Jamie

Mischief Managed

April 19, 2023 by Kelsi

When I describe my job to people, I usually say “There is never a dull day.” Well today that was very true! Jamie decided to have a laid back day, no projects, just play and nesting. I felt so lucky to capture this play session of Jamie and Foxie, even if every once in a while Jamie would remind me to get lost! Burrito may not have been invited either, but don’t worry Foxie made sure he wasn’t left out! However, Honey B seemed like she had plans from the get-go this morning, as you will see in the video. We have what we call “privacy panels” between the playrooms and greenhouses. They were installed for when the groups were separated so they could have, you know, privacy. Even after the group became nine we left them up just in case, we didn’t want to jinx anything! Honey B decided this morning the greenhouse panels needed to go and so they did, at the hands of Honey B :). As a disclaimer- no chimps were hurt and we quickly closed off the greenhouse so that JB and his new handy man Adam could safely remove the rest of them.

Please enjoy this series of photos of Burrito in the sandbox:

Relationship Building

April 17, 2023 by Sabrina

Building relationships as the newest caregiver at CSNW is one of the most rewarding aspects of coming to work at a new (to me) sanctuary. Today I will talk about just a couple of my relationships in progress.

Starting with Burrito!

I think all the sanctuaries I’ve worked or interned at had one individual who welcomes new people with glee and invitations to play endless games of chase. I this it’s safe to say that Burrito is that person here at CSNW, his playful personality, love for walks and good natured mischief is definitely one of the the first things that made me immediately feel welcomed at CSNW and like I had come to the right place. It has been endless walks on Young’s Hill, where his favorite game is that of Misdirection – making me believe we are going downhill only to turn around and sprint back up, and of course I have no choice but to follow… not that I would have it any other way. Watching him run up hill while laughing is the best reward I can think of.

Next up, who else could it be but Jamie:

Jamie is definitely one of the more complicated personalities to get to know, she can be very strict in how she wants things done, am I learning. Individuals like Jamie tend to be some of my favorites to build relationships with no matter how long it takes. Lately I’ve been setting aside time most afternoons to find Jamie and see if she would like to hang out for a bit. She usually takes me up on it, possibly to keep an eye on me and study me more closely to learn my habits. So we have developed somewhat of a routine where I show up in the afternoon and she grooms me with a provided tool or one she finds herself. She seems to really enjoy grooming some of my tattoos, especially the one of my Bushbaby, and then she likes to inspect each of my fingers. For today this is good progress- Jamie decides what tomorrow will bring.

Quality Time

April 5, 2023 by Kelsi

The past couple mornings we have found Mave’s group spending a lot of quality time with one another before breakfast. For chimps, especially Terry’s group, it’s important to strengthen bonds. A great way to make a friendship stronger is by grooming. Recently, this group has been having their ups and downs like most chimp groups do, but when we have a few calm mornings or afternoons, watching them play or groom feels very nice to see. It is crazy to think that it has been almost a year since this group was officially put together. What they have accomplished as a group is truly something to celebrate!

There is more social work to be done in the next years to come for them, but let’s give them a round of applause for what they have accomplished so far!

Here are some bonus photos of Foxie’s group!

Foxie with one of her dolls:

Annie in the raceway:

Jamie in the portrait studio:

I love Jamie’s side-eye:

I captured two moments of popularity at the sanctuary today that you can check out below, but first we have a fun event coming up that I wanted to highlight! We have our next virtual visit scheduled for April 15th. This visit will be focused on the chimpanzees’ medical care at the sanctuary and will feature a Q & A session with our veterinary team coming to you live from the chimp house! Please click on this link for more details on how to sign up.

The first “popular” moment was when Jamie and I went for a walk on Young’s Hill. Burrito popped out of the raceway and shadowed Jamie closely for the majority of her patrol:

Jamie stayed out a little bit longer for a peaceful moment alone:

The second moment was this grooming circle where Honey B was the center of Terry and Rayne’s attention:

Curiosity and the Chimp

March 28, 2023 by Chad de Bree

Chimpanzees are very curious by nature. They love to investigate and understand things, both in captivity and the wild. You can see that in action in Sunday’s blog where Honey B was able to figure out how to get the hose as well as yesterday’s blog of Cy’s group watching J.B. put together a new scale and Missy inspecting the tree roots. Curiosity is one of the many things I love about chimpanzees and my job because I get to see it in action. It is also one of the many reasons why chimpanzees (and all primates) should not be pets or used for entertainment. (I have been preparing a blog to tackle that subject, so more on that later.)

When I look into the eyes of someone like Jamie or Honey B, I always throw myself into the rabbit hole of trying to figure out what wheels are turning behind those eyes.

For instance, there was this from today.

What was going on through Jamie’s mind when she was trying to shove a plastic tube through the barrier that separates both groups? Was she trying to attack them with it? Was she trying to sneak them some contraband enrichment? Did she just want to groom them?

Or even the confidence level someone like Jamie has. To me, there is a lot of mental calculation to be had to just leave your breakfast on the windowsill to go find some more food someone left behind possibly, and be confident that nobody will try to steal it.

Or Burrito’s new favorite reality show, “The Neighbors” starring Cy and friends. Burrito spends a lot of time at the window trying to get a glimpse of his neighbors, even using a mirror to get a better angle on those hard to see areas of the chute.

He also will almost systematically go to the window at the same time in the afternoon everyday and nothing can pry him from his seat. This is usually around the time either Willy B or Gordo begin their afternoon displays and rouse things up in their group, which more often than not now will make it’s way into the chute.

The minds of chimpanzees are fascinating, which help make them such an fascinating species overall to me.

Just some random thoughts I had about today as I was doing some Chimp House chore and finding these hints of goings on they were getting themselves into earlier on in the day.

I will end it with Rayne laying on the firehose reaching for her breakfast being served.

Two is Better than One!

March 22, 2023 by Kelsi

Today was absolutely beautiful! The sun was out, the chimps were enjoying their warm greenhouses, and the seven had another lunch Hill forage! I know I always talk about little moments in the chimp house: the moments that just kind of make your heart melt and remind you how grateful you are that these chimps are in sanctuary. Today was full of those little moments.

1. Negra was the first chimp out of the raceway for the lunch forage! She was going everywhere trying to find the potatoes and chow. It was very nice to watch.

2. Annie, as you may know, has already been spotted with her sweatbands! Today, she was either wearing them or carrying them in her pelvic pocket (a hot pink and green one).

3. Lucky was also spotted wearing a green sweatband (not pictured).

4. Foxie gave me her doll through the raceway so that we could go take a quiet walk around a little bit of Young’s Hill.

5. One of our interns gave us a pair of her Doc Martins that Jamie had been eyeing for awhile. We gave Jamie those boots today and she seemed elated to have them <3!

6. Cy’s group were out in the greenhouses for most of the day, all grooming each other.

Bonus photos!

Negra on the Hill foraging:

Missy foraging:

Jody:

Foxie:

Burrito in the warm green house:

I hope you enjoy these little moments and Annie’s video :)!

Man! I Feel like a Woman!

March 8, 2023 by Kelsi

Today is International Women’s Day! I feel so blessed to work in such a female dominated field, it is truly empowering. Not only is our field dominated by women, but so is our chimp house, sorry Chad and JB :).

In the wild, males are usually the most dominate, however in captivity you can find females leading a group or allowing a male to think he the one in control, when really the female(s) are really calling the shots ;). Let’s meet the real individuals that run the show in this chimp house!

Obviously, Jamie rules this Sanctuary: