If we’ve said it once, we’ve said it a thousand times, Jamie is a complicated individual.
I love her for (and sometimes relate to) her complicated nature. She has intense interests in very specific things – like boots, and books, and bonobos. And occasional interest in even more things, like mummies.
She is demanding. She gets upset rather easily, and doesn’t shy from showing when she’s upset.
She loves pears, and smoothie, and food puzzles. She’s so intelligent, sometimes it’s scary.
Funny story about the above image – we used to give the chimpanzees raisin board food puzzles that were portable, but Jamie realized that she could use the space above the playroom doors to throw things at the humans from above. A flying boot is one thing, but a flying hunk of Trex is actually pretty dangerous. Since then, all of the raisin boards are on chains and affixed to the caging with a secure lock.
I don’t fault Jamie for being on the grumpy and demanding side. She is in an unfair situation, and I think, more than other chimps (as I’ve written about before), she is aware that her situation is unfair.
Jamie began her life, as far as we know, living with an animal trainer. She spent nine years in this world of limbo – somewhere between being a chimpanzee and being a human, and then she was sold to a research facility where she was used for hepatitis testing. You can read more of Jamie’s story on her bio page on the website or this post from many years ago.
But today, Burrito worked his wiles on Jamie and got her to smile and play. Here is the video:
Today was a good day. A relaxed and playful day. But even a challenging day with Jamie is a gift.
For me, Jamie was an easy chimpanzee to fall in love with, despite her challenges:
Thank goodness I’m not alone. Huge thanks to Jamie’s current ten Pals: Monica, Donna, Pam & Marc, Carrie, Sharlene, Kris, Therese, Dusty, Cori, and Heidi.
More people should become Jamie’s Pal!! She is the boss, after all! If my words about her have moved you, perhaps you will become her pal or gift a pal sponsorship for someone you love in honor of the month of love.
