Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

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Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Pausing for Connection

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As caregivers, our days are often jam-packed. We’re constantly on the move: cleaning, doing laundry, serving meals, washing dishes, training, doing more cleaning, and currently working on introductions with George throughout the week. With so much going on, it can be hard to slow down.

Yesterday, while I was cleaning in Greenhouse 2, Gordo and Cy each came over separately to play chase and hang out by the shared window, between Playroom 2 and Greenhouse 2. It was such a nice pause in the middle of a busy day, a reminder of what this work is really all about.

Foxie is especially good at getting her caregivers to take a break and spend time with her. She has her own way of inviting you in: she drops her doll and makes raspberry sounds until you pick it up and hand it back to her. But, before she’ll take it, you have to play. She loves being tickled with her doll, seeing you hug her doll, playing “troll ski,” or having her head gently rubbed with her doll’s head. Once she’s satisfied, she takes her doll back and strolls off on her way.

These moments that pause the busy routine to connect, are what make the work so meaningful.

Here is a portrait series of Foxie with Disney Simea (from Moana 2):

Lucky resting on a bench:

Gordo checking himself out through my camera:

The ever so handsome Cy:

Annie’s 51st Birthday!

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Today we celebrated Annie’s 51st birthday! Today’s party menu was really fun, all planned by our very own Dr. Erin Zamzow.

  • Obviously Sunflowers for Annie!
  • Lettuces bowls filled with rice noodles, tofu, green onions, cucumbers, red peppers, purple cabbage, with a drizzle of peanut sauce! (Annie and Foxie loved these bowls)
  • Heads of lettuce & bok choy
  • Lychee, Dragon fruit, & grapes were in the bowls or spread around as well!
  • And sparkling cider, to top it all off!

I honestly can say, I can’t believe Annie is 51, I hope I age as gracefully as she has! I love celebrating Annie because she is a quieter chimp. Annie is the type of chimp that is usually busy with her chimp friends and does not demand a lot from her caregivers. One could say she is a little bit more low key, which is why she deserves a big party to celebrate her. Annie is a genuinely sweet soul, she has many different layers to her, but to her core she is a gentle and kind, unless she is grooming, she is not so gentle then ;). It has been an honor to watch Annie turn 51 and see her flourish in sanctuary. Though she may be lower ranking, every year we watch Annie become more comfortable, a little bolder, and more content.

I also want to extend a heartfelt thank you to Paulette for generously sponsoring Annie’s birthday party today!

Jenna went out this morning to get more sunflowers from a local farm, you can never have too many sunflowers!                 

Annie and Foxie pretty much had a private party out on Young’s Hill, while everyone else foraged in the Greenhouse. Look out for the party video tomorrow!

Annie:

Bonus of Foxie:

Gordo the Observer

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Building a friendship with Gordo has been an extremely rewarding experience. For those who follow our blog, you may have heard us describe him as “aloof” or “shy”. In general, Gordo takes time to warm up to people. Gordo is an observer, and to earn his friendship, you in return have to be observant enough to notice his subtle tells. However, Gordo is quite a silly guy when you get to know him. For example, one day, I brought a long cardboard tube back to Cy’s side of the building to be able to play with one of the chimps. To my surprise, Gordo was the first chimp to want to be poked with the cardboard tube. He wanted to be poked/tickled on the back on his neck, side, and butt! Gordo thought it was the funniest thing and would start breathy panting which turned into a game of chase, bunny hop and all.

Being Gordo’s friend also means you have to have the patience to allow him to be a little spit-y or pokey! Often, Gordo incorporates spitting water while playing. He is not alone in that either, Foxie loves to spit water and spin away, before coming back to do the same thing all over again!

Finding a relaxed Gordo who wants to sit and groom really takes the cake – it’s such a rarity!

You Again!

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George is one incredible chimp. So far in this intro process, he has surprised us with his adaptability, patience, and maturity that we didn’t know a 21-year-old could have.

Introductions are a process and not every chimp comes in feeling confident, even if it’s gone well in the past, and that is to be expected. Just like us as humans, we may carry anxiety about the unknowns of meeting a new person. It can take a few meetings to get comfortable with or understand an individual. This past Friday, Cy and George visited again for their third introduction. Their first intro was great, their second they both did fine, but overall we would describe it as a, meh. But this third visit, there was no hesitation at all. Cy and George right off the bat were ready to have the door open to see each other. George even let Cy groom him, which is something George seems to be trying to get more comfortable with. Though, we can’t be sure of the full reason, George did live alone for a few years and hasn’t been a recipient of grooming with another chimp for quite awhile, which is a very big component of bonding for chimps.

We are so proud of George for his progress, and we’re excited to see how his relationship with Cy continues to grow.

Jamie’s Favorite Pages

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Jamie is well-known around here for her love of books. She definitely has her favorites—books and magazines she can’t get enough of, topics like Lucy the Bonobo, cowboy boots, mummies, and larger-bodied apes. We can’t forget her fascination with Architectural Digest and Dwell. Jamie is always open to venturing outside her usual genres to try new things, but today, I found her with one of her all-time classics: a National Geographic.

What I find so endearing about Jamie is that when she really likes something in a book or magazine, she will tear it out and put it in her pelvic pocket, you know, for safe keeping. Often, we have to check with her while we are cleaning to make sure we are not throwing away a special page that she was saving for later. Otherwise, she will make you sift through the trash for her beloved saved page later. Most of the time it is easy to spot a page Jamie will want you to save, because it has been folded many times due to being stored in her pelvic pocket. That is usually is a good sign to us that we should take it out and put it in a safe place, until we can return it to her.

As you go through this photo series and video, you will notice pages of the magazine in both pelvic pockets.

Bonus photo series of Annie in the greenhouse:

Raffle Ticket Mischief

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Last Wednesday, I put out a whole roll of raffle tickets for the chimps, but specifically Burrito. I wasn’t sure if anyone would actually play with the tickets, but if they didn’t play with them, they could be used for nesting! But, of course, Burrito being the silly, playful chimp he is, couldn’t resist getting his friend, Foxie, in on the fun. It’s no surprise—his antics are always a little contagious!