Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Cle Elum 7

Paper dreams

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When is a roll of paper not just a roll of paper? When it’s been appropriated for use by the chimpanzees of Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest, of course! Yesterday’s enrichment theme was paper day and, in the spirit of things, Debbie and I covered the playroom floor with yellow paper from a large roll. Not only did it provide entertainment as we could hear the wrinkles and crinkles whenever the chimpanzees raced across the floor engaged in games of chase, but it also provided prime nesting material for Jamie in the heat of the afternoon.

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I was unable to get a good picture this morning but the yellow paper was choice nesting material today as well. Missy was seen earlier in the day using it to nest with in the loft of the playroom. I tried to capture the nest on film this afternoon and found that the paper nest had migrated in the loft. It appears that the paper roll was a successful choice for enriching the lives of the Cle Elum 7.

Want to know more about chimpanzee nesting behavior? This blog post is a good introduction.

For Ned and Noreen O’Flaherty

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Today was sponsored by Joan O’Flaherty in memory of the anniversary of her parents, Ned and Noreen O’Flaherty.  Ned and Noreen shared a love of animals, and concern about conservation and environmental issues, and Joan is certain that they would have loved the chimpanzees.  Joan, thank you so much for thinking of the chimpanzees in such a special way.  It makes my heart happy to know people think of the chimps when thinking of their loved ones.

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Good friends, good times

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Mornings here at the sanctuary are busy times. The caregivers arrive, prepare breakfast for the chimpanzees, and, then, are usually engaged in quite a lot of cleaning. I love cleaning, it’s like having my own personal workout regimen that does wonders for my arms! My absolute favorite part of the day though is after we’ve accomplished some work and we can enjoy the company of good friends. Grooming and play are the most frequent forms of social enrichment for the humans as well as the chimpanzees. A quiet afternoon, hanging out with chimpanzee friends is the best way I know of to while away time in this heat!

Learn more about the function of chimpanzees grooming from previous posts.

Foxie and the garter snake

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Chimps are very investigative, defensive, and at times aggressive. Combine all these characteristics and add a small garter snake into the equation and you get a whole group of chimps ready to attack an intruder! This morning a garter snake made its way into the greenhouse and the chimps were on high alert. Everyone took a second to peer at it, but most kept their distance. Foxie, however, showed a lot of bravery and was doing her best to protect her home by trying to attack the snake (but without touching it).

The chimps encounter snakes every now and then. They’re very careful not too get too close to something that raises so much alarm, which is a smart instinct. Thankfully, garter snakes are completely harmless so there’s nothing to really worry about if they do touch it. In fact after filming this attack, I closed off the greenhouse and picked up the snake (who was still alive) and took him to a nice garden area that I thought he’d pretty happy about. I apparently don’t have a huge fear of snakes because I was holding him for awhile, talking to volunteers Patti and Connie about how we were going to set up today’s lunch forage, when they said “will you just put that snake down already?!” Like I said, harmless 🙂

The snakes seem to be good at “playing dead” so as not to actually get killed. At the end of the video you’ll see that Jamie was fairly convinced Foxie had taken care of the problem, and then left it alone. I was glad to be able to rescue it and find that he was not at all harmed.

Jody: A Dichotomy

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When I’m describing Jody’s personality to new chimp house volunteers, I often say that she’s a totally endearing combination of vulnerable and intimidating. If she thinks you have wronged her in some way, she will not hesitate to tell you so with a mouthful of water in your face. If she’s feeling feisty or on edge, she might try to poke you with her long fingernails. At the same time, if there’s tension in the group and she’s feeling unsure, she often seeks reassurance from her caregivers. And first thing every morning she approaches us and greets us warmly with several seconds of intense, prolonged eye contact. No matter her mood, she has a face I never tire of looking at.

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Celebrating Freedom

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The Cle Elum Seven are celebrating freedom today! Not long ago, they spent their holidays in lab cages. Today they foraged on Young’s Hill, lounged in the warm greenhouse, and played with friends.

We kicked off the day with a party in the greenhouse this morning. Volunteer caregivers Denice and Patti brought food and decorations. Fruit smoothie was set out in tiny plastic shot glasses, and we put out paper trays of apples, grapes, berries, and melon.

Burrito:

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Negra:

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Jody:

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Annie:

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Missy:

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Jamie:

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Later we served a special holiday lunch of vegan hot dogs, dill pickles, and bell peppers stuffed with pasta salad. We do our best to keep the chimpanzees healthy by limiting their diet almost entirely to fresh produce, but we thought we’d splurge a little today.

Everyone gathered as Patti got ready to serve:

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Foxie:

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Negra:

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Annie:

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Missy:

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Burrito:

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Thanks again to Jody Maxey for thinking of the chimps and sponsoring today. Happy 4th, everyone!

Thank you, Jody!

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Today was sponsored by Jody Maxey in honor of the Cle Elum Seven and their independence!  It’s a joy and an honor to celebrate this with the chimpanzees.  What a wonderful thing to do, Jody, thank you so much! The celebration is just getting underway so be sure to tune in later today for pictures of the festivities!

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