Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

chimpanzee sanctuary

Happy Birthday, John!

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Today’s day of sanctuary was also sponsored by Juliana Olmstead, along with family and friends, in celebration of her boyfriend, John Barbagallo, on his birthday! Juliana organized a fundraiser for John through Crowd Rise in which all proceeds will be donated to the chimpanzees! Juliana shared this message about today:

“John Barbagallo’s friends and family are sponsoring this day in honor of his 40th birthday. John has been passionate about animal rescue for many years, and his birthday wish was to make a contribution to this amazing sanctuary.”

Juliana, and John’s friends and family, thank you so much! This is such a fantastic idea and we are so touched that you all would come together to do something so special for John and the chimpanzees.

John, thank you so much for your compassion and dedication to the amazing animal beings we share the earth with. We so appreciate you sharing your own special day with the chimpanzees and all of you making a difference in their lives. All of the primates here at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest wish you a happy birthday full of pant-hoots and food grunts. Just channel your inner Burrito if you need help with the latter:

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Happy Birthday, Dorothy!

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We are so fortunate to have two sponsors for this day of sanctuary for the chimpanzees! Laura Gargano is starting the day off in celebration of her mother, Dorothy Gargano, for her birthday! Laura shared this special message about today:

“My mother has always had a love for gorillas and chimps and this helps highlight the plight of so many chimps who still live in labs around the world.” 

Laura, this is such an inspired and compassionate way to honor your mother. Thank you so much for making a difference in the chimpanzees’ lives while bringing awareness to all those who are still awaiting their own day of sanctuary.

Dorothy, thank you for sharing your own special day, as well as your passion for great apes, with all of us.  We hope you have the most beautiful of birthdays!

A Jody-style celebration involves comfort, joy, and occasionally kicking up your heels:

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Happy Birthday, Keri!

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Today’s day of sanctuary was sponsored by Pat and Dave Heniff in honor of their daughter, Keri, on her birthday! Yep, this is “our” Keri, caregiver and enrichment coordinator extraordinaire here at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest! Keri’s parents shared this message about today:

“It makes us happy to know Keri is working doing something she loves. We are happy to be able to sponsor a day for the chimps honoring her on this special day. Happy Birthday Keri.”

Pat and Dave, thank you so much for including the chimpanzees as you celebrate your amazing daughter on her special day. It’s so lovely of you to honor her passion while making a difference in the lives of the chimps she holds dear. The humans and the chimpanzees couldn’t ask for a better friend and colleague.

Keri, your compassion, dedication and kindest of hearts are clear in all that you do and I think you must be a blessing to everyone you meet. We are so grateful to have you as part of our family, too. Happy, happiest of days and celebrations to you!

Keri and Jamie:

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Our boss, Jamie, sends birthday pant hoots to you and expects you to wear cowgirl boots all the live long day. What kind of celebration would it be otherwise?:

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Bliss in a nest

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For Jody, comfort reigns supreme. We placed 30 blankets in a big pile in the play room after cleaning today and she was the first to make her way to it. The chimps will usually each take an armful when we do this and be on their way, but today Jody decided to take advantage of a “pre-made” nest. The only adjustment she made was pushing the pile into the sun and then she promptly rolled into, snuggled and stretched to her heart’s content. Just as it should be.

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Sanctuary Vantage Points

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One of my all time favorite views of the sanctuary is from the top of Young’s Hill. From this spot you can see the Cascade Mountains and the Yakima River. You can see extensive forests of pine trees as well as the hustle and bustle of cars and trains going by. If you are lucky, you can spot chimpanzees taking full advantage of this beautiful weather.

Chimpanzees like Missy
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And Jamie
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Missy has wings

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While Jamie and I walked around Young’s Hill yesterday, Missy decided to make her way across the hill via the highest points of the climbing structures. I think she traversed every climbing structure the chimps have on the hill, taking in the view from each spot. Walking is boring, if you’re Missy.

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As Jamie and I reached the top of Young’s Hill, Missy raced pass to the next climbing structure and we were greeted by Foxie, Dora and troll, who were on their way over to check out what was happening on the neighbor’s property. Foxie spent most of the morning sitting on the very top of the new structure. Balancing precariously (from my perspective, not hers) on the railing to be precise.  She spent over an hour all on her own, seemingly taking in the view in every direction from the highest lookout on the hill.

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Back to Missy, who took Jamie’s and Carlene’s Towers across the top of the hill. My heart will never tire of watching the chimpanzees as they take in the views from the hill. My heart swells thinking of the courage they’ve found to climb to such heights and sit peacefully in solitude. Can you just imagine the awe they must feel after having survived over 30 years in cages the size of bathroom stalls to now find themselves with the freedom to run, roam, and climb to their hearts’ content? The awe they must feel when taking in such a vast landscape after having lived in a windowless basement?

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You can just see Missy’s head at the bottom of the ladder as she looks toward Jamie and I at the bottom of the hill. At this point Missy ran full speed all the way down the hill and back to the greenhouse. But then, why walk when you can fly?

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Thanks from the bottom of our hearts for the support and love you so generously share with the chimpanzees. And thanks to all of you who were able to participate and make our amazing auction as amazing as it was. It’s each of you that make this life of awe, wonder and hope possible for the chimps.

First Impressions: Annie

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Just after the chimpanzees had eaten lunch, I wondered into the greenhouse to find Annie, Negra and Missy napping on this cool afternoon. I had a mission to take photos of Annie because she and Foxie are my final “first impressions” blog candidates. Annie was doing some interesting yoga-like stretches that I wanted to photograph, but Missy had other ideas. She brought a small piece of stick over to me and pressed her shoulder against the caging for some grooming. She used the twig she had found to groom herself and I found a small tool to gently groom the arm she had presented. Meanwhile Annie was doing more yoga moves that I wanted to catch with my camera so I decided to try and split my time between grooming Missy and photographing her good friend Annie. Missy wasn’t sold on this decision. She moved over to Annie and received a much more attentive grooming. This was an excellent choice. While Annie may be low in the group’s hierarchy, she is high on the friendship scale.

Annie (right) grooms Missy (on the left).
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Gentle Annie
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