Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

chimpanzee

Here’s to One Year and Many More to Come!

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One year ago today, staff were waiting at the Chimp House, glued to our phones waiting for every update from J.B., Diana, and Dr. Erin as they were driving up from Southern California following a well air conditioned trailer carrying six new friends we were all desperately waiting to meet. At that point we have heard all about them, but I don’t think anything could have really prepared us for these six individuals about to pull up the driveway. Upon first sight those of us who had been waiting had fell and fell hard in love with them.

I remember Lucky was actually the first one from that group I had met. I helped offload her from the trailer and got her ready to enter her new home. She had a fear grimace, which to be fair, I would too in a new situation like this, not knowing what was happening or why it was happening. I let out a few breathy pants to her and gave her some reassurance and her grimace faded away. The door then lifted and Lucky entered her new home. Then one-by-one the rest entered their new home: Dora, Gordo, Terry, Rayne, and last but definitely not least, Cy.

That entire day seems like forever ago since they have been considered a part of this family. It feels like they have always been a part of our lives, yet the calendar does indicate it has been only one year(!). To commemorate their celebration, we threw a party with some of the greatest hits from parties this past year: oatmeal with berries, fingerling potatoes, tomatoes, heads of baby iceberg lettuce, and young coconuts.

Here are some of the photos from today:

Cy:

Dora:

Gordo:

Honey B:

Willy B:

Even Missy’s Group got to celebrate!

Missy:

Jody:

Though he wasn’t able to participate because he is still recovering, Burrito was up and about and already playing games today! And he got extra attentions from caregivers!

When I arrived in the morning, I went in to check on him. He was still pretty sleepy, but gave some very soft Bronx cheers, and played a game of tag, albeit while laying down.

After some time, he was up and about and ready for some visitors, which he did get throughout the day.

(Don’t worry. Jamie left right when I took this photo.)

An Appointment with the Dentist

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Well at least it wasn’t a rattlesnake this time…

Yes, poor Burrito was back in the clinic today to have an infected tooth extracted. Dr. Erin and Sofia were accompanied by Dr. Cristina Bender and her husband, Matt, from Pearl Care Dental in Ellensburg, Dr. Dan Whitemarsh of Cle Elum Dental Clinic, and veterinarian Dr. Austin Hardegree, who ran anesthesia and performed ultrasounds. Our friends at Valley Veterinary Hospital were also kind enough to lend some specialized dental equipment for the afternoon.

Since Burrito would be under anesthesia for the extraction, Jim Repsher, PA-C came to give him injections in both knees to help alleviate his arthritis.

Burrito has been through a lot in the last few years but he seems to somehow bounce back stronger every time. We have no doubt he’ll be up and running again very soon. For now, though, he is going to get some rest under close supervision from Dr. Erin…

…and a his chimp family, of course.

We’re so grateful to all the folks who give their time and energy to help care for Burrito and his family and friends. How fortunate are we to have such an amazing team of people looking after them.

Feel better soon, Bubs.

Summer Shenanigans

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After celebrating its official start yesterday, we are in full summer mode here at the sanctuary! The season has definitely caught up and it is *warm* outside, with the sun in full force. After managing winter weather and cool spring temps, the jump start to summer has us (or maybe just me) sweltering in the heat. Today ended up being the perfect day to remind us (or, again, just me) why summer is so fun.

Diana brought us bowls of rose flowers and petals for both groups to forage, which was a hit! And on Jamie’s side of the building, we decided to fill up their two pools with nice cool water… and then we added a yummy touch- Gatorade!

The bowl of rose flowers, petals, and lilacs for the forage today:

Gordo enjoying his lunch in the warmth of the Riverview Greenhouse:

Jamie’s group has spent a large portion of today exploring on Young’s Hill, relaxing in the greenhouse, and spending time by the Gatorade pools. Cy and his group have seemed content to spend time in the cool front rooms, and right now I can hear Terry blowing raspberries trying to get someone’s attention.

Check out the video for more on today’s chimp-house-summer-time-shenanigans!

 

Greenhouse Energy

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Although the next season is still a sunset away, the chimpanzees are already exhibiting typical summer behavior.

This transition has been most notable on warm days when the chimps spend most of their time in the greenhouse areas. The first of these unique enclosures was built shortly after the first group of chimpanzees arrived, and we added the Oakwood Greenhouse and Riverview Greenhouse just last year. These enclosures offer the best elements of the indoors and outdoors, especially when a few select panels are removed from the outside and the cool breezes can pass through. It’s not surprising that the residents choose to hang out in those spaces more often than not during this time of year.

Here are some photos of the chimpanzees enjoying their favorite summer digs.

