Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary
Jody was quite busy this morning harvesting plants from a mound on Young’s Hill. This particular mound has been producing more and more edible vegetation each year.
We call Jody “Farmer Jo” mostly because she collects the fruit and vegetable forages that we spread all over the hill and brings her collections in to the greenhouse in large armfuls, but today she was harvesting the natural plants and eating them as she harvested. And she looked quite beautiful while she was doing it.
One of our goals as a sanctuary is to give the chimps as much independence and autonomy as we can, given the inherent limitations of captivity. So we’re thrilled to see them finding their own food on Young’s Hill. Right now, their favorites include grass, dandelion leaves, and prickly lettuce. There are two bamboo groves on the hill, but the chimps haven’t taken much of an interest in eating them as of yet (climbing them is a different story). Of course, none of this will take the place of the meals we serve throughout the day, but it’s nice that the chimps can head out and grab a light snack whenever they want.
