Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

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Jamie Chimpanzee the Firefighter

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You probably know that Jamie is a pretty awesome chimpanzee. What you may not know is how, last year, she alerted the humans to a fire that was approaching the sanctuary property. You can read about that here.

It’s fire season again here in the Northwest, and the Jolly Mountain Fire is currently burning in some forested back-country about twelve miles from the sanctuary (the sanctuary is not in danger).

That means that there are many firefighters and disaster responders in the area working hard. For the last ten days, Southwest Incident Management Team #3 was in charge of the all the many things that are part of responding to wildland fires, from community outreach to physical fire containment measures.

Alan Sinclair was leading that team and heard the story of Jamie alerting us to the fire last year. He contacted us and brought out a group of firefighters and Forest Service workers to learn more about the story and to assess the firewise measures and fire preparedness at the sanctuary.

Then, they decided to do something amazing.

They made Jamie an honorary wildland firefighter! They created and gave her a certificate:

 

certificate for Jamie

 

a photo collage:

photo collage

 

AND an official pair of wildland firefighter boots (thanks for the boots, Sharma!)!!!

 

Michael Thompson (who, incidentally, won over Negra big time) put together this video to tell the story:

 

 

We are all so touched that the crew chose to recognize Jamie in this way. I was thinking about how fitting this really is for Jamie to have this honor. I don’t think I have to explain how much firefighters mean to us after our experience with the Taylor Bridge Fire. That first hand experience has made us much more aware of the work that they do all over the world.

Firefighters and first responders of all kinds risk their lives to protect others. They are the ones who go towards danger rather than running away from it.

For whatever reason, this is what Jamie does too (just check out this video of her capturing a snake last week). Jamie is not the most affectionate or nurturing chimpanzee of the group of seven at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest, but she is a protector, and her chimpanzee and human family are lucky to have someone so brave among us.

 

Thank you, Jamie, and a big thank you to all firefighters out there! Please share this post and/or the video as a thank you to those who go towards danger to protect others around them.

 

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Queen Negra

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Negra spent 30 years in laboratories, being poked and prodded in the name of research. In 1986, during her 13th year in a lab cage, it was suspected that Negra had some kind of contagious disease, so she was placed in isolation – possibly the worst thing you can do to a social animal. Here is the note in her record from that time:

3/31/86 – Dr. ordered animal removed from main colony and placed in isolation for further testing.

It’s unclear why, but it took almost two years for the lab technicians to realize, after extensive testing, that they had isolated Negra for no reason. In 1988 she was returned to her regular cage.

1/14/88 – Enter cage #28 by herself. Home again.

It’s possible that this was the low point in Negra’s life in the lab, but even the “good” days were filled with needles, dart guns, fear, and loneliness. Twenty years after Negra was returned to her “home” cage post-isolation, she finally moved to Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest.

You might think that the life Negra experienced in the lab would make for a timid, docile individual. But Negra is anything but docile. We call her “the Queen” of the sanctuary, because she is regal and imperious. When Negra wants something, you’d better not stand in her way. She’s cranky, self-assured, and determined. Negra is strong.

Perhaps equally surprising, given her history, is that Negra has not written off humans. Though she will let you know when you’ve disappointed her, she does not hold grudges. And even though she has every reason to hate and fear our species, she gives out kisses freely.

May we all strive to be Negra.

Happy Birthday, Missy!

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We have two wonderful people to celebrate today! The first is Missy!! Unbelievably, Missy turns 42 today and naturally that means party in the chimp house! Ramona Isbell kindly sponsored this special day wishing Missy “a wonderful day with her playmates.”

Ramona, thank you so very much for thinking of Missy and wanting to celebrate her on her special day! It means so much to us all.

Missy. She’s a loyal, courageous, beautiful person and she’s got her friends’ backs no questions asked. She’s brave and daring and a bit of a thug. She is mother to Honey B and Josh (who reside at Wildlife Waystation in California), best friend to Annie, and trusted backup to boss lady, Jamie. She is an athlete extraordinaire and loves nothing more than spending her days zipping, zooming, swinging, tight-rope walking and tumbling around for the sheer joy of it and she thinks tomatoes are the.best.thing.ever. She never hesitates to use her “medical expertise” to doctor her families or her own wounds and she sometimes puts on socks when she’s ready for some serious games. Despite all she’s been through and endured, Missy is the kind of person who opens the door to life and runs toward it, arms open. And when I watch her my heart is zooming right alongside her, I love her so.

Beloved Missy, happiest of birthdays yet to you!! We could not have more love and admiration for you and we can’t wait to celebrate all the amazingness and beauty that is you.

missy running on youngs hill

Stay tuned for Missy’s tomato lovin’ festivities and our second Sponsor a Day!

Guy Time

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Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest tends to be female-heavy (as do most animal care professions). Of the seven chimpanzees who live here, only one is male. Of our six-person staff, only one is male. Out of our 36 current chimp house volunteers, seven are male. Out of the 10 volunteers who are trained to play and interact with the chimpanzees, two are male.

Burrito is a friendly and inclusive guy, and when it comes to human play partners, he does not discriminate. That said, he does seem to feel a little outnumbered from time to time. It’s a special treat when one of his guy friends is up for some man time.

Happy Birthday, Arlene!

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A weekend of celebration has been sponsored for the chimpanzees by Michael in honor of his wife, Arlene, for her birthday! Michael and Arlene are such wonderful friends to the chimps and we’re so happy to celebrate with them! Michael shared this sweet message about today:

“This is for Arlene’s birthday weekend!! I would like to sponsor today and tomorrow to my beautiful wife!! As this is all she wanted was to help the chimps.”

Michael and Arlene, thank you so very much for including the chimpanzees in your special celebration! We’re so grateful to have you as part of our chimp family. Your kind and compassionate hearts are a gift to them and make a lasting difference not only in their lives, but the world in general.

Arlene, all of us at CSNW hope your birthday weekend has been filled with all that brings you joy, comfort and love and wish you the happiest of birthdays yet! The chimps wishes might look something like this…

Annie and Missy wish you the love and companionship of friends and family (and stylish birthday fashion accessories):

Foxie wishes you adventures as often as possible:

Burrito, of course, wishes you all the good food you can possibly eat:

Jamie wishes you well, whatever you want:

Jody wishes you lots of lounging time:

And Negra wishes you a peaceful heart:

What’s in a Kiss?

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You may have seen the video we posted the other day of Foxie giving kisses to some of the other chimpanzees to reassure them after a brief conflict broke out during her birthday party.

If you’re a chimp, a kiss can say a few different things: “Everything’s okay. Please calm down.” Or “I’m feeling a little nervous.” Or “Isn’t this exciting?!”

Today we set out a lunch forage on Young’s Hill. Jody and Missy both have the same foraging strategy. They make one big sweep of the area, gather as much food as they can carry, and then head back into the greenhouse to sit down and enjoy it. Missy was on her way to the greenhouse, trying not to spill any of her spoils, when Jody met up with her, also heading to the greenhouse. They stopped briefly for a kiss and breathy pant, which in this case was part: “This is great! I can’t wait to eat this food!” and part: “I have food. You have food. Everything’s okay.”

Thus reassured, they completed the trek to the greenhouse where they ate in peace.