Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Jamie

Can I get a witness?

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If you are familiar with Jane Goodall then you might also be familiar with the idea that chimpanzees use tools. In fact, you may remember that just last month J.B. posted an excellent blog about this subject. (If you haven’t had a chance to read it yet, you should!) This tool use, exhibited by chimpanzees across Africa, is a skill acquired by social learning. Social learning, in simple terms, refers to the idea that we can learn by observing the example of someone else and applying this model to our own behavior. There have been many studies done with varying results that indicate that chimpanzees are competent social learners. This morning I snapped a series of photos of the observation stage between Burrito and Jamie on the treat mound. I’m excited to see Burrito put his knowledge into action although sometimes social pressure can influence decisions too and, today, neither Burrito nor I appeared to think that Jamie was interested in sharing!

Jamie using bamboo stalks to fish for applesauce in the treat mound while Burrito looks on:
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and on:
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and on:
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and on:
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Until giving up and moving on:
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A walk in the rain

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I will never forget the first time the Cle Elum Seven chimps saw rain.

Central Washington is very dry in the summer, and a couple of months had gone by after their arrival without any significant precipitation. Every day was hot and sunny. Imagine this from their perspective. They had lived for decades in windowless rooms. Some hadn’t been outside since they were infants; others may have never seen the outdoors in their entire lives. As far as they knew, this is how the outside world was and always would be.

Then one day, the skies opened up and it poured.

The chimps were in the playroom at the time, and they ran to the doors and windows to see what was happening. Missy and Jamie started to alarm call, alerting the others to this frightening and confusing turn of events. Jamie was brave enough to go outside, but she immediately turned around and dried herself off head to toe with a towel. When it was over, they cautiously ventured out to inspect the aftermath.

It’s both heartbreaking and awe inspiring to watch a 35-year-old learn about basic things like rain. As the years went by, the chimps grew accustomed to the sight and sound of rain, but they still didn’t like to go outside in it. They’d spend rainy days indoors in their nests, and if they were unfortunate enough to get caught outside in the rain, they’d run as fast as they could to get back inside.

But this year, Jamie decided that a little rain wasn’t going to keep her from walking around Young’s Hill. And as I watch her walk, drenched from the rain but determined to carry on, I can’t help but admire her.

All Agog

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You might notice by now that I often share blog posts about the things I have learned from my chimpanzee friends. It is my personal belief that a good caregiver is someone who, among other things, pays enough attention to the needs, wants, and moods of the individuals in their care to be able to provide the stability and flexibility that, I think, are so important to healthy and lasting relationships. It’s one of the things I value so much about the care-giving philosophy of CSNW as it allows the chimpanzees the opportunity to thrive and flourish even as living in sanctuary changes who they are and how they interact with the world. As an added benefit to this, I end up learning valuable lessons almost daily that I can (and try) to apply to the rest of my life. Today is no exception. Today I experienced the joy of allowing your companions to surprise you with their behavior rather than merely seeing what you have always expected to see. It’s awesome, and, for me, always a treat to be able to leave expectations behind. I love when the chimpanzee friends I have come to know surprise me with an unexpected request or an interaction like those I have included below and am grateful beyond measure for every chance I have to experience this.

I entered the chimp house in good spirits this morning to find Jamie in a similar state. Rather than the not unusual morning crankiness Jamie and I enjoyed a rowdy game of cowboy boot chase throughout the greenhouse, front rooms, and the playroom as a morning greeting. After chase, Jody approached me in the front rooms. She sat and looked directly up at the lights (which I had forgotten to turn on, being otherwise engaged in chase) and then looked directly at me. I looked up to see that the lights were dark and laughed saying, “I’m sorry, Jody, did you want me to turn those on for you?” When I returned from that task I found Jody sitting up on a bench delightedly inspecting the lights. Later, as I gave the chimpanzees access to Young’s Hill, I thought about how dismal the day seemed, threatening rain, windy and chilly and, to my mind, more than appropriate for the first day of autumn. To my surprise, all seven of the chimpanzees headed straight out on Young’s Hill taking advantage of the cool weather to enjoy a morning stroll!

Unfortunately, I was unable to capture these moments on film this morning but I’ve found a few pictures that I think best illustrate the feel of the morning to share with you.

Jamie wearing a boot in the playroom:
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Annie and Burrito on Young’s Hill:
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Jody looking as delighted in this picture as she did with the lights this morning:
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Young’s Hill party forage

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I mentioned earlier on the blog that today is the second anniversary of the opening of Young’s Hill. Watch the video of their first day out here and check out the previous post for some photos of the chimps on that very emotional and moving day!

Today we wanted to celebrate the anniversary in the best way we know how for chimps—a big food forage! The chimps usually are served their meals (so we know that everyone is getting appropriate portions) but a few times a week we do put out a forage for them to do what chimps would do in the wild. In order to scatter the food around and make the forages last for awhile, we usually cut up the food into small chunks so it takes some time for them to find everything.

