Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

csnw

Fresh Picked Greens

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There has been a lot of talk these past few weeks regarding spring and the emergence of fresh green grass. Warm weather (minus the wind) and the appearance of the fresh grass signify the onset of spring here at the sanctuary. Most spring mornings the chimpanzees can be found lounging on the deck in the Greenhouse, where the morning sun shines on them.

This morning when staff member Katelyn and I walked up to the Greenhouse to greet the chimps, most of them lined up and gestured toward the grass growing just on the other side of the caging. We happily picked a few handfuls for them to enjoy as their morning snack.

After lunch, most of the chimps ventured out onto Young’s Hill, their 2-acre outdoor enclosure. Jamie and Missy set off on one (of many) walks around the hill, while Annie, Burrito, Foxie and Jody searched the ground for fresh grass and plants to eat.

Annie found a stash of fresh plants to forage on.
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Jody (right) joined Annie (left).
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And then along came Burrito (far right).
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Jody left the spot where her and Annie were sitting and gathered stalks of grass on her way back to the Greenhouse.
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And then she made herself comfortable on the deck to enjoy her grass.
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While everyone else went back inside, Annie ventured further uphill to continue her foraging.
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Another sign of Spring

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J.B. mentioned last week that the real first day of Spring at the sancutary is Negra emerging from the cozy indoors onto Young’s Hill. Well, Missy has her own way of indicating that it’s Spring.

Missy can be a pit preoccupied with having what we call the “barn doors” open – even during the winter months. The barn doors are the two wooden doors that cover the steel doors that open up to the playroom from the outside.

barn doors

We keep them closed during cold weather, but sometimes Missy will still ask for them to be open even when it’s chilly. If we oblige, she will usually just walk away.

But, when it gets warmer, we prop the wooden doors open and the chimpanzees can spend time in the sun in that spot as well as the many other sunny spots in the building, in the greenhouse, and on the hill.

Today, volunteer Denice came by to do some garden prep, and Missy was curious about her activities, overseeing Denice’s work and looking out the window where she’ll be able to see the tomatoes growing in just a few months:

Missy hanging on window

With the warmer weather and barn doors open more regularly now, Missy, for whatever reason, tends to initiate more interactions with her human caregivers.

Here are some photos of Missy enticing me to play by showing me a towel and pushing it through the mesh of the steel barn doors:

Missy hold towl

Missy look at camera with towel

Missy pushing towel through caging

Missy pushing towel through caging

Missy pushing towel through caging

I responded by ditching the camera and running over to the barn doors where Missy was waiting, and she quickly whisked the towel away and waited by the doors where I had been standing inside the building, pushing the towel through there. This process repeated, sometimes with Missy allowing me to grab the other end of the towel and playing tug of a war for a few seconds.

To me, Missy initiating tug of war and having me run around from inside to outside is the final sign of Spring.

Thank you, Missy!

Missy sitting aginst wall

Missy looking up

Interning at CSNW

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For years, Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest has relied on student volunteers from Central Washington University to help us care for the chimps.  Last year, we formalized our relationship with the university to allow primate behavior students to gain experience at the sanctuary and learn from our staff as a direct part of their academic training. Students in the undergraduate Primate Behavior & Ecology program and graduate students in the Primate Behavior Master of Science program prepare for their internship at the sanctuary through a course called Procedures in Captive Primate Care, which is taught by CSNW staff. Then, they earn course credits by coming out each week to chop veggies, prepare enrichment, clean enclosures, and in some cases, provide direct care to the chimps. They get a chance to learn about chimpanzee behavior and husbandry while giving back to the chimps they are learning so much from.

All of our staff were trained in one way or another – either through an internship, undergraduate degree, or graduate degree – at Central Washington University, and we are happy to be able to help train another generation of primate caregivers, field researchers, conservationists.

Recently, our local NBC affiliate came out to the sanctuary to do a segment on the internship program:

NBC Right Now/KNDO/KNDU Tri-Cities, Yakima, WA |

In other news, everything is green here at the sanctuary and the chimps are slowly eating their way through all two acres of grass and weeds on Young’s Hill.

Missy:

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Jody:

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Foxie:

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Community

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I could not help but feel incredibly moved this morning, as myself and volunteers Erin and Tanya were cleaning the Greenhouse portion of the chimpanzee’s living quarters. There is a brightly colored painting with supporter names on the one main wall that caught my attention and I stopped to really look at it. There are so many names on the wall. As I continued to look around at all of the items in the Greenhouse, all I could think about was how every component of the sanctuary is the result of a community of loving, thoughtful and caring people.

