Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

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Take Action Tuesday: Another chimp ad + how to help orangutans

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If you haven’t heard, Great Clips had a commercial a couple weeks ago that featured a chimpanzee. Just a day after our alert went out and folks wrote to them, the CEO made a statement saying they would pull the ad and never work with apes again! Victories like this keep the momentum going—your letter writing really does make a difference! On that note please send a quick message to Steak ‘n Shake, who currently has a commercial with a chimpanzee:

Screen capture of the Steak 'n Shake "ultimate dream" commercial
Screen capture of the Steak ‘n Shake “Daydream” commercial

Click on this link to be taken to the action alert which contains contact information and a sample letter. Be sure to spread the word and forward the alert to your friends! And if you haven’t subscribed to our Take Action: Eyes on Apes Alerts mailing list already, sign up now.

Another way you can help apes right now is to sign this petition to Dr. Oz, who recommended his viewers try using palm oil as a healthy alternative oil. Please let him and his producers know that palm oil production is slowly driving orangutans into extinction! For more information about this issue, take a look at this past Take Action Tuesday post.

Thank you as always for speaking up for these apes. Keep up the great work!

Deep snow

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You may have noticed a lack of Young’s Hill photos and videos over the last month or so. That’s because when the snow gets so deep, it reduces the voltage of the electric fence, making it unsafe to allow the chimpanzees out there. Well, yesterday, J.B., Sarah and I (mostly J.B.) all went out and shoveled around the entire perimeter of the fence (who needs a gym membership?), freeing up those bottom wires covered in snow so that the voltage was sufficient to let the chimps back out! It was very hard work, but the chimps were so excited that it was well worth it! There were lots of hugs and kisses in the chimp house (between the chimps 😉 ) and breathy pants echoed in the greenhouse. Sometimes our job isn’t glamorous but it is certainly rewarding, especially when you see a face like the one below (Jody’s).

Jody was the first one to go back out. She was food grunting (we had lettuce out there, plus look at all that snow!) and had a huge playface!
web Jody playface dropped lip happy first day back on YH after snow IMG_2195

Annie used Jody’s head for support as she passed her on the log bridge. Jody didn’t seem to mind.
web Jody playface dropped lip happy first day back on YH after snow Annie arm on head pass on log bridge IMG_2196

Look at the joy in her eyes!
web Jody playface dropped lip happy first day back on YH after snow IMG_2197

The snow was really deep, so J.B. and Diana shoveled paths along the log bridge to the first climbing structure and to Negra’s cabin. Most folks just walked along the paths, but Missy chose to walk on the fire hose.
web Missy walk on fire hose log bridge snow YH IMG_2204

web Missy walk on fire hose look back snow log bridge YH IMG_2203

From left to right, Jamie, Missy, Annie and Jody, enjoying the lettuce forage on top of the first climbing structure.
web Jamie Missy Annie Jody sit on climbing structure eat lettuce forage snow YH IMG_2211

Did I mention the snow was (is) deep? Foxie walked along the paths but she looked so tiny from our vantage point (tinier than she already is, even!).
web Foxie walk through deep snow shoveled path YH IMG_2212

Annie figured walking bipedally made more sense. Gotta say, I agree!
web Annie walk through deep snow bipedal mouthful snow YH IMG_2213

While everyone else foraged for lettuce, Annie climbed up to the top of Negra’s cabin a couple of times.
web Annie sit on top of negra's cabin snow YH IMG_2217

And Missy discovered a TON of lettuce Sarah put in the cabin!
web Missy handful lettuce forage negra's cabin follow annie deep snow YH IMG_2223

I think she was pretty pleased!
web Missy handful of lettuce almost smile walk through deep snow forage YH IMG_2224

web Missy handful lettuce walk on log snow YH IMG_2226

All of the chimps went out at some point, though Negra didn’t leave the comfort of the raceway (and only so she could grab some lettuce and snow) and Burrito was only out for a couple of minutes (also just to grab a little bit of lettuce and snow) and didn’t venture out very far, but everyone seemed very happy to have the option of the hill back! And that’s what sanctuary is all about.

Annie following Missy back to the greenhouse:
web Annie walk along log bridge snow YH IMG_2231

snow, snow, and more snow

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It’s a good thing the Cle Elum Seven like to eat snow so much, because we’ve got a lot of it!

We’ve been putting snow in the kiddie pool and other large tubs and containers on a pretty regular basis, and it keeps the chimps happy for hours. Today, I walked into the chimp area and found that Missy had grabbed a large handful and taken it upstairs to enjoy by the window.

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She may have been sitting in the sunshine, but with eating all that snow she was obviously still cold. She was shivering quite a bit and used this washcloth to dry her hands off.
web Missy eat snow wipe hands with washcloth window PR IMG_2071

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Jody was laying next to her in her nest. You can’t tell but she had a mouthful herself.
web Jody eat snow lay in nest window PR IMG_2081

Later, Missy went to enjoy some snow with her best friend Annie
web Missy Annie eat snow bridge PR IMG_2079

and while she was gone, Negra had taken over Missy’s pile of snow

web Negra eat snow profile PR IMG_2090

it wasn’t long before Missy joined her
web Negra eat snow profile missy in background PR IMG_2086

Some good news + cute Foxie

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If you aren’t subscribed to the Take Action newsletter through Eyes on Apes, you may not have seen yet that we’ve had a victory! Two days ago I sent out an action alert regarding a Great Clips commercial with a chimpanzee, and just a day later Great Clips made a statement to pledge not to use apes in future advertising, and said they were working on pulling the ad. This is all thanks to letters from you guys, so congrats! Please forward this victory on to friends and get them to join you in speaking up for apes in need.

As if that good news wasn’t enough happiness for the day, I thought I’d share some pictures of Foxie eating some snow with juice added to it. She’s pretty cute. I think she can put a smile on anyone’s face.

web Foxie snow in mouth playroom PR IMG_1974

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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:
web boots jamie display enrichment front room frIMG_1225

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.

resized FB web Jamie nest boots enrichment lay on back yoga cute playroom DSC_0127

web Jamie hold inspect new boots from Becca Hines greenhouse GH IMG_0835

web jamie nest boots blankets cover enrichment pr IMG_1641

web Jamie walk new red boots enrichment monica best vist yh forage IMG_1880

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.

great clips
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!