Greenhouse. Missy eventually disappeared in the bamboo, only to reappear minutes later as a fuzzy speck perched high on a shaded platform. Dr. Jane Goodall’s first sightings of free-ranging chimpanzees in Tanzania came to mind. Missy, far off in the distance, didn’t seem too different from the wild apes that Dr. Goodall watched through binoculars from a distant hillside. In many ways, I think that’s the main point.

Missy
Missy (far away)

Even if these seven chimpanzees can never experience life in the wild as their ancestors did, at least they still get to be chimpanzees.

 

 

How to Forage

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By Burrito Chimpanzee

Gather as much of the most prized item as you can, filling your hands so that you must stand bipedally.

Process the food as you go.

Don’t worry about what other people are doing.

Just go for it.

Get the most out of everything you’ve gathered.

Take a rest, but make sure to guard any leftovers.

The Oversight Committee

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As if unanimously appointed, the chimpanzees have taken on the responsibility of supervising the ongoing expansion.

As the interior of the new wing nears completion, Gary and the team are making quick progress on the exterior renovation. The keystone of this project is an immense archway tunnel that will soon allow chimps to move freely between the expansion’s indoor areas and the existing outdoor habitat, Young’s Hill.

Just last week, pieces of the new tunnel were brought to the sanctuary, assembled, and set in place. Today, the crew began the extension of Young’s Hill that will align the end of the tunnel with the outdoor enclosure’s primary fence.

The chimpanzee residents are not visibly distressed by all of the commotion. In fact, they seem to be intrigued by the people operating heavy machinery right in their backyard. Diana took these photographs as the chimps used the high ground provided by Young’s Hill to keep watch over the crew.

Foxie
Missy (foreground) and Foxie (background)
Jamie
Foxie
Annie (left) and Foxie (right)
Annie (left) and Foxie (right)

Back in the Chimp House, the only drama seemed to be entirely unrelated to the construction. It revolved around onions.

Onions and Green Beans

While serving lunch, I dropped some onion petals and green beans outside of the caging of the Greenhouse (above). Any items dropped in this area are usually claimed by Jamie and she makes an effort to pull them within reach using whatever tool is at her disposal. Apparently, someone else made an attempt to retrieve some onion scraps and Jamie threw a tantrum, causing a fiasco in the Greenhouse that spilled over into the Playroom. Eventually, everyone else gave up and Jamie triumphantly ate her onions in the front rooms  (below).

Jamie then spent the rest of the afternoon watching all the humans dig holes, clean enrichment, chop produce and fold laundry. Although she supervised from afar, her plans consisted of nesting with boots, foraging for more leftover onions, and flipping through books about shoes.

 

Nothing

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Today, the chimps reminded me of a Calvin and Hobbes comic strip by cartoonist Bill Watterson.

The comic goes something like this:

Hobbes: You know what I like about summer days? They’re just made for doing things… even if it’s nothing.
Calvin: Especially if it’s nothing.

Nothing is exactly what the chimps decided to do today. The vibe in the Chimp House was one of tranquility and peace. It was, as the kids say nowadays, “chill.”

The day began with a lengthy breakfast that was followed by relaxation in the Greenhouse.

Negra
Missy

Jody and Burrito spent a good chunk of time grooming each other…

Jody (left) and Burrito (right)

…and all the chimps made trips into the shady building to relax, cool off, and observe the caregivers.

Jamie
Burrito
Jamie
Negra

Throughout the morning Jamie remained calmly engaged with Level III volunteer Chad, who dutifully wore Jamie’s favorite cowboy boots while she used a length of plastic hose to groom them.

Chad (left) and Jamie (right)
Jamie’s boot

Foxie had the best plans of them all. She found a quiet, secluded corner of the Greenhouse and played with a couple of dolls. She even allowed me to sit outside of the caging with my camera and take a few quick shots.

Foxie

At a time with so much commotion and activity around the sanctuary on this hot summer day, the chimps seemed especially carefree and calm this morning.