Annie letting a foot hang off the edge of the platform
Willy B
Gordo
Dora (left) grooms Mave (center) while Rayne (right) sits nearby
Missy
Gordo
Annie
Burrito (right) and Foxie (left) grooming each other
Burrito returning to the greenhouse after racing around Young’s Hill
Foxie
Cy looks down at caregivers from an elevated area
Jody
Gordo
Negra
Jody

Meet our newest caregiver, Jenna!

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Hi, everyone! My name is Jenna and I am the newest staff member at CSNW. I am so happy to be here!

Originally from Arizona, I completed my undergraduate degree at the University of Arizona in 2018. While I had anticipated going into the medical field with the goal of helping humans, I never felt confident with that plan. It was not until my final semester of college where I completed an internship at Reid Park Zoo in Tucson, where I had the epiphany, “why have I not considered working with animals before?”.

Immediately after graduating, I started unpaid internships so I could build my resume as I knew I wanted to pursue a graduate degree. While I completed two internships at AZA-accredited facilities, I knew I found something special when I began a wildlife medicine internship at a small sanctuary in Arizona, called Southwest Wildlife Conservation Center (SWCC). SWCC heavily focuses on wildlife rehabilitation and releases as many animals as possible. For those individuals that cannot be released, such as those formerly kept as pets illegally, SWCC provides them a home for the rest of their life, where they can live in peace. Up until to that point in my professional life, I had never seen anything like the work SWCC was doing. I was quickly hooked into the sanctuary world and I have never looked back.

While my title of staff is new, I am not a stranger to CSNW! I began interning here in 2019 when I moved to Washington for the Primate Behavior graduate program at Central Washington University. In fact, I arrived shortly after Mave, Honey B, and Willy B arrived at CSNW! I quickly fell in love with the people, the chimpanzees, and the positive atmosphere here. While the pandemic ended my in-person internship early, and I eventually went on to work at other chimpanzee sanctuaries, I always kept CSNW close to my heart. I think it is pretty evident a lot of former interns have similar experiences, as many have returned as staff.

For the past year, I have been in Florida working as a full-time chimpanzee caregiver at Center for Great Apes (CGA)! I learned so much during my time there and felt very fortunate to build such close, strong relationships with several of the chimpanzees. I would have to say that the highlight of my time working at CGA was being a caregiver to Knuckles. For those unfamiliar with his story, Knuckles was born in 1999 at a California entertainment facility and he quickly was diagnosed with cerebral palsy. Based on the severity of his condition, doctors had no idea how long Knuckles would live. He arrived at CGA when he was 2 years old. He unexpectedly passed away in November 2021 at the age of 22. I am forever thankful for the opportunity to be apart of his life as I am not the same caregiver, nor person, as I was before knowing him.

I have been back in Washington since the end of April and I could not be happier. I have missed the beautiful landscapes, the wonderful humans that make up the CSNW staff, and of course, the chimpanzees.

As a disclaimer, my photography lessons with Chad and Anthony just started today, so please know these pictures will improve in the future (well, one can hope). Here are a few moments that I captured today:

Foxie:

Foxie and dolls:

Burrito:

Jamie:

Meredith:

Missy on a Mission

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Missy invited me to play chase up the hill this afternoon. When we reached the top, she veered off into the tall grass with a look of determination.

She climbed atop one of the mounds.

And then walked out onto the log bridge.

From there, she scanned the area.

Then she disappeared into the weeds.

When she emerged, it was clear she had found what she was searching for: a yellow goatsbeard flower and a handful of prickly lettuce leaves.

With an equal sense of purpose, she marched through the grass to Jamie’s Tower.

She climbed the ladder and perched on a support.

There, overlooking the river canyon, she munched on her prickly lettuce.

When she was done, she met up with her best friend, Annie, and returned to the chimp house, saving the flower for later.

All Good Things

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This morning when we walked into the chimp house, every chimp was super playful! Gordo was bunny hopping around, Annie was playing chase with Burrito and her caregivers, Missy was chasing Jody, Jamie was playfully foot stomping to her caregivers, Dora and Mave were playing, and chimps on both sides were grooming in the greenhouses. Every day at the sanctuary is a great day because the chimps are safe, secure, and cared for, but that does not mean that every day is sunshine and rainbows. Obviously,the chimpanzees have their own feelings and moods, just like us. Some days we walk in and one group is displaying, while the other group is calm. Other days it’s loud everywhere you go. However, most days you get a balance of some calm with a little bit of displaying from time to time. And then you get a day like today, where both sides of the building are just silly and playful!

While most people wanted to play, Negra wanted to sleep all day:

We are running pretty low on magazines. If you have any laying around, I am sure Cy would love to take them off your hands!