Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary
As I walked around the chimp house today I felt really tired. I kept thinking, how could I feel so sleepy? Then I figured it out! I was looking at these cozy lumps all day ;).
Dreamy Cy:
The handsome Terry:
The ever so wonderful Lucky:
And of course the beautiful Jo in the portrait studio:
Today is one of those days where the chimp house is just a’ bustlin. I am still in caregiver training, we have our staff meeting this afternoon, and our team are busy with daily tasks. I did take some time this morning to try and improve my photography skills and these are the results – enjoy!
Terry (henceforth in this blog known as Sir Terrance) engaged in some auto-grooming and enjoying the warm sunshine in the Oakwood Greenhouse.
Dora soaking up the sunshine in the Oakwood Greenhouse.
Negra taking a mid-morning nap in the playroom.
Burrito up to his morning antics.
Have a lovely Tuesday, everyone!
How many times have you heard the old adage that the more things change the more they stay the same? I’m not sure if it holds up, but it seems to ring true here in the chimp house.
When I was here last it was 2019 and driving up a few months ago for my first shift was jaw dropping. The sanctuary has always been beautiful, tucked away in the mountains around Cle Elum, and it has retained that beauty. Now, though, it is home to 9 additional chimpanzees and the sanctuary has grown so much. When I came to CSNW for my first ever intern shift, with fellow caregiver Chad, we had our volunteer orientation in a trailer outside of the kitchen. Where I am sitting now to write this blog did not exist – or, rather, it was outdoor space between the kitchen and the trailer. Now there is a lobby, a full bathroom (!), a clinic, and the new additions for chimpanzee space.
This photo is from the archives of my phone photos – a long ago trip around Young’s Hill, with the Cle Elum 7, in 2019 (don’t worry – my blog photos will get better, promise). If you squint you can see the original building plus Phase 1, since construction began a few months before I left.
A quick search through archived photos also produced this gem – Desert Fox, the O.G. clinic and meeting space. This is where we had our initial volunteer orientation and it will always be one of my first memories of CSNW.
This photo (thanks, Anthony!) has been used in previous blog posts, but it really lets you see how much has changed. After Phase 1, Phase 2 and 3 were added. It truly is amazing to see how the sanctuary has changed and to witness the positive impact of such a big change.
I think that’s what it comes down to- pulling up to the sanctuary now after a few years away, it’s hard to ignore how much of everything around me is new. For a while it was intimidating, until it started to settle in that what makes CSNW so special has remained through it all. Thank goodness some things never change.
Bonus Photo: Jamie enjoying her loot of mini peppers from the Easter forage yesterday.
After a week of snowy conditions, there was the break in the weather where it was sunny and warm enough to celebrate today.
When Missy’s group were first given access to Young’s Hill this morning, everybody went out and explored the Hill. In fact, Negra was the first one out, if you can believe it or not! As the chimpanzees scattered across their outdoor enclosure, I saw Missy at the very top on the furthest structure surveying her domain.
Later on in the day, the weather still held out for a forage outside. Today was filled with paper eggs containing nuts, carrots, sweet potatoes, mini bell peppers, and hard boiled eggs for all!
Here is one of the paper eggs as seen in Willy B’s enclosure for reference (of course they celebrated too!):
Initially we caregivers thought Jamie’s group would run out onto the hill, grab what they could, and head back to their greenhouse since a slight, chilly breeze began to pick up. We were wrong! Every single one of them stayed out for quite some time, enjoying their forage.
Jamie:
Jody:
Burrito:
Foxie:
Annie:
Missy:
Negra:
On the other side of the Chimp House, both Willy B’s group and Cy’s group also enjoyed their set up.
Cy:
Terry:
Rayne:
Willy B:
Mave:
Honey B:
For those who celebrate, we wish you a:
Happy Easter!
Chag Pesach sameach!
Ramadan Mubarak!
Another segment in our ongoing Goodnight series, otherwise known as Intros Took Up All My Time Today So Here’s a Cute Photo of Honey B in a Nest.
Goodnight!
April has surprised us with a lot of snow. Personally, I think we paid our dues back in January, but here we are. Negra saw her shadow and decided 2 more weeks of winter and went back into hibernation.
Negra breakfast in the front rooms:
Bonus photos!
Rayne sitting comfortably on firehose:
Cy day dreaming:
I can’t speak for all the caregivers at CSNW, but for me lead days require mental preparation ahead of time. Some of it is getting on the shifting mentality, thinking of material for the daily blog, planning the individuals that will be involved during introductions, etc. Today was one of those days that from the moment I woke up, all of that preparation went out the window. It turns out that as caregivers there are two things we can’t control: the weather and a group of riled up chimps.
Kittitas County woke up to a significant ongoing snow shower with more than 3 inches of snow already on the ground by 7AM in Ellensburg. Cle Elum did not get the same amount of snow, but the inch or so is half melted by now. The gloominess remains. Being inside was definitely the popular choice for the chimpanzees. This meant plenty of napping in the green houses and a lot of grooming.
For introductions, my wish was to have Gordo and Terry involved with Willy B and Mave. But Gordo and his 5 friends had other plans. While trying to sort them out, a fight broke out and although everyone was OK, it derailed the sorting. The final combination ended up being Cy and Terry with Willy B and Honey B. After many displays between the guys, the introduction remained through the mesh. At the time of separating the groups, Willy B and Honey B refused to go back into the Mezzanine. It wasn’t until dinner was offered that they decided it was the right time to go back to their enclosure and reunite with Mave.
View of our Spring snowy day
Jamie in the process of drifting into a nap in the green house
Terry grooming my boots
Cy and Terry grooming each other
Rayne, Cy, Lucky and Terry grooming
Rayne, Dora, Cy and Lucky grooming
