Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

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Happiness is Contagious

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When I was on my way to work this morning, I promised myself that I would do something different for the blog. The last few weeks I’ve posted videos of various chimps playing on my blog days, and I felt the need to branch out a bit… Of course, these plans came crashing down after just about an hour in the chimp house. 🙂

Lizz and I were cleaning the playroom on Jamie’s side this morning and, usually, when we’re done cleaning and start setting the room up for the chimps they come into the front rooms to watch. Something about Front Room One must lend itself to play, because most days we can find at least two chimps in there playing while we finish up. It’s actually one of my favorite things about cleaning on the original side of the building- there’s nothing better than hearing loud, happy, breathy pants while you’re putting out the forage, toys, and clean blankets. It reminds me of Front Room 7 on Cy’s side- one of the top hang outs for the individuals in that group. Front rooms, man- they’re just the best!

Today was no different, except the whole room was full of chimps. Burrito and Negra in one corner, Annie and Missy in the other, and Foxie bouncing back and forth. I got my phone out to record and, as it kept going, I knew it would be my blog for the day. But, can you blame me?! The moments we catch of the chimps playing or grooming together are precious. Whether it’s building new friendships or reaffirming relationships that they’ve had for years, seeing them happy is contagious.

Over the weekend I was thinking a lot about how many sweet moments of play and grooming we’ve seen lately and it hit me that it hasn’t been even three months since we lost our dear Jody. The time has gone fast, as it does with 15 chimps and 4 cows keeping you busy, but that grief is still very much a part of every day life. For both the humans and the chimps, it has been a time of challenging changes as we get used to a new normal. I can’t speak for everyone, but for me the moments of pure happiness between the chimps (or shared with a caregiver) during the day have helped me work through the heavy moments of grief.

Maybe that’s why these moments have caught my attention so much recently- because love is what gets us through. Or perhaps it’s just because they’re truly special and I feel very lucky to have the opportunity to witness them and share them with you. Or, maybe, it’s all of the above.

Bonus Photos

Foxie:

  

Willy B:

Nutmeg and Friends:

All Day Shenanigans

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Today has been nothing short of goofy here in the chimp house.

This morning, after cleaning the playroom, we put out giant kongs for Burrito and his group. Giant kongs have always been a favorite of Burrito’s and it never gets old watching him drag them along, bounce or sit on them, or just be generally silly as he plays with them! Today was no exception and it made us all smile.

This afternoon, as we wrapped up lunch, Chad mentioned that Honey B and Dora were having a great play session in the front rooms. We could see them in the security footage and hear them breathy panting, so I snuck in to try and get footage! Honey B has a big, fierce personality and I think it’s safe to say that we are all super proud of her and the bonds she’s making in the bigger group. It was really sweet to watch her have so much fun with Dora and they played for a lot of the afternoon!

Every moment with the chimps is special, but seeing them engaged with something (or someone) that makes them so happy is the best feeling. And when these moments last all day, then it’s just a really darn good day. 🙂

Burrito had a mini photo shoot with one of the giant kongs this morning:

Cy looking as handsome as ever in the Riverview Greenhouse:

Foxie with her baby doll:

Terry watching something over my shoulder very intently, or just giving me a great portrait shot. Either way:

Good Advice from Burrito & Honey B

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There are times when Burrito and Honey B take themselves very seriously, maybe Honey B more than Burrito these days, but they both have a lightheartedness that is admirable and contagious.

My takeaways from these clips:

Burrito doesn’t need an audience – he can crack himself of up at any moment.

Just look at the delight that Honey B’s friends/family react with when she is showing the jovial side of her personality. Everyone was on board!

It’s a good lesson for all of us.

 

2023 Day of Days: The Trifecta Jubilee

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Today was such a busy day in the most of exciting ways! Today is the Trifecta Jubilee! Today we celebrated Terry’s 33rd birthday, Negra’s 50th birthday, and the 15 year anniversary of the arrival of the Cle Elum Seven!

Today was a non-stop celebration with many happenings that came along with the undying support of Paulette Wrisley in today’s second sponsor! Thank you so much Paulette for sponsoring Terry and Negra’s birthdays!

It’s hard to  believe Negra and her group arrived in Washington from the Buckshire Corporation in Pennsylvania. There have been many growing pains for both chimpanzee and caregivers both former and current, but all of them for the better. In the 15 years, they have experience the outdoors for the first time in their lives, had room to run around and play in, and as of this year, able to climb their first tree!

It’s also really hard to believe Negra is now 50 years old! Negra is such a strong-willed person who knows exactly what she likes and wants. Though she is 50, is still doesn’t stop here from experiencing new things, when she wants to of course. Negra is such a well respected person by both chimpanzee and human. For her 50th birthday, there were many surprises for her. You have to watch the video to see what they were!

