Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

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chimpanzee

Novelty

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Captive chimpanzees are often cautious about changes in their environment. When we recently replaced the straw on the floor of the outdoor area with a deep layer of wood chips, we expected some of the chimps to be reluctant to walk on them. We were right about that, but I never would have guessed that Jamie would be nervous while Burrito would act like nothing had changed!

One of the reasons why we put the tractor tires out there in the first place is that ex-laboratory chimpanzees are often initially hesitant to walk on natural substrates. The tires allowed them to get outside with getting their feet dirty or wet. Of course, they all got used to it eventually, just as they will get used to the wood chips. But for some, especially Foxie, it may take a little while.

Annie-isms

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If you are signed up for our E-newsletter, you know we talked about some of Annie’s antics in the latest edition. You may have wondered about some of them, namely her “bird noises”, and I don’t blame you– it sounds weird! But it happens, and here’s proof, along with some of her other silly antics.

Posts for climbing structures

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Keith came out for the day and he and J.B. spent a snowy afternoon preparing fir logs donated by Dan Sherman (thanks, Dan!) to be used as the posts for climbing structures on Young’s Hill.

Here are the logs and a view of a couple of the old buildings on the property.

logs

And here are some of them “planted” in the ground on Young’s Hill. They’re about 10-feet tall. We probably won’t be able to work on the climbing structures until spring, but it’s pretty cool to see the start of things going up on the hill. Thanks to Karen and Don Young, Euan and Bethany Menzies and all who donated toward the 2-acre habitat-to-come!

posts for climbing structures

Chewing

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Human culture has a lot of hang-ups. While they have their place, we have all of these “rules”, like keep your elbows off the dinner table, and always close your mouth while chewing. Don’t get me wrong here- chimp culture has rules too, but to me, there is something so satisfying about watching the chimps so openly smack their lips while they chew their food. Especially Foxie, who is by far the coolest chewer I know.

Alamogordo Chimps Update

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New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson is a hero for chimpanzees. Two days ago he filed a complaint with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to investigate the transfer of the remaining 186 chimpanzees at the Alamogordo Primate Facility (APF). Since then he has been busy with press conferences and interviews with the media about this complaint, which is supported by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) and Animal Protection of New Mexico.

The complaint asks the USDA to investigate whether transferring the chimpanzees from APF to a biomedical research laboratory in Texas violates the Animal Welfare Act, which prohibits the transportation of ill, injured or physically distressed primates. Many of the chimpanzees, such as Flo (53 years old), are elderly and suffer from chronic diseases as a result of their age and their history as biomedical research subjects.

Thanks to Freedom of Information requests from PCRM, we now know that Foxie’s mother, Winny, is among the chimpanzees living at APF who faces transfer to Texas. Winny’s birthdate is listed as 1/1/1962. She is almost 49 years old.

Foxie’s son David, Negra’s daughter, Heidi, and Jody’s daughter April also face transfer. Jody’s son Levi has already been moved.

(For the complaint that PCRM filed in September that includes information on the chimpanzees at APF, click here).

For how to help, visit RetireTheChimps.org