Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

chimpanzee

Floof

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Mave is a giant floof. There was a time when she only floofed indoors. Now she is perfectly happy to floof outdoors as well.

Spring grass is one of the chimps’ favorite snacks. Despite having 4.5 acres of grass to choose from, we find the chimps going back to their own favorite patches time after time. Missy prefers a patch on the north fence line, while Jamie and Burrito can often be seen in the southeast corner at the very top of the hill. When the chimps are late to breakfast, we know just where to look for them.

The cows are never late to breakfast, now that they are out on the Bray pasture.

After a walk around the hill this afternoon, Annie laid down for a nap in the cozy greenhouse.

Some of us were down in Florida last week for the 2025 North American Primate Sanctuary Alliance Workshop, which included a tour of Save the Chimps. We were fortunate to see, from a distance, many of the kids of the Cle Elum Seven, including Annie’s son Virgil. Annie may not know it but her son has a wonderful life now.

The 7th Annual Running of the Cows

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It’s time for another Running of the Cows, wherein our small herd of rescued bovines – Betsy, Honey, and Meredith – leave their winter pasture and head for the hills! The first stop this spring is the south pasture, by the Bray, where they are greeted by Terry, Gordo, Rayne, and a cautiously excited Cy.

Meredith’s arthritis treatments at WSU College of Veterinary Medicine seem to have been worthwhile, as she was able to keep up with her mom and Betsy all the way to the south pasture (though, like me, she is probably a bit sore today).

While the cows are enjoying their green pastures, we’ll be finishing their new feed barn. This barn will be used primarily for hay and straw storage, which will be necessary when we dismantle the old barn near the chimp house to make way for the new staff and volunteer building. But it will also be used as a sheltered feeding area, making room in the current cattle barn for more cows to sleep comfortably. Who knows, maybe another rescued cow or two will join our family when the time is right?

Snapshots

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A few photos from a mostly quiet Monday at the sanctuary…

Missy, who gave me the rare privilege of grooming her this afternoon:

Foxie and doll #643:

Terry, who was on an (unsuccessful) mission to gain the attention of the girls next door:

Doll Head Screwdriver

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We love when the chimps find comfort or enjoyment in human toys—so long as they’re safe, of course. While all new toys are checked by two staff members to ensure they will withstand the chimps’ strength and destructiveness, everyone once and a while they chimps are able to, um, modify their toys in ways we didn’t anticipate. Let’s just be thankful that the building isn’t held together with doll head screws.

 

A New Approach

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I wanted to give you all a brief update on our reintroduction of Cy’s group (for background, see here and here).

We’ve reluctantly come to the conclusion that, at this time, these efforts are not going to lead to a level of stability that the chimps deserve. Willy B has shown signs of promise. I really think he could succeed in a group where Cy was the only other male. He’s more composed when it’s just him and Cy. Plus, Cy has the patience of a saint and enough confidence to let Willy blow off some steam once and a while without feeling threatened.

But Willy B can’t seem to control himself to the same degree when Terry and/or Gordo are in the group and neither Terry nor Gordo were gifted with Cy’s equanimity. Their reactions to Willy’s prodding only goad him on further. This results in a lot of stress, and the reintroduction process was not successful in changing these fundamental dynamics.

The reality for social animals like chimpanzees is that each individual’s welfare is interdependent and at times even negatively correlated with the welfare of those they live with. Finding a place for Willy in the group of nine opened up a world of opportunities for him but resulted in unresolved tension that impacted the whole group. Sometimes the pieces just don’t fit together in a way that makes sense for everyone. So we’ve got to keep working on the puzzle and try something different.

For now we are keeping them in subgroups that we believe will be stable and meet everyone’s needs as best as possible: Willy B, Honey B, Mave, & Dora in one group and Cy, Terry, Gordo, Rayne, and Lucky in another. There’s less social opportunity for now but more cohesion. Like the reintroduction process, these groupings will let us test out relationships and evaluate social dynamics, but without the same end goal of integrating all nine. What is the goal, then? One possibility is to keep them in these or similar subgroups. Another is to regularly rotate individuals between subgroups in a way that attempts to maintain most of the beneficial relationships that were formed in the larger group. And then there are possibilities to explore with the group on the other side of the building, which will undoubtedly be changing over the coming years as they age well into their 50s. We’re mindful that many of them will have a need for new social opportunities in the not-too-distant future.

It’s been a difficult conclusion to reach when both the chimps and the staff and volunteers have invested so much in making the larger group work. But that’s the nature of working with chimpanzees. You just have to keep moving forward with an open mind. We look forward to updating you along the way.

Dora’s Check-Up

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Dora made her first appearance in the veterinary clinic last week for a routine physical exam. Like Rayne, she willingly took the anesthetic injection (this time from Sabrina and Dr. Erin, with a prior assist from the entire positive reinforcement training team). While we have to wait for specialists to review some of the data the team collected, Dora appears to be in perfectly good health.

Many thanks to our great crew of volunteer professionals, from the vet techs, sonographers, and veterinary student extern helping with the procedure to the cardiologists and internists reviewing the results—and of course to our very own Dr. Erin!

Someone recently asked on social media what types of procedures the chimps undergo when they are in the clinic. While the answer depends on many factors, including their age, sex, clinical history, stability under anesthesia, and the amount of time since their last exam, we generally try to do the following:

  • Update Vaccinations (e.g., rabies, tetanus)
  • TB test
  • Glucose Reading
  • Fecal Exam
  • Urinalysis
  • Blood tests
  • EKG
  • Dental Exam and Cleaning
  • Dental X-Rays as needed
  • Echocardiogram
  • Cervical, Chest, and Abdominal X-Rays
  • Joint X-Rays as needed
  • Full Body Exam

Our goal is to perform these exams as infrequently as possible so it’s important to gather all the information we can while they’re in the clinic.

And that requires a great team.

Hopefully Dora will continue to stay healthy and out of trouble so she won’t have to come back to the clinic for a while.