We’ve been having some lovely weather in the Pacific Northwest this past week which means we all want to spend time outside. Come see who’s enjoying the chute and the Bray!
chute
Rayne and Snow
On November 17th, 2024, we had our first snowfall! (I’ve been waiting for my opportunity to share this sweet video with you and today is the day!)
Rayne was very excited to get outside, but was unsure of the snow on the decking of the chute. She made it to the end of the chute without touching her feet to the snow, but then she had a decision to make. Will she brave the cold snow on her warm feet to do a little exploring? You probably already know the answer. That Raynie is quite the explorer!
Look at these photographs
Today has been a busy, busy day in the chimp house! I managed to get some photos today and hope you enjoy them!
Cy:
Foxie was out on Young’s Hill this afternoon when it started raining. Her and her Blueberry doll hurried in.
I tried to be artistic here taking a photo of Honey B behind the leaves that frame the chute.
Lucky:
Mave (let’s ignore the troll mask in the background nearly ruining the photo):
Being Neighborly
I think this video answers a couple of FAQs – the two separate groups at the sanctuary do have visual access to each other (the video “Back in the Chute” is still one of my top five from 2022), and we plan to have the separate groups in their respective adjacent habitats at the same time eventually! They will be separated by four fences and space in between. What other questions to you have about the outdoor access plans?
Back in the chute!
Today Cy’s group got access back to the outdoor chute. After a few months of construction, the chute has received some new and improved space and connections. This chute will eventually be the portal that leads to The Bray outdoor enclosure (currently being built). For now though, it’s a popular hangout where the 2 groups of chimpanzees can check in on each other. Even after the initial excitement dies down, this visual connection is quite enriching!
All Work and Lots of Play
As Anna mentioned yesterday, the humans are hard at work getting ready for our new arrivals. The quarantine area is almost done, with just a few items remaining on our punch list. The big project we’re working on now is the installation of an overhead chute that will connect the indoor quarantine enclosures to an extension of Young’s Hill. This will accomplish two things: First, it will give the new chimps a way to get some fresh air while they’re still under strict quarantine, which prohibits sharing access to the existing enclosures for health reasons; and second, it will provide the new chimps with a way to access Young’s Hill after quarantine but before they are fully integrated into the existing group. This second point is important, because successful introductions are never guaranteed and even successful intros can stretch on for many months.
The reason for elevating the chute is to maintain access for people and equipment around the building, something that gets trickier as sanctuaries grow and get more complex. Plus, chimps just seem to love overhead chutes.
The team behind the project is led by Gary McInnis of Sage Mechanical (pictured above with a section of the new chute outside his workshop). We were first introduced to Gary through our good friend Ozzie at Spencer Fluid Power, who generously donated a hydraulic unit to power the chimp doors we inherited from the former Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute. Gary visited the sanctuary with Ozzie last fall to help advise us and before long he had offered to donate all of the labor and materials required to hook up the doors. He then asked about the caging we were building and offered to do that job for 25% less than the lowest bid we receive. All told, Sage Mechanical has donated $35,000 worth of materials and labor this year to help us create a home for Honey B, Willy B, and Mave. It’s rare for us to get to work with a group as generous and committed to the sanctuary as Gary and his team.
While the humans are working hard to get everything ready, the chimps are free to do as they please. For Missy and Annie, that often means playing. For Negra, it usually means a good nap. But once and a while she will get a little playful, as you can see in the video above.
