Now that the snow has melted and the sun has returned, the chimpanzees have been really enjoying being outside on Young’s Hill. This morning we witnessed an impressive burst of activity. I can imagine how good it must feel to them to be able to stretch their legs.
Jamie
Jamie and her barrel
One of my favorite stories from Jane Goodall’s book In the Shadow of Man was the story of Mike.
Mike was a small, low-ranking male who was continually threatened and attacked by higher ranking chimpanzees until the day he discovered a pair of empty kerosene cans at the research camp. By banging the cans together, Mike’s displays made a sound that none of the other chimpanzees had heard before. Imagine hearing the clashing and booming of metal on metal, when even the toughest chimpanzees were stuck shaking branches and throwing rocks. Mike may not have had the size and strength of Goliath or David Graybeard but he was clever – clever enough to rise to alpha male and remain there for six years after his first kerosene can display.
I see a lot of Mike in Jamie. While Jamie is by no means small, she clearly knows how to use objects in her displays to her advantage. While Burrito runs around clapping his hands, Jamie shows him how it’s done.
Chimps and snow and decisions
Even though the chimps have had access to it, it’s been too cold and windy to spend much time out on Young’s Hill lately. But they definitely love having the option! I love that even though we put snow in the playroom and greenhouse almost daily, the chimps sometimes see it as worth it to brave the cold to enjoy a snack on the hill. The other day, the large tub in the greenhouse was filled with snow so that the chimps didn’t have to go out to get it if they didn’t want to, but that didn’t keep everyone inside!
Annie on the hill:
Missy:
But I guess Foxie and Jamie saw it as more appealing to keep their feet dry and enjoy their snack in the greenhouse.
Foxie in the greenhouse:
Jamie:
Captivity
We’ve been talking a lot about Jamie recently. She provides us with a lot to talk about, both on this blog and amongst the staff and volunteers at the sanctuary. We’ve told you about her artistic side, her love of cowboy boots, the challenges she presents to her caregivers to keep her busy mind active, and we’ve reflected on her complicated personality. There’s one thing that I sometimes mention to people when talking about Jamie in person. It’s something that I was thinking about as I took the photos below, and I don’t think I’ve shared it on the blog yet. So here it is –
I think Jamie is acutely aware of her captivity. I don’t say this about all of the chimpanzees. I don’t think Foxie, for example, with her goofy, please-everyone personality, thinks about how unfair it is that she is on the other side of the fencing from the humans, that we make a lot of decisions for her, and that we go off somewhere else at the end of the day. It’s impossible to know for sure, but I believe Jamie is very aware of all of these things, and she knows it’s not fair. I agree with her. Chimpanzees don’t belong in captivity. We do the best we possibly can with the resources we have to provide a happy life for the Cle Elum Seven, but we could never provide them with everything, especially the true freedom that they deserve (If you’re wondering why we don’t offer the chimps more freedom, take a look at this blog post and the link in it about the true nature of chimpanzees).
But things are getting better. More and more people are accepting the simple truth that chimpanzees don’t belong in captivity. The release of the NIH Council of Councils working group report the other day could be a watershed moment for chimpanzees in biomedical research in the United States, and the growing awareness of who chimpanzees are and what they deserve has played a huge role in this moment. It’s the countdown to the end of chimpanzees in biomedical research, and, in fact, someone is counting down – Lori Gruen launched a new website today called the Last 1,000. It is a list of all of the chimpanzees still in research and a tracking of these individuals from lab to sanctuary by highlighting their name or number in green. Lori’s already been able to highlight some of the chimpanzees who went from New Iberia to Chimp Haven just this week.
Though chimpanzees do not belong in captivity, those who are deserve the best quality of life we can provide them. Thank you for being a part of providing for Jamie.
showing off sanctuary merchandise
Every once in a while supporters send us photos of Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest merchandise that they’ve purchased. I love seeing the chimps represented in people’s private homes or office spaces (or, in the case of clothing, on people). Here are a couple of recent images that we’ve received.
Here’s a 2013 calendar in the kitchen of the Edwards all the way in the UK! The calendar was a surprise gift and actually served as an introduction to the sanctuary for both the gifter and the giftee. (In case you’re wondering, we do still have a few 2013 calendars left, so get yours before they’re all gone).
And this is from a little while ago, but one of my favorite images because supporter Debbie C. personalized what she purchased. She had one of Jamie’s art prints framed, alongside a photo of Jamie and her artist’s bio that came with the art print. It makes me so happy to think of Debbie seeing Jamie everyday like this.
Deep snow
You may have noticed a lack of Young’s Hill photos and videos over the last month or so. That’s because when the snow gets so deep, it reduces the voltage of the electric fence, making it unsafe to allow the chimpanzees out there. Well, yesterday, J.B., Sarah and I (mostly J.B.) all went out and shoveled around the entire perimeter of the fence (who needs a gym membership?), freeing up those bottom wires covered in snow so that the voltage was sufficient to let the chimps back out! It was very hard work, but the chimps were so excited that it was well worth it! There were lots of hugs and kisses in the chimp house (between the chimps 😉 ) and breathy pants echoed in the greenhouse. Sometimes our job isn’t glamorous but it is certainly rewarding, especially when you see a face like the one below (Jody’s).
Jody was the first one to go back out. She was food grunting (we had lettuce out there, plus look at all that snow!) and had a huge playface!
Annie used Jody’s head for support as she passed her on the log bridge. Jody didn’t seem to mind.
Look at the joy in her eyes!
The snow was really deep, so J.B. and Diana shoveled paths along the log bridge to the first climbing structure and to Negra’s cabin. Most folks just walked along the paths, but Missy chose to walk on the fire hose.
From left to right, Jamie, Missy, Annie and Jody, enjoying the lettuce forage on top of the first climbing structure.
Did I mention the snow was (is) deep? Foxie walked along the paths but she looked so tiny from our vantage point (tinier than she already is, even!).
Annie figured walking bipedally made more sense. Gotta say, I agree!
While everyone else foraged for lettuce, Annie climbed up to the top of Negra’s cabin a couple of times.
And Missy discovered a TON of lettuce Sarah put in the cabin!
I think she was pretty pleased!
All of the chimps went out at some point, though Negra didn’t leave the comfort of the raceway (and only so she could grab some lettuce and snow) and Burrito was only out for a couple of minutes (also just to grab a little bit of lettuce and snow) and didn’t venture out very far, but everyone seemed very happy to have the option of the hill back! And that’s what sanctuary is all about.
Annie following Missy back to the greenhouse:
Enriching Jamie
Recently I was looking back at some old blog posts written by Diana and J.B. before the chimpanzees arrived in Washington. In this post, Diana describes Jamie after meeting her for the first time during a visit to the laboratory. It struck me how accurate Diana’s first impressions turned out to be. Five years later, Jamie still demands our time, energy, and creativity to keep her satisfied. It is sometimes hard to know what she’s going to like, but choice is essential. Diana also correctly predicted that we’re always happy to indulge.
After we clean the playroom each morning, we put out clean blankets and a heaping basket of enrichment. Jamie’s routine is to first gather any boots, then stroll around checking out the rest of the toys to see if anything is of interest. Today she came across this loofah and gave her face a quick scrub.
