Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

Jody

The Beauty of Jody

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I have been periodically looking at these photos of Jody on the computer in the chimp house throughout the day today. They just fill my heart with love for her.

All of the chimpanzees are so different from one another in so many ways and each one has qualities that pull you into their personalities.

I admire the way that Jody approaches life in a self-assured way and knows what she wants out of any given situation. She often does her own thing with her confident flair, but at the same time she’s the watchful den-mother of the group.

She has the greatest vocalizations – her happy chimpanzee low-moan we refer to as her “dinosaur noises” because they are so drawn out, and she is the most likely to give a good-night grunt from her nest at the end of the day.

Her big round eyes seem capable of taking in more than anyone’s, and there’s almost always a glimmer of hope or anticipation in them.

 

Eagle eyes

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There are moments in every caregiver’s life when a chimpanzee is wildly gesturing for something that they want, but we simple minded humans just can’t decipher their communication.
This afternoon Jamie spotted something on the ground that she needed me to give her.

After several minutes of frustrated gesturing. I spotted this single tiny black currant that had fallen on the ground at breakfast.

All is well.

Bonus!
Annie has chosen to make the switch from yellow to orange.

The portrait studio recently received an extreme makeover (more on that tomorrow). Look for portraits to feature a lovely grey backdrop from now on. Here’s Jody:

The Chimp Days of Summer

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It’s hot y’all. We’re in the midst of a heatwave here, but it is summer after all. Being in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains we’re fortunate to usually cool down at night so mornings tend to feel refreshing and cool for a short time before it heats up again. So the chimpanzees have been enjoying breakfast forages on Young’s Hill in the fresh morning air for the past few days. Negra headed straight for her cabin where she could enjoy her fruit in the shade:

The day has been playing out more and more slowly as the heat rises and the chimps have been making their way between ice cubes snacks, ice water buckets, and lounging in the cooler playroom. In fact right this minute, I can hear Foxie in the playroom slurping repeatedly on the straw of the water bucket, meaning it’s time for a refill! (As a sidenote, the chimps have access to water any time they want via several spigots throughout the chimp house. But it’s always more fun to drink from buckets and straws and cups, right?!).

Burrito and Jody chose an after lunch nap on the bench between the playroom and greenhouse where they were shaded, but could catch a good cross breeze:

Jody made sure to leave her corncob wadge within close range so she wouldn’t have to move too far when she wanted it:

Foxie and her Strawberry Shortcake dolls were the only ones dozing in the heat of the greenhouse, but the breeze blows right through. Summer, in full swing:

I was reading about the “Dog Days” of summer, a saying that originated from ancient Greek and Roman beliefs that the hottest days of the year occurred when Sirius, the dog star, appeared to rise just before the sun which they believed compounded the heat. There isn’t a chimpanzee star, but of course, we would all vote that there should be. Nevertheless, the Chimp Days of summer seems apropos in our world and are definitely upon us.

A Delicacy Worth the Risk

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Today we set out a breakfast forage on Young’s Hill. Here’s a photo of the morning sun glinting off of Negra’s beautiful head:

As we were watching Jody forage near the cabin, she screamed a little and batted at the air. We all collectively thought she had been stung by a wasp.  When Jody started to walk towards the greenhouse, we noticed she was carrying a wasp nest!

A few years ago, much to our surprise, Jamie and Missy discovered the delicacy of wasp larvae.

Chimpanzees in the wild have also been known to brave a sting or a bite to get an insect meal.

Apparently Jody has also found out about this delicacy.

She did pay a price for her prize, today, though. At lunch, Dr. Erin noticed her right eye was swollen. She’ll probably sleep well tonight with a little benadryl and some ibuprofen. We hope the snack was worth it!

Bakin’

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Oh my gosh guys, it is HOT. The chimps are so toasty the only thing they could do today was lay down and groom. That was seriously all we did today… well we also ate some shaved ice too!

Annie and Jody laying on the platform in the Green House (Annie in happy baby pose) (Jody relaxing by her side):

Annie:

Jamie watching the volunteers clean the Playroom…

And then she caught me taking a photo of her…

Missy came to join the being a lump party:

And why not groom while you’re there:

In the other corner Burrito was grooming Foxie and Negra was taking in the view:

When She Says Jump

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Jamie is truly an amazing person, there is a lot to her. She is always surprising us, for being a more “serious chimp” a lot of the time, I kept catching her doing silly little things throughout today. For example, we had a donor visitor group this afternoon, during which she proceeded to make each visitor try on her favorite boot. (This is not something she normally does. Normally Jamie might give them some attention, look at some shoes, and then get back to foraging.) I never know what to expect from her, which is the best part about her! But, what I can usually expect is a fierce and fearless Jamie.

Jamie wearing her boot and foraging for nuts:

Jamie staring out of the playroom on a barrel that she dragged over herself:

Jamie looking fierce:

Jamie laying on the barrel (taking a quick snooze):

Jamie was practicing her tight rope walking this morning (she picked a spot where it was hard to see her, so she could practice in private):

This is a photo of one of our visitors wearing Jamie’s favorite boots upon her request:

Bonus photos:

Negra walking onto Young’s Hill this morning:

Burrito watching over Jody:

Missy quietly foraging:

Annie sporting her sweatband on her waist and walking bipedally up the Hill:

Burrito, Jo, and Foxie hanging out on the new structure:

Farmer Jo

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Jody has earned the nickname “Farmer Jo” due to her endearing habit during forages of collecting as much food as she can possibly hold and then hobbling bipedally down to the greenhouse to enjoy her spoils. She was very happy with the carrots, beets, and corn that volunteer Patti brought for lunch today.