Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary
We take so many photos of the chimpanzees that some inevitably slip through the cracks and never get shared on the blog. Here are some recent portraits I found on the hard drive; let us know which is your favorite!
Jamie:
Negra:
Jody:
Foxie:
Burrito:
Missy:
Annie:
Today’s day of sanctuary was sponsored by Tony Garza and family in memory of his beloved wife, Carlene Olsen-Garza. The Garza family are dear members of our sanctuary family and they have done so much to ensure Carlene’s love for the chimpanzees lives on through all that they do to make the chimps’ lives better. We are so grateful to be a part of all the love and light Carlene and her family bring to the world.
Tony shared this message about today: “Carlene was a stead fast follower of CSNW right up until she lost her battle with cancer on this date in 2014. She was a great admirer of the work that the Sanctuary did and read with great interest anything to do with her three favorites: Jamie, Burrito and Foxie. Today we honor the memory of my dear wife by doing what we can to help the Sanctuary continue its work and achieve its future goals.”
Tony and family, our thoughts are with you all today. We are so touched by all that you do for the chimpanzees in Carlene’s memory and hope that your hearts are eased and comforted in knowing her spirit carries on here at the sanctuary. The dedication and love with which you all make sure that her compassion continues to make a different in the world is truly inspiring. Thank you so much for sponsoring today in her memory.
Jamie:
Burrito:
Foxie:
Foxie and Burrito spend the better part of the afternoon grooming one another on the top platform of the Greenhouse today. These two chimpanzees are pretty close friends. But, just because they are friends does not mean they don’t fight. This morning, during one of Burrito’s displays, he chased a screaming Foxie as she ran from the playroom area of their indoor enclosure out to the Greenhouse. She got low to the ground and he ran right over her, slapping her along the way.
This is not unusual behavior for chimpanzees, but luckily grooming is a great way to make up after a fight.
Missy and Annie sat nearby, alternating between grooming and playing.
Today’s day of sanctuary was sponsored in memory of Carlene Olson-Garza by her husband, Tony, and their family who send this special message:
“Today would of have been Carlene’s 58th birthday. She was an advocate for the great work CSNW is doing and an avid follower of the blog. We, her family, mark this day in memory of her by our continued support of the seven.”
As you may recall, as a result of our wonderfully successful Share the Chimp Love fundraiser in February we were able to build the chimpanzees a new climbing structure on Young’s Hill. As part of the campaign two generous families, one of which was the Garza family, won naming rights to the two towers. The tower with the roof was named Carlene’s Tower and the open-air tower was named Jamie’s Lookout by Joan and Pat Borders. And let me tell you the chimps have been loving this structure!!
We here at the sanctuary, are honored by Carlene’s presence every day. When we walk around Young’s Hill with Jamie, we pass Carlene’s memorial stone along our new Memorial Walkway. Just in the distance of the walkway, is Carlene’s Tower. The chimpanzees sometimes take a detour during walks around the perimeter to climb up one of the towers and often sit quietly to take in the view before crossing over and down the other side to resume the walk. The only person we haven’t seen climb this amazing structure (yet!) is Negra. But she has ventured up to check things out and enjoy the abundance of wild mustard that grows below it in the spring.
To Carlene’s family, our hearts go out to you as you navigate your lives without this special woman whom you all clearly love so much. We are continually touched and inspired by all that you do to ensure her love of the chimpanzees continues. As we all celebrate Carlene’s life today, please know that not only you, but Carlene as well, make a difference in their lives every day. And we are so fortunate to have you all as part of our sanctuary family.
Missy taking in the view from Carlene’s Tower:
Annie:
Burrito:
Boss lady, Jamie:
Foxie, taking in the view from Jamie’s Lookout on the opposite side:
Jamie:
Dear Annie,
You haven’t always had it easy. Your first thirty years on Earth were full of fear, pain, and boredom. A lab cage is no place for anyone. Even now in your sanctuary home, you have your struggles. Being the lowest in the hierarchy isn’t easy.
But we have watched your anxiety diminish and your confidence grow. We’ve watched you make new friends, gain the courage to stand up for yourself, and learn to appreciate your own company. We love how much you love your best friend Missy. We love that as you start your 42nd year, you are still growing. We love that you haven’t let the world harden you. You inspire us all.
Happy Birthday,
Your devoted humans
Annie:
Jamie:
Missy:
Jody:
Negra:
Foxie:
Burrito:
What a gorgeous day it turned out to be; not too hot, not too cold and not too windy. That’s a pretty good combination for spending time on Young’s Hill (the chimpanzees’ 2-acre outdoor enclosure) if you’re Negra chimpanzee. She tends to be pretty particular about when she chooses to venture out onto the hill and how long she will spend out there.
So, we took advantage of the great weather and set up a lunch forage on the hill. All of the chimpanzees spent quite a bit of time foraging. Some focused on gathering their favorite food items and eating those first, while others went more for the “sampler menu.” Lunch consisted of green onions, red cabbage, potatoes, green beans and primate chow.
As you can see in the following pictures, green onions were a big hit with Negra, Missy, Jamie and Annie.
Negra
Missy
Jamie and Annie (in the background).
Burrito. Both he and Jody had their mouths and hands full of an assortment of food items.
Jody
And Foxie carried around two troll dolls in her mouth after she was done foraging. One of them was the same doll she carried yesterday.
If you have been following the blog, you may already know that Foxie has a deep fascination with troll and dora the explorer dolls. Most days she can be seen carrying at least one in her hands, feet, mouth or on her back. It’s not very often that she is without at least one doll. This morning she actually had three different troll dolls in her mouth and hands, two with red hair and one with bright pink hair.
Sometimes she has a hard time keeping track of that many when other chimpanzees are trying to play with her. That was the case this morning. Burrito and her laughed while playing in the Front Room area of their enclosure and she lost track of all three. After they were finished playing, she picked them up again and carried them into the Playroom. It wasn’t long after that I heard laughter again and when I went to see who was playing this time, it was her and Jamie. Jamie had both of the red-haired dolls and Foxie had the one with pink hair. After their play session was over, both red haired dolls were left on the ground and Foxie carried her pink-haired doll out to the Greenhouse. And she carried that same troll doll around for the rest of the day.
Foxie foraging for lunch on Young’s Hill.
Here is another moment with Foxie and her pink-haired troll doll from this morning. Jamie is in the background eating lettuce.
