Today’s sponsor-a-day is from Connie and Bill in loving memory of Debbie Curran whose friendship will never be forgotten.
Here’s to friendship:
chimpanzee
Someone to play with
In a previous post, I mentioned how it seemed like Missy was anxious for the other chimps to become comfortable on the hill so that she’d have someone to play with. Thankfully, Missy’s best friend Annie has decided that she’s ready to take advantage of her new two-acre playground.
Another Burrito day!
Burrito received an abundance of new toys, sponsors, and lots of love on his birthday. His new friend, Adrienne Armstrong, who sponsored the party and sent Burrito a lovely (and GIANT!) fruit basket, tried to get some new toys to us but unfortunately they didn’t get here in time. So in honor of new friends (and as an excuse to keep on partying!), we threw him another little party today. The chimps have been loving all the new stuff, especially Negra, who has been curled up with her new, super soft blankets all day.
Thanks so much Adrienne!
Your friend, Burrito
A different view
Yesterday JB walked up to the top of Young’s Hill to get some shots of the chimps from that angle. The sky was blue and the sun was out, and it made for a really pretty backdrop.
Regular Morning Routine
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.
Creative Jamie
I enjoyed watching this in person as much as I enjoyed making the video. Jamie is endlessly fascinating. I love the intense purposefulness that she employs no matter what she’s doing.
Burrito loves Adrienne, Marcia, and Ginna!
Today is Burrito’s big day! Burrito is a charming guy and has a lot of admirers – in fact, he’s so loved that three separate people have sponsored today in honor of his 29th birthday. On Burrito’s behalf, we want to offer a BIG thank you to Adrienne Armstrong, Marcia Douthwaite, and Ginna Keulen for their generosity. This is going to be one heck of a party!
Burrito is happiest when he’s eating (and he’ll be doing a lot of that today):