And Teeny Tiny Terry. How lucky are we to just know such a special person. In the couple short years we have known Terry, one thing about him we know is certain: he is the purest of souls! Terry wears his heart on his sleeve, and that heart holds nothing but sincerity. There are no tricks with him. What he does or says, he means, and it’s 100% love.

Here are some bonus photos from today!

Negra

Rayne

Missy

Gordo

Annie

Defending the Title

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While Anna and I deep cleaned Playroom 1, we heard some laughing (breathy panting) coming from Front Room 4. We knew our usual suspect would be Burrito, which was true, but we assumed he would be playing with Jamie or Foxie. To our surprise, when we peered over it was Burrito and Negra playing! As many of you may know, Negra can get rough when she decides to wrestle and let me tell you, it may have turned into a game of Foxie and Burrito vs. Negra, but she was holding her own and Negra was NOT going easy on them. In all the years that I have been working at CSNW, it was been such an honor to watch Negra get to decide what she wants to do every day. Negra gets to make choices- going on Young’s Hill to forage for grass, napping all day if she desires, playing with Burrito, or even the choice of interacting with humans (besides meals and medical intervention, of course). It’s kind of crazy to think that our 15th anniversary of the Cle Elum Seven arriving to CSNW is just around the corner (6 days to be exact) and with that we will be celebrating our dear friend Negra’s 50th birthday! Let’s not forget our very sweet friend Terry shares the same birthday as Negra and is turning 33! This coming week is going to be a trifecta jubilee!

Speaking of the Trifecta Jubilee, we have some exciting news to share! Because we are hitting big milestones this year, we are also hoping to reach big fundraising goals! An anonymous donor has pledged $30,000 matching donations through the month of June! All donations given now until the end of June will be doubled until we reach $30,000. Follow the link to learn more about how you can help us reach our goal!

As we celebrate the Trifecta Jubilee, don’t forget to sign up for the special opportunity to, Sit Down with the Co-Directors, on Saturday, June 10th at 2 pm. Join J.B. and Diana as they discuss the joys of running a sanctuary and working with chimps, the difficult aspects of working with chimps in captivity, and any of your burning questions you might have for them! J.B. and Diana have dedicated their lives to these chimps and are truly incredible people to work for, it’s an honor to get to work along side them. So I hope you all take advantage of this amazing opportunity! 🙂

I wanted to take a moment to say that I think we all wish that in celebrating, Jody would have been with us on June 13th, we will leave room for acknowledgement for her absence on that day, but Jody was able to have 15 amazing years in sanctuary, which is more than we could have hoped for! We know that Jody would have wanted us to have a giant party for Negra filled with all of Negra’s favorite foods, like Hawaiian rolls, which of course will be on the menu!

Neggie this morning greeting us with sweet kisses:

Silly Foxie:

Gordo with a mouth full of grapefruit and peanuts:

Sweet laid back Mave:

Different Interests

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The beauty of sanctuary here at CSNW is that every chimpanzee gets to explore their interests. Jamie has her boots and books, Foxie has her dolls, Mave has her Dora, Dora has her Mave, Honey B always has mischievous plans, and Cy has his magazines. Recently, Cy has found something else that has peaked his interest, romance and romcom movies. Cy is the leader of his group, but to us staff he really is a big softy. So it really didn’t surprise us when he seemed to love movies like The Notebook, Love Actually, Must Love Dogs, and Hitched. What did surprise us is that Cy will now request a movie before bed, to which we say, of course!  It’s very sweet, his caregivers will set a sleep timer for his movie, usually The Notebook, then Cy will make a nest in front room 7 and eventually fall asleep to his movie.

We also believe that Cy is a BIG Ryan Gosling fan. If you have any romcom DVDs gathering dust please feel free to send them to Cy! I am curious now- what everyone’s favorite RomCom?

Bonus photos! Rayne and Honey B are half sisters, can you tell?

The Life (and death) of a Stuffed Toy at a Chimpanzee Sanctuary

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Burrito playing with giant stuffed toys seriously never gets old. The sanctuary staff recently went through First Aid/CPR training as a team and watching this video made me pretty impressed with his chest compressions.

Speaking of stuffed toys, you might notice that Baby Yoda Squishmallow in the video needs a little first aid himself. We actually got him wayyy back at Christmas time during our Comfort and Joy online auction. He was a donation from Linda McFall-Bailey. It’s seriously impressive that he’s made it this long and continues to provide the charming Mr. B with continued joy and enrichment.