Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary
The staff will continue our positive reinforcement training this afternoon. But before we dive into our training, here are some photos of some chimpanzee adventures and naps.
Don’t forget to vote for your favorite piece of art! The three designs with the most votes will win the People’s Choice awards! So be sure to vote before March 14th!
The video above is a little bit random, but the days are a little random.
Little moments catch my fancy, like Jody with her great big eyes and Jamie and Burrito running with the Gator.
Spring is definitely in the air. The killdeer and red wing blackbirds are calling, the trees are starting to bud, the bovines are shedding their extra winter hair, and Mave is sunning herself at the top of the chute.
It’s the simple and subtle things that pull me forward towards the next day of random moments.
Today, the staff continued our PRT training. However, I was able to take a few photos from today of the Seven enjoying Young’s Hill!
The days have been getting warmer and the snow is disappearing quickly. Just like yesterday, the Seven (minus one) spent a lot of time today exploring Young’s Hill.
When the door leading to Young’s Hill first opened, the first order of business was to take in this warm morning.
Well, that was most everybody’s first agenda item. Burrito’s agenda item was to run around the hill.
Right behind us came Jamie and Missy, with Jody in tow.
Before Jody continued on the walk, she first tried to look for some ice treats in a hanging tire.
None found, she went for one of her other favorite foraging items, a pine branch.
Coming up behind Jody was Foxie, with two Orange Blossoms!
Annie waited at the bottom of the hill for everybody to return. Though she didn’t partake in the first patrol, she was seen out and about since.
Missy stopped for a snowy treat before making her way inside.
Along the way, Jamie decided she want to climb the Twister and take in the surroundings.
At this point, you may be wondering about the “minus one.”
She did poke her head out in the morning, but decided to stay under a pile of blankets in the Greenhouse.
Do you know the word lagniappe? It’s an American French (think Louisiana) word. From my perusal of dictionary definitions it refers to a bonus “something” given to a customer when they are making a purchase. It’s now used in broader terms and refers to any unexpected bonus that comes with something else.
I’m glad I looked it up! I’ve liked the sound of the word since first hearing it and sometimes it’s just floating around up there in my head for no reason. But now I realize that my understanding of the definition as simply “an unexpected gift” was somewhat incorrect.
On Thursday afternoon, J.B. headed out with the sanctuary truck to pick up the weekly produce, which was much needed because the fridges were looking quite bare with the glowing exception of a particular fruit that I believe Anthony will be writing about tomorrow.
I want to say that the filling up of our fruit fridge was a lagniappe, but that would be using that unique word incorrectly – it was just a wonderful and unexpected gift.
I digress.
In the middle of a zoom call after J.B. had left to get produce, I got a call from him on my phone. I decided I should answer it because it was strange that he was calling me just 20 minutes after leaving. I rudely existed the view of my computer camera with no explanation and took his call. Indeed, my intuition was correct. The truck had an issue and he was parked on the side of the highway. There would be no produce run that day.
Instead, after the truck was towed and I picked up J.B., he made a quick jaunt to the local grocery store to hold the chimps’ over until the truck was fixed and he could do the full produce run this afternoon.
To my surprise, one of the produce items he brought back was corn. Corn! In February! This was indeed a lagniappe. Oh wait, no – that’s using the word incorrectly again.
Nevertheless, the chimpanzees were delighted with this unexpected gift:
Negra:
Missy:
Jody got two ears because Jamie was at first very focused on the mini sweet peppers at lunch, putting her ear of corn down near the watchful eyes of Jody. Jamie was okay with Jody taking it, but decided later she did in fact want some (maybe the sounds of all of the delightful crunching by her friends made her change her mind). If you are on Instagram, go to our page to see a little video clip of Jody crunching her double lagniappe gift.
Everything worked out in the end because Foxie rejected her corn full stop. So, I gave Jamie Foxie’s ear of corn and I gave Foxie Jamie’s carrot.
Whew!
Jamie took her corn up to the top window for some private dining.
Honey B, Mave, and Willy B got their corn for dinner and it was very much appreciated by all three of them. Here’s Honey B:
Thank you for all of you Produce Patrons out there who help provide the chimpanzees with much loved and unexpected gifts of fresh fruits and vegetables!
Side note – if anyone knows of a word that actually means “unexpected gift”, I would like to know! I might send you something as a thank you for your linguistic prowess.
Today’s day of sanctuary was sponsored in memory of Jill White by Thyra Rutter. Here’s what Thyra shared about her friend:
I can’t think of a better way to honor one of my most beloved mentors, Jill White than by sponsoring a day of joy for the chimps at CSNW! Jill was one of the very first people to believe in my vision for Arte for Elephants. She was wildly supportive, and having another female entrepreneur in your corner was precious beyond words. Jill epitomized kindness. She did so much for so many and I am sure she’d be tickled to see the chimps enjoy their day in her memory.
