As we mentioned on the Facebook page yesterday, sometimes the daily routine fluctuates, and as caregivers we have to be pretty flexible depending on the choices the chimps make. Typically though, we do have a regular schedule. First we invite the chimpanzees in for breakfast—and as long as everybody comes in, one person (the Care staff or Level III volunteer) will serve breakfast while the other person (the Lead Caregiver) will start cleaning the playroom. We never enter an enclosure at the same time as the chimpanzees, so we have to ensure that all the chimps are out of the room we want to clean, and that every chimp door is secure. We do this for cleaning the playroom, front rooms, and the greenhouse. (To see what cleaning is like, watch this video from a couple years ago). Today things followed the regular routine, which you’ll see in the video below.
chimpanzee sanctuary
Politics, politics, politics
Sometimes, no matter how sweet you are, you just don’t get what you want.
Me and my shadow(s)
Jody is often the first to go out onto the hill when we open it up these days. She may not go out right away, but once she builds up the initiative, she goes! And often Foxie is right there with her. Yesterday, Jody waited a long time before going out but then she all the sudden came charging into the greenhouse from the playroom and walked right out there, with Annie and Foxie right behind her.
But, later Foxie took “following Jody” to a whole new level:
And when Jody decided it was time to go back inside…
Foxie was still right behind her…
and Annie came running after
Stealth Mode
As many of our readers know, Jamie is the most dominant chimp of the Cle Elum Seven. That means that if food is nearby, whether she is interested in it at that moment or not, the other chimps respect it as hers and avoid grabbing anything that she might consider her own. You’ll see a couple interesting politics in the following video. Burrito knows that Jamie has left some chow on the floor and abandoned them to start wrestling with Foxie. He’s waiting for a point where he can take advantage of that distraction and get the chow pieces for himself. Once he eventually gets his opportunity, Foxie catches him in the act, and wants some for herself. Although Jamie still appears uninterested, Foxie asks for her permission to take some chow… but Jamie decides that she wants to keep the few pieces remaining for herself.
Silly B
Burrito was in an exceptionally silly mood today. After putting a paper bag around his shoulders like a cape, he went out into the greenhouse and spent some quality time with a blue fish.
B’s day
Burrito’s birthday is just a week away! Let’s make Mr. B’s-day super great. Find out how you can become Burrito’s Pal, or Sponsor his B-day! His favorite thing in the world is food—of all kinds. Here’s a few photos of B’s cute food face:
And we can never forget Burrito’s pumpkin head from this year’s Halloween party:
Jamie helps clean up
As we’ve mentioned before, Jamie is particularly human-oriented. (Read this post from the first week Jamie was in sanctuary). She definitely watches us do things and will do them in her own style later. Jamie also likes to check up on any kind of work that’s been done and once she’s given access to a room that was previously closed off for maintenance, she will rush in to give her quality control tests.
In the first part of this video, you’ll see her cleaning up a recent paint job in one of the front rooms. We are replacing the benches, so you’ll see some primer on the wall in the spot where the bench used to be. In the second part of the video, Jamie is scrubbing a notably hard-to-reach spot. Clearly I did not do a good enough cleaning job! But I’m so glad to have Jamie’s help.
