Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

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Party

JAMIE and friendship on the 5th Day of HOOT!

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I had a realization not long ago. It occurred to me that Jamie is one of my best friends. We have mutual interests (shoes, being outdoors, eating grapes), we’re generally happy to see each other, we have routines that have developed over time, and I think we’ve established a mutual respect for one another over the years, which has been heightened by the two of us working on Positive Reinforcement Training this last year.

You may have gathered from previous posts, that Jamie is not exactly obvious best friend material… but that’s part of what makes our friendship all the more meaningful to me.

For this 5th day of HOOT! with just two days left before the big event, I share with you this photo of my friend Jamie:

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I have another friend that I would like to acknowledge today. Pam Lehnert and her husband Marc Warner. I am indebted to them both for helping to make HOOT! 2016 not just your average event, but a beautiful and (literally) heart-filled one.

Pam has been an event volunteer since our very first gala in 2009 and there is no way I would be organizing this level of event without her help.

Pam and Marc not only gave their time and labor towards HOOT!, they also are Chimpanzee Champion Sponsors of the event!

A big thanks to them and to all volunteers who helped plan and will be working on Saturday!

 

The Luck o’ the Cle Elum Seven

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The Cle Elum Seven may not head to the pubs on St. Patrick’s Day, but they still know how to have a good time. We had a breakfast party in the greenhouse this morning with fruit smoothie in plastic shot glasses with lime garnishes, peanuts, and chow. The main event, though, was undoubtedly the whole green apples. The chimpanzees find whole fruit infinitely more exciting than the same amount of fruit cut into pieces. We put this morning’s apples inside socks and hung them around the greenhouse. The chimps were beside themselves. Here are a few highlights from the celebration.

Jamie went after the “apple socks” with a laser focus. She had some trouble carrying all her treasures, so she made good use of her opposable toes.

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Foxie with a lime wedge:

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and getting the last drops from a cup of smoothie:

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Negra held onto her apple for awhile before eating it:

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Burrito with an apple and searching for more:

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and enjoying smoothie:

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and more smoothie:

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Annie thought there must be food inside this big green plastic egg that volunteer Alex brought:

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Alas, there wasn’t.

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But she consoled herself with some smoothie.

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Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Celebrating Valentine’s Day Chimp Style

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How did the chimpanzees celebrate Valentine’s Day? Well, with a party of course!

Volunteer caregivers Patti and Debbie prepared today’s breakfast smoothie and enrichment along with the help of staff member Elizabeth.

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After we finished cleaning the Playroom (one of the chimps’ indoor enclosures), we laid out blankets in the shape of hearts on the floor and placed pomegranate seeds and organic red roses inside. We also hung three pink, heart-shaped pinatas with nuts inside and scattered the Valentine-themed cups and treat boxes (with nuts hidden inside) throughout the enclosure. Unfortunately, I accidentally erased all of the photos of the setup, so you’ll have to use your imagination for that or see if you can spot some of it in the following video taken today.

And here are a few photo highlights from today as well. Unfortunately, the setup photos weren’t the only ones I erased by accident; I also erased photos of Negra, Jody and Missy enjoying the party.

Jamie
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Burrito
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Annie
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Foxie
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Happy Valentine’s Day everyone! And if you haven’t already, it’s not too late to Share the Love for the Cle Elum Seven! This Share the Chimp Love fundraiser will provide funds for the direct care of the chimpanzees now and will help with our plans for the future.

Negra Share the Love pic

A Christmas Miracle

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It was almost a year without Christmas.

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OK, that’s not true – but Christmas was nearly delayed by a few days. The Cascade Mountains here in Washington received more snow in the last week than in all of last winter. Interstate 90, the only direct route between the sanctuary and Seattle, was closed for days due to avalanches in the mountain pass, and many of our volunteers were stuck on the other side. Thankfully, the highway was reopened last night and volunteer Patti was able to make it over this morning with the chimps’ Christmas dinner.

I don’t know if that qualifies as a Christmas miracle, but the support we’ve been receiving over the last month has certainly been miraculous. Packages have been arriving for weeks from generous donors, some long time supporters of the Cle Elum Seven and some who just discovered the sanctuary through stories about Foxie and her dolls in the UK, Germany, and Australia. You can guess what our newest supporters sent for Foxie! And our dedicated volunteers have been braving some treacherous conditions on the pass to reach the sanctuary. We are so grateful to everyone that helped make this a special holiday season for the chimps.

This Christmas was filled with great food, lots of boots and dolls, and a few surprises as well. Check out the video to see for yourself!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from all of us at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest.

The Thanksgiving Celebration

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As promised, here is the video of yesterday’s party.

The anticipation of the feast is always the best part. When chimpanzees are happy, they share their happiness with everyone around them. They hug and kiss each other and join together in choruses of pant-hoots. And they share pants and grunts of excitement with their caregivers.

It’s a celebration not just of food, but of the family they have become. And we are grateful to be considered part of their family in moments like these.