There are so many components that make up the sanctuary, including various paintings on the walls that really help to brighten the chimpanzee areas. Various structures, tires and dangling fire hoses provide space for the chimps to climb, play, and rest. Countless blankets and enrichment items contribute to the chimpanzees’ comfort and well-being. Even the tools we use to clean, including the scrub brushes, squeegees, buckets, soap, right down to the very gloves we wear, help staff and volunteers keep the enclosures clean. Fresh fruits and vegetables make up each of the meals, while bamboo planted around Young’s Hill and in the Greenhouse give the chimps extra nesting and foraging material. And then there are the enclosures and storage spaces themselves that have been made possible by those who have donated their time, energy, expertise and the actual materials needed to construct them.

All of CSNW, every square inch, every little detail, has been made possible by countless volunteers and generous supporters. These chimpanzees are loved world wide and I can’t think of a better gift to give them than a community that is dedicated to their well-being. I know it can never make up for the countless ways in which they have been wronged in the past, but it’s the best we all can do to provide them a now and a future that is full of hope, love and sanctuary.

Looking around and seeing all the parts that make up the whole got me to thinking, why do we do it? Why do we dedicate our lives to the well-being of these chimpanzees? Is it a sense of responsibility, a way to show our compassion for all living beings, or is it when we look into their eyes, we see ourselves? Perhaps there are no words to describe why. What is your reason for being a part of Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest?

Annie
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Burrito
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Foxie
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Jamie
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Jody
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Missy
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Negra
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Which ever way you choose to support the sanctuary, know that you have and will continue to make a huge impact on the lives of these chimpanzees. And thank you!!! Thank you those who have and those who continue to volunteer at the sanctuary; those who have donated their time, energy and services to help our various fundraising efforts including the HOOT! Gala event; those who help spread the word about the plight of chimpanzees in captivity and in the wild through our Eyes on Apes advocacy program; those who have donated items through our Wishlist, and those who choose to Sponsor a day in honor of a loved one or directly sponsor a chimpanzee through our Chimpanzee Pal program. Thank you for being a part of the CSNW community.

Happy Birthday, Jayne!

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This day of sanctuary was sponsored by Jayne Roepke! Jayne is such a good friend to the chimpanzees and is always looking for opportunities to make their lives better (as well as the lives of the humans who care for them!). Today also happens to be Jayne’s birthday and we are touched and honored to share such a special day with her.

Jayne shared this beautiful message for today:

“April 17th is my birthday and I’d like to sponsor that day in honor of other supporters (like me) who simply marvel at the endearing chimpanzee beings who are fortunate to call CSNW their home (as well as others who may follow.) I greatly appreciate your willingness to allow ‘regular folks’ to actively participate in the lives of these precious souls. I get so much joy watching their lives unfold before our eyes. They have taught me so much about the power of forgiveness and perseverance.”

Jayne, we hope you have the happiest of birthdays! Thank you so much for celebrating your life by honoring not only the chimpanzees, but all the amazing supporters who grace their lives. What a lovely thing to do! We are privileged to be surrounded by so many compassionate individuals who all make the chimpanzees’ lives here in sanctuary possible.

Beautiful Jody:

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Sometimes choosing the best photos is hard

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In any given day I may take one hundred or more pictures of the chimpanzees and secretly hope that at least half do not turn out. It’s not that I do not want one hundred pictures of the chimps, it’s just that it is so much harder to go through them and select the ones to use for the blog. There can be twenty of the same chimp doing almost the same exact thing, just at a slightly different angle or at varying degrees of zoom. Today was one of those days when so many of the pictures of Burrito turned out that it made choosing the best photos seem almost impossible. So, I figured I would post the photos of him and let all of you decide which ones are the best (don’t worry, I narrowed the number down from the thirty original photos).

Burrito was being so patient, seemingly turning on the charm while he was being photographed.

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Do you have a favorite?

Jamie the walking machine

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When Jamie first started her daily perimeter walks, it was usually just once or twice a day that she would ask us to accompany her (from the outside of the fence) around Young’s Hill. Now, it averages probably about seven to eight a day, maybe even more. She will ask each of her caregivers to go along at least once, but usually three or four times! She really has become a walking machine.

I think if the humans weren’t busy trying to clean enclosures, prepare enrichment and food, write the blog, and all the other things we do in a day—that Jamie would be asking to go on continuous walks non-stop. The other day, Elizabeth and I did a “walking relay” — I radioed her when Jamie and I were on our way down the hill so she could go wait at the gate (the starting point for these perimeter walks) with boot in tow. Jamie ran SO fast to meet up with Elizabeth and go on another walk!

It’s really awesome to see how excited she can be at times, because most of the time Jamie is all serious business. As Elizabeth mentioned yesterday, her moods can swing pretty wildly.

Here’s a couple recent pictures of Jamie on walks:

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This one is from last fall, but I just love it.

Jamie looking awesome