Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

chimpanzee

The Rescue

by

Foxie likes to place her dolls in precarious situations and then rescue them. Typically this has looked something like placing them in really high places and knocking them off and catching them, or tossing them in pokey bushes and reaching in to quickly pull them out. Of course she has to feel comfortable venturing to where they are and she doesn’t want any help from the humans. I remember watching her a few years ago when she discovered a couple troll dolls had been placed in a cardboard tube by the humans who thought she might enjoy it. She absolutely did not and was rather incensed that her dolls were in there because she wasn’t comfortable enough to reach in and get them out. Point taken, Foxie! Humans mind your own business!

But all of a sudden, for the first time we’ve seen, Foxie has been repeatedly sticking her dolls in a large cardboard tube the chimps currently have and then seemingly “saving” them. I watched her for some time in the greenhouse this afternoon as she repeatedly shoved the dolls in, gave the tube a good chomping (notice the end) and then pulled her dolls back out, hugging them close to her before inspecting to make sure they survived their ordeal. Whatever the reason Foxie chooses these activities, it’s another big step in comfort and courage for her after all years in her sanctuary home. And as she grows more and more courageous, I guess her dolls do as well.

Everyone was exhausted after that:

A bonus Jody photo! I’m not sure how this is exactly comfortable, but it’s classic Jody style:

Unwind

by

We had a nice relaxing day here at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest!

Burrito was following Jody around a lot today (on the Hill, in the Playroom, and laid close by her side in the Greenhouse):

But Jody was still able to make sometime for herself:

Annie, Burrito, & Foxie all went off to venture out on the Hill. Everyone eventually went on a walk with Jamie, except Neggie who stayed in her nice warm bed:

Annie did quite a bit of solo walking on Young’s Hill (maybe taking in the nice view or the gentle breeze):

Afterwards Annie was so sleepy she could barely keep her eyes open:

Jamie was watching the volunteers clean the Playroom in the utmost comfort:

However, Jamie also became so sleepy she couldn’t keep her eyes open:

Happy Birthday, David!

by

Louise Burns sponsored today in honor of her boyfriend, David Prowse, on his birthday with the message that there is no better gift, than sponsoring the chimpanzees!

Louise, thank you so much for thinking of the chimpanzees and making a lasting difference in their lives as a way to celebrate David on his special day! We so appreciate your support!

David, all of here at CSNW hope you have the best birthday yet! Thank you for adding to their lives by sharing your day with them!

Missy:

Jamie:

Jamie and Foxie:

Sparking an Idea

by

There’s so much that happens at the sanctuary that we often have stories or tidbits we want to share on the blog that get “bumped” for something else noteworthy, heartwarming, or amazing (all of these adjectives describe yesterday’s post about Negra! My heart will remain full after that experience for a very long time to come).

Here’s one of those stories that got bumped for something else, but I still wanted to share it because I’ve been thinking about it ever since.

A couple of weeks ago, J.B. found a small wasp nest (sans wasps) and brought it into the office. I was working in the chimp house that day, and he suggested that I give it to one of the chimpanzees who likes to eat wasp larvae. The known connoisseurs of wasp larvae currently are Jamie, Missy, and Jody. Always eager to please the boss, I first offered it to Jamie. When I presented it to her and pointed out the holes that were filled in with grubs, I’m positive she recognized what it was, but, to my surprise, she did not gesture for me to give it to her. So I said, “Okay, Jamie, I’m going to give it to someone else.” She remained where she was and let me leave without a protest.

I found Jody lying in a pile of blankets in one of the front rooms. When I showed her the wasp nest, she leapt out of bed and put her lips up to the caging so I could give it to her. She was extremely happy with this unexpected gift and took it back to her nest with a contented low moan. Jody was probably grateful for this wasp-free (and therefore sting-free) nest, given her experience last month.

Several hours later, Jamie indicated that she wanted to go on a walk. As per the routine, I donned some boots and headed out to join her on the opposite side of the fence. She did not continue along the perimeter path, however. Instead, she made a beeline for the structure we call Negra’s cabin.

I watched her with curiosity as she climbed to the top and then sort of swung into the cabin, reaching with her right hand. I had no idea what she was doing until she slithered down the cabin support log and I saw her pick up something from the ground. That’s when I figured out that she had removed a wasp nest and was collecting the spoils.

Rather than resuming the walk, she headed back to the greenhouse. When I caught up with her, I found Jamie enjoying her treasure and Missy sitting next to her, ready for anything Jamie might drop or discard.

The wasp nest that Jamie had captured was at least three times the size of the one that I had offered her earlier. She meticulously broke it apart piece by piece with her lips, eating the larvae one by one.

There are three things that I love about this incident and the way Jamie works:

Number One: She rejected the free larvae offered earlier and instead worked to obtain larvae on her own. This is somewhat typical of Jamie – she likes puzzles and will chose to work to get food instead of having it handed to her, though I’ve never seen her reject an unexpected gift of food.

