Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary
Missy and Foxie were having a pretty good time in the greenhouse while the humans were cleaning the playroom today. I took so many photos that I decided to try something new – see the full visual story of their play session in the small photos below.
It’s been a pretty mild fall / beginning of winter, and we finally got our first snowfall at the sanctuary overnight. It was just a dusting, but Missy was VERY eager to get outside for a taste.
Jamie also went out quickly to get a snack.
We were wondering if the colder weather might slow down Jamie’s desire to walk around the hill. The answer is no. So far four walks and counting. She did wait until the snow melted, though. Missy joined Jamie on one of her walks. She gave us a big head start then ran full-speed up the hill. You can see a photo on her Facebook page.
Speaking of Facebook, a few weeks ago we asked on our Facebook page how fans became interested in chimpanzees. The answers were really interesting. One person recalled the video of the chimpanzees at CSNW first experiencing a big snowstorm, which was shared on a couple of news stations.
The video, which is now almost five years old, is posted below. That was before we put the panels on the greenhouse, so really before they had a greenhouse, and long before they had the 2-acre Young’s Hill. The chimps are leaning out of front room #4 into what we called the outdoor area then. Listen to those happy food squeaks and watch the prehensile lips in action!
The Seattle Seahawks have had a great season so far, and we decided the chimpanzees should be part of the 12th Man Blue Friday activities! Seahawks and chimpanzee fan Melanie Kelsey helped us out by buying some decorations that volunteer Patti picked up. The decorations were a big hit with Burrito, as you’ll see in the video below.
Perhaps on game day this Sunday, when the Seahawks play the Minnesota Vikings, the chimps will let out their loudest pant-hoot to contribute to the loud and proud tradition of the 12th man. Go Hawks!
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We’ve been up to some tricks today…
Jamie loves to dig.
We sometimes find evidence that the chimps have been digging into the nests of ground squirrels on Young’s Hill. They seem to want to figure out where those squirrels disappear to when they dive into those little holes in the ground, but they never dig down far enough to find them.
Some of the chimps use tools to dig into the hard clay soil. A plastic shovel or trowel works best, but in a pinch, anything pointy will do. A tool also keeps a chimp’s hand away from the sharp teeth of an angry squirrel – the same reason why Jamie uses hardcover books or pasta spoons to chop at garter snakes instead of her bare hands. I would bet that, by now, Jamie knows that garter snakes are not going to hurt her, but she still seems to act as if they are dangerous, or at least “icky.” I’m sure a lot of humans can relate.
When Jamie is not going after squirrels, she likes to keep herself busy with projects. A few weeks ago, I found her digging in the entrance to Young’s Hill with a plastic trowel.
Unless this is your first time visiting the blog (if so, welcome!!), you probably know about Jamie’s obsession with walking around the perimeter of Young’s Hill while one or more of her human caregivers walks around the outside of the perimeter while wearing a cowboy boot.
She has been doing this multiple times a day with all of her caregivers since the spring. While Jamie is quite demanding about taking these walks 4-7 times a days, it’s admittedly not a dreaded task for us humans. It’s hard to describe how great it feels to not only be making Jamie happy, which is pretty much a CSNW caregiver’s definition of a successful day, but it’s also just a very peaceful way to spend 15 or so minutes. It’s particularly great right now because the weather has been amazing this October, and the hill and the surrounding property is beautiful, even awe-inspiring at certain times of the day.
We actually dreamed of doing these perimeter walks before Young’s Hill was a reality. When it was in the design phase, we wondered if the chimps might patrol the perimeter of the hill, similar to the way chimpanzees in the wild go on patrol to check the boundaries of their territory. So when Jamie started doing this, it felt right.
While spending time with the chimpanzees one-on-one, like walking with Jamie while the other chimps do their own thing, is personally fulfilling, what’s 100 times more rewarding is observing the chimpanzees with each other and seeing their bonds strengthen and their friendships expand.
Which is why we’ve been thrilled that other chimpanzees have been joining Jamie on her walks lately. J.B. captured some clips on his phone and put together the video below.
Maybe, just maybe, one day the chimpanzees will go off on their own with each other to walk the perimeter of the hill, leaving us humans behind.