Thank you, Thyra!
Here are some chimpanzees enjoying their sanctuary days!
Last week, an interesting creature visited the sanctuary. We caregivers paused to conduct some informal observations.
The visitor was a bobcat. Also known as “red lynx,” bobcats (Lynx rufus) are medium-sized felines native to southern Canada, the entire continental USA, and northern Mexico.
Unlike other species of lynx, bobcats are highly adaptable and can thrive in proximity to humans. Because of this behavioral flexibility, bobcat populations persist in suburban and agricultural environments and are one of the least threatened species of wild feline.
We often see the signs these creatures leave behind as they roam across the sanctuary’s wooded farmland (usually manifesting as tracks left behind in the snow or mud). Their prints complement those of the numerous wild animals who have adjusted to our presence: badgers, black bears, cougars, coyotes, deer, elk, marmots, mice, porcupines, skunks, squirrels, weasels, voles, and countless species of birds, reptiles and amphibians. Until last week, however, none of us had managed to take a photograph of a living bobcat on the sanctuary campus.
From the kitchen window, I first spotted the bobcat trudging through the pasture just north of the Chimp House. The powdery snow was a couple feet deep out there, but the cat was using its furry paws to stay afloat as if they were snowshoes. Anna and I were closing up the facility for the evening, but we immediately grabbed binoculars and a camera so that we could observe and photograph the creature from our “blind” in the building’s foyer.
The bobcat was clearly hunting for the various rodents that tunnel invisibly beneath the snow. At times, the creature sat on its haunches and listened intently before continuing forward. Eventually, the bobcat pounced on some scurrying prey (likely a vole) but emerged from the snow without its quarry. After that unsuccessful attempt, the cat meandered its way up the hill and disappeared into the woodland above.
Shockingly, the bobcat didn’t seem to notice us. The chimps, meanwhile, were too engrossed in their evening food puzzles to even look out the window. They’ve probably seen lots of wild animals that the humans don’t notice, although even they appear to be fascinated at times.
Of course, the caregivers aren’t the only ones who observe their neighbors around here. As always, the chimpanzees continue to observe the humans. Although they often focus on the caregivers who perform the usual tasks in their vicinity, the chimps also pay close attention to the ongoing expansion of the Chimp House.
Currently, Honey B, Mave and Willy B can watch the construction progress from the safety of their indoor enclosures (which are adjacent to the new playrooms). Honey B, in particular, is captivated by the three gentlemen who are installing the caging, windows, climbing structures and hydraulic doors in the new areas. She balances her observation time, alternating between staring intently at us and monitoring the welders and laborers on the other side.
We often think about how much time humans have spent observing and studying wildlife, including free-ranging and captive chimpanzees, but Honey B appears determined to even the score.
Someone recently donated two cardboard forts for the chimpanzees. Mave and Willy B had a really good time playing in and destroying theirs yesterday, while the group of seven left theirs intact to see another day. It’s hard to tell in the photo below, but these are big forts – big enough for a chimpanzee to fit inside.
This morning as we were just opening up the chimp house, Foxie was in the room with the fort, just walking past it. We both did a double-take when we heard some rustling and what sounded like knocking coming from inside. I’m not much of a morning person, so I wasn’t 100% sure of what I heard. But then out popped Burrito!
It reminded me of two things: First, this is my kind of humor. I remember years ago I hid inside a brand new garbage can to surprise a friend. I think it was a lot funnier to me than my friend. Second, also years ago, I did my masters thesis on play initiation in chimpanzees, specifically five chimpanzees who were living at the Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute at Central Washington University (the two chimpanzees who are still living from that group, Tatu and Loulis, now live at the Fauna Foundation in Quebec).
Gathering data for my thesis was a joy because I spent hours watching videotapes (yes, actual videotapes – I told you it was years ago) of chimpanzees playing. From what I recall, most of the instances of play initiation were between friends Moja and Tatu, and I remember more than one instance of Tatu hiding behind a wall and then jumping out at Moja when she walked past, with a raucous game of chase ensuing.
We witness the chimpanzees initiate play all of the time here at the sanctuary, and often the initiator is Burrito. He’s a very funny and fun-loving guy with his human and chimpanzee friends.
Even when he’s spending time alone, he seems to amuse himself. While we were cleaning the playroom, I looked into the greenhouse and saw Burrito sitting in a box eating breakfast leftovers. He had pulled his scooter up next to him.
Without a doubt, humor has gotten me through some otherwise tough times and made good times even better. Maybe joke-telling or sharing humorous thoughts is the human equivalent of initiating play. I think that’s how I will think of it now.