Number Two: This is a bit speculative, but I believe that showing Jamie the nest earlier in the day sparked the idea of her hunting for a nest of her own – maybe in that moment she thought about where she could get a better specimen than the puny thing I was offering. She didn’t run out to find a nest right away, though, she waited until the evening hours when nothing else was going on and she was looking for a bit of adventure.

Number Three: I’m always thrilled when the chimpanzees do something that they figured out on their own and show off their chimpanzee foraging skills. As we’ve written before, we humans didn’t recognize wasp nests as having potential food, particularly for this group of chimpanzees that grew up far away from their natural habitat and had never shown an interest in eating anything in the insect realm.

It’s a reminder that they are intelligent wild beings who inherited a particular skill set that allowed their species to survive in a variety of environments across equatorial Africa.

Jamie may like boots and blankets, but she also likes wasp larvae. And she’s perfectly capable of finding it on her own, thank you very much.

Still healing

by

Negra has always worn her trauma on her sleeve.

The first time we met her, she wouldn’t even show us her face. She hid behind a solid metal panel at the end of a bank of four cages in the windowless laboratory basement that had been her home for years. The only part of her that we really saw that first day was her hand as she reached upwards through the food chute to beg for handfuls of peanuts.

When she arrived at the sanctuary she was inactive and socially withdrawn. She could be anxious around her caregivers and was prone to overreaction when touched. When she finally had the opportunity to go outdoors, she was reluctant and would often become overwhelmed with fear when she ventured too far outside.

I hate to admit it, but we always had low expectations for Negra. Some chimps retain their fighting spirit against all odds. Negra was spiritless. If we could just give her a year in sanctuary, we thought, it will have been worth it. Maybe she wouldn’t take advantage of all the new opportunities available to her, but she deserved to finally have the choice. It was a low bar but we were still afraid she wouldn’t reach it.

But she surprised us. Over the last ten years, she gradually became more social with her chimpanzee and human friends. She grew more accustomed to being touched, even allowing her caregivers to provide basic medical treatment. She has spent more time outdoors and ventured further and further into her habitat.

I don’t want to overstate the extent of her transformation. Negra still spends the majority of her time alone in bed, her head shrouded in a blanket for security. Negra’s progress, like Negra herself, has been slow.

But something unusual is happening right now. The pace of change has increased to the point where it seems like each day brings a new surprise, each one announced with excitement over the two-way radios:

“Negra was the first one outside this morning!”

“Negra is at the top of the hill!”

“Negra climbed to the top of the new structure!”

“Negra is wrestling with Missy!”

“Negra is playing with me!”

“Negra is spooning Jody!”

This morning, Diana called over the radio to say that Negra was playing with her in a way that was more typical of Burrito. See for yourself in the video above. This is the kind of thing we live for. Not because we enjoy playing with Negra (though we do), but because we’re excited to see her become more active, playful, and trusting. We love seeing her become more engaged with the world around her.

Why is this happening ten years after she arrived at the sanctuary?

There are a number of factors that enable chimps (and other animals, including humans) to recover from trauma. Things like agency, autonomy, a sense of safety and security, and a physical and social environment that allows for species-typical behavior are all critical. But one thing we mustn’t overlook is time. It took Negra 35 years to accumulate the traumas she experienced while being torn from her mother and her home, having her children ripped away from her again and again, being housed in tiny, barren cages, and being subjected to invasive experimentation. These memories, and the resulting patterns of behavior, can’t be undone overnight. And Negra will set her own pace.

Will these changes last? We don’t know. Negra has come out of her shell before only to retreat again. But for now we are going to play as much tug-of-war with this silly, seemingly care-free Negra as we can. And more importantly, we are going to enjoy watching her socialize more with her chimpanzee family and spend more time foraging on Young’s Hill.

Sanctuary nesting

by

In free-living situations, chimpanzees build night nests in the forest canopy. They make these platform-like nests out of branches and leaves. At the sanctuary, most of the chimps build nests out of the fresh clean blankets that caregivers set out for them each morning after we finish scrubbing and squeegeeing their enclosures. Our trusty washing machine works overtime all day, everyday, as we wash the previous day’s 70 dirty blankets! Since there is no threat from a predator at the sanctuary, the chimpanzees can choose wherever they like (high or low) to build their nests. Interestingly enough, I’ve never seen the chimps nest out on Young’s Hill, so they must feel (understandably) that the added security of the covered enclosures is better suited for lounging in bed. In addition to blankets, the Cle Elum 7 will also incorporate other enrichment items such as toys or natural fibers like hay and grass. The other night I watched Negra eating some cattails in the center of her evening bed. After getting her fill, she tucked them for safe keeping into the folds of her nest. Midnight snack perhaps?

On scorching hot days like today, the chimps find cool places to nest in the shady indoor areas. Here’s Jamie beating the heat in a fresh nest she chose to build on the playroom floor: