Lots of laughter today.
Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
“My” cozy nest
Annie made a cozy nest this morning in the greenhouse. She was so content there, she had no interest in going out on the hill while other chimps were headed out. Instead, she watched them explore from the comfort of her bed.
But after she abandoned her nest, Jamie decided it was the perfect place to take a nap.
Take Action Tuesday: Time is running out for H.R. 1513/S. 810
Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest supports the Great Ape Protection and Cost Savings Act. Watch this newscast from PCRM and, if you agree, Take Action. PCRM has a link at the bottom of the video to find a form you can use to contact your representatives to share your opinion.
Already written your letter? Share this post with everyone you know. Post it on Facebook, Twitter, and send via e-mail. Get the word out that GAPCSA needs more support to move forward in the current session of congress. If this bill passes, it would release all federally owned chimpanzees to sanctuaries. After going through invasive medical testing (which is mostly unnecessary according to the Institute of Medicine) they deserve to be retired. Just see what sanctuary life can do for chimpanzees like Negra.
Here are a few bullet points that you can include in your letter to congress:
- Chimpanzees actively used in biomedical research are routinely tested on—undergoing surgeries, infected with deadly viruses, and injected with vaccines. They are very intelligent and suffer from immense psychological distress due to lack of proper socialization, separation from their mothers when infants, and absence of mental stimulation.
- Evidence has shown that although chimpanzees are indeed genetically very similar to humans, they are a poor research model for many diseases due to basic molecular differences between the two species. For instance, chimpanzees infected with HIV do not acquire AIDS, which makes them a poor medical model for finding an HIV/AIDS vaccine for humans.
- Many chimpanzees are currently warehoused and are not actively being used in testing, but it is still costing taxpayers millions of dollars to house them. Retiring them to sanctuaries will not only provide higher quality living conditions and care, but it will save taxpayer money.
Happy Birthday, Annie!
Today is Annie’s honorary 38th birthday and we celebrated in style. Since we don’t have actual birth dates for Annie and some of the other chimpanzees, we asked some supporters to select meaningful days to celebrate the chimps. September 10th was selected by Margaret and Karen (two of the Cle Elum Seven’s most devoted and lovely friends) in honor of their anniversary. Additionally, Marcia Douthwaite, a longtime friend of Annie’s, sponsored today in honor of Annie’s birthday. We’re so touched that Annie has the love and support of so many special people on her big day.
We set up Annie’s party in the greenhouse this morning with gift bags full of new toys from Robbi and Dick and amazing homemade papier mache balls from supporters Kim and Lee, which we filled with shredded paper, peanuts, and crabapples from Executive Director Sarah’s backyard tree. The chimps also foraged for tangerines, kiwis, and chow (Burrito’s favorite).
The birthday girl enjoyed handfuls of chow:
Negra liked the crabapples:
Missy checked out a gift bag:
Burrito and Jody:
Jamie loved the papier mache balls:
Jody likes to inspect new toys intimately:
This red cloth block seemed to interest several folks.
Jody:
Negra:
Jamie (also with a new boot):
We also “planted” some veggies on Young’s Hill for the chimps to harvest. The carrots are courtesy of Keith, Felicity, and friends and the onions are straight from the chimps’ garden. We’re having some strong, cool winds in Cle Elum today, so the chimps all ran out to gather the veggies as soon as the door to Young’s Hill was opened, and then quickly returned with their haul to the warmth of the greenhouse.
Annie:
Jamie:
Jody:
Negra:
Sincere thanks to everyone who made today special for Annie and the rest of the gang!
Sleepy chimps
The chimps have been super mellow today- lots of nesting, grooming, and general quiet time. Elizabeth snapped a couple of really great pictures of Foxie and Negra resting on the catwalk in the playroom this morning. I love seeing the chimps so relaxed and peaceful.
Foxie:
Negra often lets her lips droop to one side when she’s relaxing. It’s almost like she’s so relaxed, she just lets gravity do the work.
For Robert Nichols
Watermelon forage
Today we put out a watermelon forage on Young’s Hill to accompany the chimpanzees’ breakfast.
Burrito, collecting some forage:
If you look closely in the next picture, you can see the bright green grass in the background starting to come back from the part of the hill that was burnt in the fire. It’s along the irrigation line, so that’s why it’s a solid stripe of green grass.
This is Jody, sitting by a post in the shade while munching on watermelon pieces:
And my personal favorite—Missy with a mouthful of watermelon:
