Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Jamie

Distracted by the view

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The weather has been absolutely perfect today- warm sunshine, blue skies, and absolutely no wind (which is rare for spring in Cle Elum). As I was taking my afternoon walk around the hill with Jamie, all seven chimps came outside. Other than Jamie, who was fixated on making sure I kept up with her, the other chimps seemed pretty happy just relaxing in the sun and checking out the view. I was having a hard time not stopping to take photos of the other chimps without making Jamie impatient, but thankfully, she let me get a couple of Burrito.

web Burrito sunshine blue sky on beam YH IMG_1347

web Burrito on climbing structure yakima river in background YH IMG_1342

web Burrito on climbing structure look out over valley yakima river in background YH IMG_1340

web Burrito look out view of valley yakima river stand on beam YH IMG_1341

But it wasn’t long before I was summoned to keep going. Our boss certainly knows how to keep our priorities in check.

web Jamie play chase with caregiver look back perimeter YH IMG_1324

iPad project is underway

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If you can’t tell by now, I’m pretty excited about the iPad we got from Orangutan Outreach! Thanks to Jody for the case and mount, and Shelly for the iTunes giftcard, I’ve been able to load up the iPad with tons of apps that I’m excited to see the chimps interact with. Yay!

web ipad with case jamie background

This morning, Jackie, myself, and volunteer caregivers Steph and Erin all spent awhile seeing how the chimps liked the iPad in its new case. Jody, Burrito, Foxie, and Jamie all came over to touch it and check it out (see this photo from our Facebook page).

Chimps naturally have super curious minds. When they see something new, usually their first reaction is what I sometimes call “quality control“—testing out how it works and if it’s sturdy. So, everyone who came over first tried to pick at the case (which is exactly why we wanted it in the first place!) but eventually they all showed some interest in the different apps, especially Jamie. Her favorites right now are a xylophone app, and one called “Catch the mouse” which is a game for cats! But she seems to get some enjoyment out of squishing the little mouse 🙂 Stay tuned for more updates on this really exciting project.

Taking it in

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Certain things about chimps are beyond our ability to measure, but I have no doubt that they share with us a sense of awe and wonder. Primatologists in the field have written about chimps going out of their way to stop and enjoy a sunset. We see the same thing when the chimps climb to the top of Young’s Hill and stare out at the valley below.

Jamie:

web Jamie YH view of valley below_MG_4302

Missy:

web Missy sit on log mound vast field in background look over valley YH IMG_4621

Other times we see them stop and stare up at the sky. It could be something as simple as a bird flying by or the clouds passing overhead, but it often seems like something more profound, like an effort to take in the vastness of their new world.

Burrito:

web Burrito look up sun in face clear sky YH IMG_1043

Missy:

web crop Missy hold tire swing look up YH IMG_3211

It’s in these moments that I have to remind myself where they came from, and to try to imagine what it must be like to still be discovering the most basic things about the world at nearly 40 years old.

 

Peering

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Peering is an interesting part of chimpanzee culture. One chimp will get uncomfortably close to another and stare at them intently, usually with hopes to convince them to share whatever it is that they are eating or drinking. Occasionally the chimp being stared at will share, but sometimes they are excellent at just pretending not to notice that someone is 2″ from their face and will either completely ignore them or calmly turn away. It is so intense and makes me feel uneasy just watching it! Check out this video of a couple of older clips of peering that I found:

Annie peering at Negra munching on some cabbage leaves:
web Annie peer Negra eat cabbage leaves chew face forage PR IMG_4606

Foxie peering at Annie:
web Annie groom self Foxie peer gh IMG_9902

The reason I wanted to share a little insight into this behavior is because during the St. Patrick’s Day party, I caught an interesting interaction between Foxie and Annie. As part of their forage, I put out cups of yellow Gatorade and filled up a large bucket we have with diluted Gatorade for fun. Foxie immediately went over to sit by it, obviously in hopes to sneak a drink. But Jamie was foraging nearby, so Foxie seemed a bit uneasy taking a drink from the one and only giant tub of Gatorade without getting some sort of permission from the boss that it was okay (check out this video for how Foxie would normally do that). She sat there for a really long time with Jamie foraging nearby, and seemed very nervous, though Jamie seemed completely content without the bucket.

web foxie bucket of water st patrick's day PR IMG_4869

Then, Annie (surprisingly enough) confidently walked right over, picked up the bucket, and took a big gulp with Jamie and Foxie watching the whole time.

web annie drink foxie peer bucket of water st patrick's day PR IMG_4872

Foxie then intently peered at Annie, maybe in hopes that Annie would share her Gatorade or perhaps to see what the consequences were of taking a drink without permission.
web annie foxie peer bucket of water st patrick's day PR IMG_4873

Once Annie walked away, Foxie had gained the courage to take a drink for herself.
web foxie drink bucket of water st patrick's day PR IMG_4888

New iPad thanks to Apps for Apes! (and a plea for a chimp-proof case)

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(UPDATE: Thank you Jody! We’ve got our case on the way! If you want to still support the fun iPad project—we could use some iTunes giftcards for cool apps! You can send an e-card to [email protected])

A few weeks ago, Orangutan Outreach reached out to us after seeing my blog post about wanting an iPad for Jamie (and the other chimps, too!) They have this great program called “Apps for Apes” (featured on NBC news) which has mostly been used in zoos and with orangutans. The Center for Great Apes is involved in the program and they are a sanctuary for both chimps and orangutans, but we’re the first sanctuary to be involved with only chimps. I’m really excited to see what apps they want to interact with the most! Orangutan Outreach raises awareness about orangutan conservation while also providing great enrichment for captive orangutans. Their project falls perfectly in line with what we have going on with Eyes on Apes, our advocacy group.

Here’s me (so excited!) with the iPad. I set a photo from today’s earlier blog post of Jody as the background:

web caregiver debbie hold new ipad

And here volunteer Deb and myself show Jamie and Foxie the iPad.

web caregiver deb show jamie new ipad

web jamie look at ipad

web foxie jamie look at ipad

I can’t WAIT to be able to let the chimps touch the iPad themselves. First we need to have a durable case so we can safely have it against the fencing and the chimps won’t break it 🙂

J.B. has done a bit of research and this is what we’ve decided will be the best option: Life Jacket Waterproof Case. We’d like the case as well as the extra mounting bracket which is an additional cost. If someone would be willing to donate the case, the mounting bracket, (or both!) I would be forever thankful (and so would the chimps!)

Though we don’t know for sure exactly what will happen when they’re able to interact with it themselves, I imagine based on how enriching it is just to look at, that they’ll be very interested to touch it!

Happy St. Patty’s!

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Top o’ the afternoon to ya’, laddy! Happy St. Patty’s Day! We set up a big party forage in the Playroom this morning. Last week, volunteer Stephanie brought us some non-toxic window paint, and since she couldn’t be here today, I thought I would try to get creative and decorate the windows instead (that would normally be a Stephanie-type job). Okay- so I’m no artist like Stephanie, but at least I gave it a try!!

And so what if there is something terribly wrong with my troll doll’s belly, head, hands, eyes, nose and feet! His hair looks good and the rest just adds character!
web Window decorations troll doll st patrick's day party PR IMG_4847

web Window decorations clover st patrick's day party PR IMG_4848

But, thankfully, to make up for my pitiful excuse for art, volunteer Patti brought lots of decorations, making it a true party. She made these cute little boxes with clovers on them and we stuffed them with chow and grapes. The chimps loved them!

Foxie was particularly happy with them!
web Foxie forage boxes made by Patti st patrick's day party PR IMG_4908

Annie:
web Annie cube made by Patti forage party st patrick's day PR IMG_4867

Jamie:
web Jamie cube made by Patti forage party st patrick's day PR IMG_4858

Burrito:
web Burrito cube made by patti forage party st patrick's day PR IMG_4897

We also made “salad plates” consisting of cabbage that Patti brought and a variety of lettuce that volunteer Jennifer brought over yesterday from Seattle’s Metropolitan Market, topped with a few raspberries.

Jamie:
web Jamie forage lettuce cabbage salad plate party st patrick's day PR IMG_4849

I love the look of adoration on Burrito’s face in this one:
web Burrito loves lettuce and cabbage forage party st patrick's day PR IMG_4877

Jody:
web Jody mouthful of lettuce party st patrick's day forage PR IMG_4850

Negra with some cabbage:
web Negra profile eat cabbage forage st patrick's day party PR IMG_4911

Burrito:

web Burrito lettuce forage party sweet face st patrick's day PR IMG_4902

Missy with a mouthful:

web Missy munch on lettuce forage party st patrick's day PR IMG_4898

…and another mouthful…
web Missy munch of lettuce mouthful st patrick's day party PR IMG_4899

…and another mouthful…
web Missy shove lettuce in mouth party st patrick's day party forage PR IMG_4885

Patti also brought some St. Patrick’s Day theme cups that we filled with Gatorade and coconut water.

Missy:
web Missy drink juice look at cup party decorations st. patrick's day hat PR IMG_4922

You regular blog readers may have noticed an odd theme here – lots of photos of Missy!? That’s rare for a party, since Missy usually goes upstairs and is out of sight for much of the party. But today, she stayed right in the middle of it and enjoyed tons of goodies. I was able to get some good photos, but I have to be honest about this next one: Missy wasn’t actually smiling, she was actually just using her tongue to pick some cabbage out of her teeth and this is how I caught her, but it’s so funny, I had to share! It was a happy day!
web Missy (not real) playface cup juice party st. patrick's day PR IMG_4921

Thanks so much to Patti, Stephanie, and Jennifer and the Metropolitan Market for their generous donations! It was an awesome party!

Breakfast in the rain

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Negra was enjoying this morning’s breakfast forage on the hill:

web negra forage YH IMG_4717

But she soon found herself caught in a spring rain shower, so she headed for the greenhouse and grabbed as much food as she could along the way:

web Negra in rain YH IMG_4730

Jody and Annie took their sweet time, since they were already hanging out in the cabin:

web Jody Annie in Negra's Cabin YH rain IMG_4731

Even though the rain didn’t last very long, most of the chimps spent the day in the greenhouse, where they knew they would remain warm and dry. Burrito was kind enough to let me take some close up photos:

web Burrito reflection in eyes GH IMG_4758

web Burrito foot GH IMG_4783

web Burrito laying down GH IMG_4779

web Burrito upside down finger in mouth GH IMG_4794

Jamie can’t sit still all day so she ventured out and made Diana walk a few laps around the perimeter of Young’s Hill with her. Every time Diana got back down to the building and thought she was done, there was Jamie waiting for her to go again. How could you say no to Jamie?

web Jamie look at camera YH IMG_4773