This time, we not only included a fruit salad of some chopped peaches, raspberries, and grapes, as well as baby carrots and green onions—but we also included WHOLE apples and tomatoes. The chimps were so excited as we headed out to spread the food around! Mixing things up like that keeps the chimps super enriched and happy.

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Everyone really loved all the whole apples and tomatoes! Jody was the first to get a hand (and mouth) full!

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Jamie collected at least four apples:

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Annie:

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Burrito searching for goodies:

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And then taking a quick rest:

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Foxie:

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Missy:

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Thank you so much to everyone who helped with Young’s Hill, and to everyone who has helped the Cle Elum Seven along this amazing and considerable journey!

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Jamie helps flush the drain

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Jamie is always trying to help us get our jobs done the right way. Sometimes she helps scrub the mesh fencing for us, other times she wipes the floor down. She monitors us while we clean, almost as if she is there to make sure we are doing it right!

Yesterday I caught her doing something new: holding down one of the water spigots. I’m not really sure why she was doing it, but it went on for quite awhile! Jamie wasn’t being very environmentally friendly… but she was helping us flush the drain.

The Last Days of Summer

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We are having a last burst of summer at the sanctuary this week with temperatures back in the 90’s. The flies and wasps are endlessly buzzing and the chimps and humans are all endlessly swatting. The chimp house is completely quiet as I type this. Negra is sound asleep in her window nest. Jamie is in her nest flipping through two new boot catalogs I gave her and filing her nails with an emery board. She is also making the occasional happy groan when she sees something she likes. (For those of you who are new to our blog, Jamie was raised in a human home by a trainer until the age of 9 and sometimes chooses to engage in more human oriented activities). Burrito, Foxie, Jody, and Annie are lying in the greenhouse with their feet propped up on the caging, arms splayed out to their sides. And Missy, always on the move Missy, just raced me through the chimp house to the window by the chimpanzees’ cherry tomato bush and asked me to pick some for her, and I of course was happy to oblige.

Autumn is definitely in the air these days although you wouldn’t know it right now. It’s hard to believe we will all be talking about cold temperatures and snow before long. But for now we can revel in the last lazy days of summer. We hope you are all enjoying the special days that only summertime brings as much as the chimpanzees. Here are a few photos of some of the chimpanzees during a forage on Young’s Hill this week:

Annie:

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Missy:

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Foxie and Dora:

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Burrito:

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Annie’s 39th birthday

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Wow. I can’t believe Annie is 39 today! It’s an honorary birthday, because we don’t know exactly when Annie was born. She was captured from Africa and used in biomedical testing for over three decades before coming to CSNW.

Today, we celebrated her freedom from the lab by throwing two parties—first in the greenhouse, we set up a small forage of peanuts and primate chow along with perfect party decor including a cupcake piñata. Then at lunch, volunteers Denice and Joel and myself set up a pretty cool forage on the hill… we dug holes in the ground and “planted” whole veggies—carrots with the greens, whole cabbage plants, beets, and some green onions (Annie’s favorite)!

I never tire of seeing all the chimps out on Young’s Hill, knowing that now they have the chance to have grass under their feet and sun on their backs. It’s something that Annie hadn’t experienced since her infancy before coming to the sanctuary. And today they not only got to forage for their food like chimps do in the wild, but they also got to “harvest” their own plants to enjoy!

Party #1 – in the greenhouse

Annie’s cupcake piñata:

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Jamie grabbed it first:

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But quickly moved on, leaving it for Annie!

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Burrito found a sock with a box of nuts in it:

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Party #2 – garden forage on Young’s Hill

Volunteers Denice and Joel helped with the planting:

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Jody really loved the garden forage. She cleaned up! Here she’s carrying her bounty with her:

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And enjoying cabbage in the greenhouse:

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Foxie found some chow pieces to munch on:

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Missy collected a bunch of food:

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She enjoyed some on the shaky bridge, but then took the rest into the greenhouse with her. Negra didn’t come out for the forage (she was much more comfortable in her nest!) but Missy, being such a good friend, brought some carrots and green onions for Negra to enjoy. Negra also picked up some cabbage scraps, so she got basically the same food at the harvesters outside. Why should the Queen have to go work in the garden anyway, when others will just bring her the goods? 🙂

And Annie grabbed all the beets:

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Which gave her “beet lipstick”

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Help keep the birthday celebrations going on all week! FLOAT (For Love of All Things) has created a unique clothing design, and for this week only, for every sale they make they will donate $8 to Annie and everyone else at CSNW. Please share the site on Facebook and forward to your friends! The proceeds for CSNW only last until the end of the day on Sunday, September 15th. So hurry and get your shopping in now!