dora the explorer
Fall in Love with Foxie
For the Share the Chimp Love fundraising this year, we are seeking new Chimpanzee Pals (and other donations!) for all of the chimpanzees, and we’re producing videos of each of them so you can get to know them better (Foxie’s video is at the end of this post).
Last night, supporter Monica Best joined an elite group of donors by sponsoring all seven chimpanzees! The heart is starting to fill!
Foxie’s video was a really fun montage to put together! Foxie currently has 35 Pals. Will you be her next Chimpanzee Pal?
Learn more about Sharing the Chimp Love.
Balancing Act
I snapped a few photos of Foxie this morning as she strolled through Young’s Hill with Dora the Explorer on her back. In the wild, infants will cling to their mothers’ backs. Dora, on the other hand, is no help at all so it’s up to Foxie to keep her balanced up there.
As I was preparing to post these photos to Facebook, I noticed a few good ones that we had taken previously.
Missing Chimpanzee
We take safety very seriously here at the sanctuary and recognize that humans make mistakes, so we have checks and double checks as a routine part of entering enclosures. We never enter a chimpanzee space unless we have verified that the chimpanzees are secured in another part of the sanctuary, so part of our safety protocols require that at least two people check that all of the chimpanzees have been positively identified outside of the area we are going to enter and that the doors and locks are secure.
If the chimpanzees cooperate, we do all of the full cleaning in the first part of the day, but we also spot clean the playroom (the largest part of the chimps’ indoor area) while the chimpanzees are having dinner.
One day last week, I was serving the chimpanzees their dinner in the greenhouse and Anna was operating doors. She successfully closed off the playroom in order to spot clean and came up to make sure all of the chimpanzees were out of the playroom. Normally, this is one of the easiest checks of the day, because the chimpanzees are lined up ready for their evening meal, so it’s easy to identify everyone and then check doors. This day, however, we could not find Foxie.
We checked in the front rooms, in the greenhouse, and scanned Young’s Hill. Nothing. I then climbed the ladder to see into the loft of the playroom, but she wasn’t there either. All of the other chimpanzees had been served their food, and Foxie was just missing. This never happens. I admit we started to panic just a little. We checked all of the areas again. No Foxie. Finally, we see a figure way off in the distance on the hill coming toward us.
Foxie sauntered through the grass and slowly made her way into the greenhouse as though she didn’t have a care in the world.
Today, as I was taking photos of Foxie carrying a Dora the Explorer doll on her back, it occurred to me that Foxie has chosen the perfect mascot and symbol of her new life at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest.
Go Foxie. Go explore. We’ll save dinner for you.
P.S. Among the 80+ other items, there is a photo print of Foxie on canvas that is part of our Summer Biddin’ online auction. Get your bids in quick – bidding ends at 4:00pm PT tomorrow!
this is what it’s all about
After a very successful gala and the outpouring of support for Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest’s plans to expand, plus the incredibly exciting and long-awaited public announcement about the new sanctuary in Georgia, Project Chimps, I had all sorts of profound and deeply-felt sentiments to share in this blog post.
But then, this morning, I filmed Foxie and Jamie playing. I laughed out loud watching them and decided that all I really needed to share today is this, because this is what it’s all about:
Foxie’s 39th!
Today we celebrated Foxie’s 39th birthday! It was a day filled with some of her favorite foods – lots and lots of fruit, fruit smoothie in shot glasses…
Foxie found a smoothie shot on the hill:
plus there were carrots, celery, more fruit, avocados, sweet potatoes, corn, and fresh-pressed carrot & apple juice!
There’s a video below, but first a few shots of the chimps enjoying the celebration in their own way:
Burrito looking for food:
Annie chillin’ in the hammock:
Negra getting that last bit of coconut from the cup:
Jody in her characteristic belly-to-the-ground position, finishing her meal:
And Missy, who was not going to let a bit of the flaked coconut that was in this piñata go to waste.
Not one…
little bit
There were several people who contributed to Foxie’s celebration, including Karen Young who provided decorations and money for food, Tracy H. who sponsored the day, Jayne R., and many people who sent Foxie Dora and troll dolls. Thanks for making her day special!
Enjoy the video!
Keep Away
As Katelyn mentioned in her post on Tuesday, Negra has once again taken an interest in Foxie’s dolls. And the other day, she had a little fun teasing Foxie with a game of keep away.
