Burrito and Foxie are great friends, but sometimes friends just aren’t in the mood to play when you are.
Play
Troll stealing
Jamie started a great game of “steal the troll” with Foxie this morning. There were multiple trolls involved and they changed hands several times. Foxie used every trick in her book – strategic tickling, biting, wrestling, surprise tackling, spinning, and somersaulting – and eventually got her trolls back.
Keep Away
Annie
Annie is a clown with her best friend Missy, but otherwise she’s pretty shy. It’s not often that she engages her human caregivers in anything other than a brief greeting. Today, though, I caught her in a playful mood as she was making a nest in the front rooms.
Burrito being playful
I have pretty much the best job in the world. Thanks to stellar volunteers Jessica and Lynn, I was able to spend some time with Burrito this morning. He was in a particularly silly mood.
It’s easy to forget everything that he’s been through when he’s so playful. Chimpanzees have very good memories, but I think they are better at living in the moment than most humans. And Burrito is definitely better at remaining childlike.
Great way to start the day
One of the things that we stress to our staff and volunteers is that our attitudes have a significant effect on the chimps. We all know from personal experience with friends, family, and coworkers that moods can be contagious, so we try to shake off whatever is bothering us before we go into the chimp house. The last thing the chimps need is for us to bring them down!
It works the other way as well – the chimps can really influence how we feel about our “day at the office”. Some chimps are particularly influential. If Jamie is in a bad mood, we’re in for a rough day, to say the least. But if she’s happy, we’re happy.
For me, there is one individual in particular that has the ability to brighten my morning no matter what side of the bed I wake up on. This morning, as I opened the door to greet the chimps, Foxie was waiting, troll in hand, to launch into a full-on game of “pass the troll” with some flips and spins thrown in. Not a bad way to start the day.
The Party Police
We sometimes (lovingly) refer to Jamie as “the party police”. It’s as if Jamie doesn’t want anyone to have too much fun, especially not without her. Usually her aggression is directed at the humans, like when we’re playing “pass the troll” with Foxie, but occasionally it’s directed at the other chimps.
