Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary
The funny thing about life is that things can change at the drop of a hat. Today I had planned to write a blog about just some of the things caregivers see throughout the day and the thought process on how certain decisions are made. That will have to wait for another day because time really got away from me today because of some very distracting chimpanzees who want to play and groom. So hopefully these photos will do for now.
Terry and Gordo:
Rayne:
Annie:
Mave:
Lucky:
In what’s become an annual tradition, CSNW Founder, Keith, brought a crew of friends out to build a new structure for the chimps. In just two days, the team was able to construct a new tower at the bottom of the Bray—close enough to the building for those chimps who don’t always like venturing farm from home, but high enough on the hill to get a great view of the valley. It was a fun weekend, and the chimps are already enjoying their new tower.
Many thanks to Keith and his crew and to all of our volunteers for enriching the chimps’ lives!
One of my favorite times of day is when I arrive to the Chimp House in the morning. Usually I’m one of the first humans in to get a jump start on the day. It’s a pretty serene moment in time first thing in the morning. Most of the chimps are already awake, bright-eyed and bushy tail(less), while others are just waking up. It’s at this time in the morning you can catch the chimpanzees engaged in some grooming sessions, mall walking, or playing some kind of silly game.
The other day, as I walked in and turned on the security monitors, I noticed Lucky in the Oakwood Greenhouse rolling around with a sock. She seemed pretty content, then Rayne arrived. Rayne was determined to get Lucky’s sock. From there a game of theft, chase, and keep away ensued. What started with just a sock cascaded into what seemed to be a treasure trove of stolen goods. Ok. Really it was two, maybe three things, but that’s still two or three more that should be stolen, right?
Who do you think was the masterful thief of this game?
On our recent “Ask the Caregiver” blog, someone asked about Foxie’s dolls. Lynne K asked, “Where does Foxie keep her dolls? Are they rotated by keepers or does she have access to all/many of them?
Great question Lynne K!
Foxie has an entire bin dedicated to her dolls. You’ll get a look at the bin in the video posted today. How many dolls do you think are in that bin? I know the answer, but you have to guess before I tell you!
Everyday, before closing up for the evening, a caregiver or volunteer prepares enrichment for the next day. We have a selection of all sorts of fun things to include, such as toy hammers and small wooden toys, slinkies, bouncy rubber balls, socks, headbands, scarves, books and magazines, cups and bowls, boots, and DOLLS! We try to include a little something for everyone, and that includes a nice selection of Foxie’s favorite dolls! She has them for the day, then when we clean the following day, we remove them and all of the other enrichment items and give them a good cleaning. Once they’re dry, they go back into her bin until the next time they’re chosen.
Foxie spends a lot of solo time with her dolls. But you’ll also find her incorporating her dolls into play with her chimpanzee friends, and her caregivers!
Please enjoy today’s video of Foxie and me playing doll LAUNCH! And don’t forget to guess how many dolls are in Foxie’s doll bin! You won’t win anything if you guess correctly, except bragging rights. Ha!
Today was a Christmas to be remembered! It was such a great party for all the chimpanzees here. So much was happening we had no choice to split up the footage to make two videos. So please enjoy Jamie’s group’s Christmas celebration today, and be sure to come back tomorrow to watch the other groups’ parties! Including George’s first CSNW Christmas! I won’t say much other than he was really, really, really excited!
And please remember to donate! We are getting so close to our $100,000 goal by tomorrow in order to unlock an additional $40,000! Every little bit helps!
Help us reach our end of the year goal here!
I believe that Willy B began this task as a means to make a bunch of noise, which indeed he did. At some point, his motivation appeared to transition into something that perhaps only he could understand.
He’s a weird guy. You’ve got to love him. I know I do.
During our introduction process, we try to limit visual access to the other chimpanzees in order to provide the newly introduced group with some privacy and minimize interference from other groups. We’ve added privacy panels to spaces that the chimps have access to, like windows inside chimp spaces, because they are pretty “chimp proof”. But in other spaces that the chimps can’t access, like windows in human areas that look into chimp spaces, we use curtains or kraft paper. When Cy recently moved in with George, we added kraft paper to the window adjacent to the cubby in the mezzanine. As many of you know, the cubby is Honey B’s favorite spot!
Honey B was not on board with the addition of paper on HER window.
A few days ago, when Honey B’s group was hanging out in the mezzanine while we cleaned other spaces, she decided to do something about the offensive paper. Unfortunately, the only tools available in the mezzanine were empty chow bags from breakfast and lunch. Never fear, Honey B persisted and found a much better tool.
Please enjoy today’s 327th episode of Honey B’s hi-jinks!
Do you think Honey B is successful in removing the paper?
