This short video has it all: Missy and Burrito contentedly enjoying their lunch, lots of satisfying crunching sounds, and Missy peeling her carrot with her teeth like it’s no big deal.
Cle Elum 7
Holiday wishes
Many of you may know we kicked off an extremely exciting fundraising campaign on Giving Tuesday this year. A HUGE thank you to everyone who has contributed so far, we are all so grateful! On top of this goal, we are starting to think about setting up our new Phase 1 building with all the final items we need to get the sanctuary addition operating smoothly. We have updated our Amazon Wish list with some necessities and will keep adding to it in the coming days.
There are some big ticket wishes like a new washer and dryer and some smaller, but still important things like this Dry Erase board for our clinic. We are all SO ready to get to start using this new building of ours and we can’t wait to see it all set up!
Then and Now
Negra in the lab:
Negra today:
Sanctuary has given Negra peace, safety, and dignity. She now knows the sensation of the sun on her back, of curling up with a mountain of warm blankets, and of being loved.
There are currently hundreds of pre-sanctuary Negras who have no idea that there’s another kind of life. Help us bring them home by donating toward our year-end fundraising goal! We’re so grateful for your help.
All You Can Eat
Chimpanzees love to forage. There’s something very exciting about knowing that a bunch of delicious food is scattered across a wide open space and that you are welcome to as much of it as you can hold. It’s like a treasure hunt with a tasty reward.
This afternoon we took advantage of the sun and blue skies and set up a lunch forage on Young’s Hill. Burrito kept his eyes on the prize:
Today’s winner, though, might have been Missy, who we saw hobbling along with a mouth and both hands full of the good stuff:
Thanksgiving 2018!
Today’s menu:
Stuffed pumpkins with quinoa and lentils, cranberries, dinner rolls, sparkling cider and green beans. With an additional side of mini pumpkin!
A special shout out to volunteer Patti for driving over a snowy mountain pass to help pull off the meal and intern Emily for all her hard work cleaning enclosures on a holiday!
Getting Out
This morning Missy and Foxie went from climbing structure to climbing structure on Young’s Hill and licked as much frost as they could.
It was 30° but the sun and the promise of adventure enticed them to stay for awhile.
3,802 Days of Sanctuary
When I was watching Foxie this morning, I was thinking about when she first arrived with the rest of the Cle Elum Seven Chimpanzees. She showed some apprehension and perhaps suspicion those first weeks.
The first time she went into the larger space of what we call the playroom, she stomped all around the perimeter before venturing to the middle.
At first, she would push away the toys and blankets as though they might be contaminated.
And then came troll dolls…
Foxie was smitten:
and her imagination seemed to take off:
Today is day 3,802 of sanctuary for Foxie, Negra, Jamie, Burrito, Jody, Missy, and Annie.
Foxie is still suspicious of new things, or at least wants to verify for herself that we’ve built things well (see this video from earlier this year).
She’s more adventurous than ever, though. Each of the previous 3,801 days have been about her learning more about herself and the world of the sanctuary as it expanded and transformed around her.
This morning, Foxie (without a doll) climbed up on the newest structure on the hill that we call Esher and sat in the sun for a bit.
Then she was off to a new perch
Where she sampled some morning frost
After about 30 minutes, she came back to the greenhouse to groom with her friends and make the most of the rest of day 3,802.
