Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

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Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Jamie’s choice

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We’ve mentioned it 1000 times I’m sure but Jamie is one of the most intelligent people we know. I cannot even begin to imagine how difficult and frustrating it must be for her to be stuck behind bars. Captivity would be difficult for anyone, but Jamie has a tendency to get very bored, antsy, and even demanding sometimes – especially during the cold, cabin-fever months. It’s completely understandable (check out this fantastic post from Diana from a couple of years ago reflecting on Jamie’s personality, both prior to CSNW and after her arrival here). We caregivers are completely dedicated to provide a stimulating environment for her and all of the Cle Elum Seven. Each day we do all that we can to give them interesting things to do and exciting enrichment they love, which in Jamie’s case always includes boots.

Jamie has a huge boot collection:
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But nothing gets her more excited than a new (to her) pair of boots. Who can blame her? Don’t we all get excited when we get a new pair of shoes? But, she tends to ‘love them to death’, so to speak, so they often don’t last very long. We’ve had to throw several pairs away lately and I noticed yesterday that our supply is dwindling. It occurred to me that this might be the perfect time to seek some help from you Jamie-lovers. Maybe you got a new pair of boots for Christmas and have an older pair you would like to get rid of? Or maybe you’ve been finding yourself at thrift stores lately trying to catch good deals and just hadn’t thought to be on the lookout for Jamie’s favorite thing? We certainly don’t want anyone to spend a ton of money on boots (see statement above about ‘loving them to death’) but if you happen to have an old pair or come across one, you really would make Jamie’s day.

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Take Action Tuesday: Great Clips commercial

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As we’ve mentioned before, despite a growing public awareness about the plight of chimpanzees in entertainment, they are still being exploited for a cheap laugh. Recently, Great Clips (a nationwide hair salon franchise) aired a commercial launching their new feature, “Clip Notes” with a chimpanzee toward the end. The chimpanzee is seen exhibiting a “fear grimace” – a sign that they were likely beaten or abused prior to the commercial’s production.

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Screenshot of Great Clips’ new ad on YouTube

Please write to Great Clips to ask them to pull the commercial from the air and pledge to never work with apes again.

Sample Letter to Great Clips:
[email protected], CEO

Dear Ms. Olsen:

I was shocked and disappointed to hear that Great Clips has a commercial that features a young chimpanzee. You should know that chimpanzees used in entertainment are torn away from their mothers as infants, often repeatedly beaten during training, and then discarded when they become too strong to be managed.

Using a chimpanzee for a cheap laugh sends the message that these amazing beings are simply props. Surely you are aware that chimpanzees are endangered species in critical need of protection? You are exploiting chimpanzees for your own profits and this is an unacceptable business practice.

Please make the compassionate decision to remove the chimpanzee from your commercial, and please consider to never exploit great apes for entertainment purposes again. Thank you for your consideration of my comments on this urgent matter.

You may also submit your comments to their Facebook page, or post Tweets that express your concern, such as: @GreatClips I was disappointed to see a chimp in your ad for #clipnotes. Please remove the ad! www.chimpsnw.org

**If you send a letter, please BCC [email protected] for tracking purposes. Thank you!

Making some noise

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Chimpanzees are quiet most of the time.  In fact, as I write this it’s completely silent in the playroom.  In times of excitement, though, chimps can be quite vocal.  The Cle Elum Seven often pant hoot in anticipation of mealtime, or right after they’ve been given access to an area that had been closed off.  Today there was lots of displaying and pant hooting when the chimps re-entered the playroom after lunch.  Everyone except for Negra got in on the action (Negra likes to stay out of drama).  Here are a few photos of Jody pant hooting during the excitement.

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In the video below you’ll see Jamie and Foxie displaying. You’ll notice that they have somewhat different styles. Jamie likes to drum on a barrel to raise the noise level, but even petite Foxie makes an impression.

Burrito is the big 3-0!

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How do you celebrate food-loving Burrito’s birthday? A day in which the entire focus is on FOOD, of course! This morning we set up a huge forage in the playroom – coconuts, blackberries, pineapple chunks, nuts and seeds, and a pool of snow with blueberry juice drizzled over the top of it. The coconut elicited some of the loudest food squeaks I’ve ever heard and the chimps are still munching on the snow, taking breaks only for the occasional brain freeze. Volunteer Stephanie outdid herself yet again and brought several food-shaped pinatas and tons of decorations, both for the party and for the humans (naturally, we humans have been wearing glittery “happy birthday” hats, sunglasses and tiaras all day). I’m not so sure the chimps are too impressed with the human decor, but they were definitely impressed with the pinatas!

True to form, Jamie was first to go after them:

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Annie used her foot to keep her ice cream cone-shaped pinata balanced:
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Dick and Robbi Brown brought some pretty epic new enrichment, which definitely added to the excitement! Foxie loved a new troll doll:
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Naturally, Burrito checked all the bags for food
web burrito go through gift bag birthday party pr IMG_1723some interest in a ukulele a while back and actually played it for a while, so Dick and Robbi (and several other folks) are always on the lookout for another one when they shop at Goodwill or other thrift stores. She was the first to pull the new one out of a gift bag and strummed it a couple of times. But I guess playing a ukulele is more of a thing you do in your spare time because after a few “notes” she went right back to the forage. Missy didn’t play it, but she was curious to see if we maybe hid some food inside (does it seem like everything had to do with food today??).

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And speaking of food- the coconuts were definitely the focus this morning! And Burrito couldn’t have been happier!

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And the party didn’t end there. Aside from the usual meals, we’ve been serving surprise snacks periodically throughout the day. About 30 minutes ago, we handed out a small handful of blueberries and Elizabeth is now serving gum. Thanks so much to Dick, Robbi, Stephanie, and to everyone that made Mr. B’s day so special! Way to go Team Burrito!!

In Memory of Riley

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Janet Henry recently sponsored a day in honor of Riley, a friend’s beloved dog who passed away recently after being hit by a car.  What a truly sweet way to honor Riley and her family.  Thank you, Janet!

We’re occasionally visited at the sanctuary by two of the neighbor’s dogs who love to bark at and play chase with the chimpanzees out on Young’s Hill.  🙂

Annie chase Missy

Letting loose

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As we were finishing up cleaning the playroom this morning, we caught two unusual suspects — Annie and Negra — in a pretty wacky game.  For those of you just tuning in, Annie is the least dominant chimpanzee at CSNW.  She is gentle and shy, and when she arrived here in 2008 she didn’t have the confidence to play with anyone except for her best friend Missy.  And Negra is the oldest of the Cle Elum Seven, and prefers to spend the vast majority of her time under a blanket.  So it was pretty special to see these two ladies letting loose this morning.