Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

csnw

Happy Birthday, Kirby!

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Today’s day of sanctuary was sponsored by Jodi Watson in honor of Kirby Watson for his 50th birthday! Jodi shared this really special message about Kirby:

“He’s the love of my life, and I admire him, and I hope he has another 50 years with me on this earth.”

Jodi, reading your message we are even more touched that you would choose to sponsor a day for the chimpanzees in Kirby’s honor. Thank you so much for thinking of them as you celebrate today.

And Kirby, we hope this is the best birthday yet and that it’s full of all good things! Thanks for sharing your special day with these special chimps. Happy Birthday from all of the primates here at CSNW!!

Best friends, Annie and Missy:

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Missy chase Annie

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The return of Ellie the elk

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Ellie (as we call her), our local neighborhood wild elk, spends her days roaming up and down the valley where she grew up after losing her mother. During the winter she tends to stay more frequently at the neighboring ranch, but she always makes her way back to the sanctuary in the springtime to hang out.

On one of her first days back after the snow melted she decided to accompany the chimpanzees (everyone except Negra!) and I on a walk around Young’s Hill. The chimpanzees, however, (specifically Jamie and Foxie) weren’t so welcoming of her return and wanted to remind her whose territory she was in. (Be sure to watch until the end when Jody and Missy offer Foxie and her Dora doll reassuring hugs for their bravery).

Guest Photographers

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Today is GORGEOUS at the sanctuary! I went up to take a few photos from on top of the visitor observation deck while the chimpanzees were traveling to the top of the hill, and I remembered that I had not yet shared photos taken by last year’s Photograph the Chimps winners from the HOOT! gala!

Before I share some of those photos, I have two questions for all potential HOOT!-goers this year:

1st – do you have your tickets yet?!

2nd – would you like a chance to bid on a photograph the chimps experience again this year? We’ve had it for two years in a row, and I’d hate for things to get old, so let me know! Maybe there’s another kind of experience at the sanctuary that you would like to bid on instead?

Professional photographers / photojournalists Karen Ducey of Animal News Northwest and Dean Rutz of the Seattle Times generously donate their expertise and equipment for these experiences.

The first winners last year were Jim Keller and CeeCee McCray:

CeeCee and Jim

It was difficult to choose among the many great photos that they took, but here are a few. The three below were taken by CeeCee.

Annie:

Annie close-up by CeeCee

 

Foxie:

Foxie by CeeCee

 

Missy (this is probably my favorite, because it’s just so Missy):

Missy by CeeCee

 

And the three below were taken by Jim.

 

Annie:

Annie by Jim Keller

 

Jamie:

Jamie by Jim Keller

 

Jody (just checking to see if there was any food up there – you never know!):

Jody by Jim Keller

 

Big, big thanks to Karen & Dean, Jim & CeeCee for giving generously and being all around great people! Kathy & Alice Rose were the two other winners of this experience, and I will share some of their photos soon too.

 

Today is in memory of Ned and Noreen O’Flaherty

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Today’s day of sanctuary was sponsored by Joan O’Flaherty in memory of her parents, Ned and Noreen O’Flaherty, on their shared birthday. Joan has been honoring her parents by making the chimpanzees’ lives better for many years now and we are so touched by her kindness. She shared this message about today:

“In memory of my late parents’ birthday, both of whom were great animal lovers and supporters of conservation.”

Joan, thank you so much for all that you do for the chimpanzees in your parents’ memory, they must have been very special people. We are so happy to honor Ned and Noreen here at the sanctuary and celebrate their lives along with the chimpanzees. All of us here hope your day is filled with comfort, love and memories held dear.

Burrito and Jody:

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To Be Known

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This blog is a true labor of love.

It is satisfying, on a frivolous and somewhat shallow human-level, to have people like our posts and make comments. But in the world of the chimpanzees in our care, it’s a big part of their second chance in sanctuary.

To be known and respected and loved is what they deserve; what they’ve always deserved.

Sharing posts and hitting that “like” (or now maybe the “love” emoji) on Facebook may seem like a small act, but this is what allows more people to grow to understand and appreciate not just the chimpanzees at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest, but chimpanzees as a species. It’s what allows hearts to grow and minds to change.

Sharing this post, these photos of Jamie, and taking the time to learn about the amazing and interesting person that she is, gives Jamie power.

Even though there’s no way to explain it to her, we know she would appreciate that there are people out there who have never met her who truly admire who she is, as she is. She would expect no less.

Jamie

Jamie

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Commander in Chief

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There are certain people that have such presence that you can’t ignore them. Jamie is one of those people. She runs the show around here, and you know it at first glance, from her perfect posture to her cocky strut to the steely glint in her eye. When she is focused on something, you can feel all her energy coming through her gaze.

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From the moment staff and volunteers arrive at the chimp house in the morning, we are aware every second of being in Jamie’s home. She doesn’t let us forget it. We are expected to keep her company when she wishes (and get lost when she wishes), to retrieve things for her that she can’t get herself, to be available to her at all times. She lets us know if we are being too this or too that, or not enough this or not enough that. Jamie has unapologetically co-opted the humans in her life as her minions, and for someone who was powerless for so long, we think that’s pretty great.

Dance, Human, Dance

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If you visited the sanctuary on any given day you’d probably see the humans behaving very strangely. We’ll do just about anything to make the chimps happy, and sometimes that means swallowing our pride and acting like fools for their entertainment. For Foxie, you might see us balancing a troll doll on our heads or doing pirouettes. Jamie likes us to wear a couple of cowboy boots (usually mismatched and two sizes too big or too small) and take a walk with her.

For Negra, we dance. The majority of the time, Negra has little use for humans. But when we dance for her, she can’t help but bob her head in appreciation.