Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

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rescue

Different ways of getting around

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This post was originally about family. I was writing it in my head throughout the day. I was going to talk about how the chimpanzees at the sanctuary are really a lot like other families because they did not choose to be together, but they had to figure out their relationships and find the things they liked about each other.

More words, hopefully an interesting insight, blah, blah, blah.

Then I watched the video clips that I had taken and I was fascinated just by the way the different chimpanzees in the clips moved.

If you’ve ever been hanging out at a race to cheer on a friend or relative running, I’m sure you were surprised by the variation in the way that human beings move their bodies when they are running. There are a few people who look natural and graceful while running, but most of us are a bit on the awkward side of things when it comes to speedy locomotion. I think the same can be said for chimpanzees.

We primates will not be mistaken for cheetahs anytime soon, but we do okay getting from one place to another, and sometimes, like Missy and Burrito and Jody and Foxie in the video above, we can have fun doing it.

Bonus photo of Annie’s sporty look today:

The King of the Courtyard and His Growing Kingdom

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Willy B has been exploring more of his modest kingdom.

In his quest for scattered grapes, he has taken his first tentative steps on grass and dirt and away from the safety and security of familiar objects and structures. At times he is bold.

Other times he is more cautious.

This morning he inspected the grass from the safety of a plastic tub, as though he was in a dinghy setting out from a larger vessel.

While he is still hesitant to step on grass, he no longer has any fear of being outdoors. In the nine years since we opened Young’s Hill, I can’t remember a single time that any of the Cle Elum Seven took a nap outside. They run and climb and swing, they forage and they hunt, they patrol and survey. They even relax at times. But they never nap outdoors.

According to Willy B, they don’t know what they’re missing.

One of the things I’ve been meaning to do for a while is to explain what our plans are for the sanctuary over the next couple of years, particularly as they relate to Willy B, Honey B, and Mave. I know it can be confusing. We had hoped to integrate our three new residents with the Cle Elum Seven, knowing that we could house them separately if it didn’t work out. As you know, it didn’t work out, so we are now following Plan B. As far as backup plans go, things are pretty good – but we have a lot of work ahead of us, and I hope to clarify how we intend to meet the needs of these three as well as those still to come.

Phase 1 – The First Step in our Expansion

The Californians, as many of our supporters call them, live in our new wing, which was the first part of a three-phase expansion plan. There are smaller indoor rooms on the first floor (Front Rooms), a larger room upstairs (The Mezzanine), and an arched tunnel that connects Front Room 5 to the outdoor area (The Chute).

The Front Rooms
The Mezzanine
The Chute

The Courtyard

When we reverted to Plan B, our first thought was to alternate access to the 2-acre outdoor area, Young’s Hill, between the Seven and the Californians until we could create a separate outdoor area. But we realized that having a smaller yard to themselves would be safer and less intimidating for the new guys as they adjusted to the outdoors, so we carved out a section of Young’s Hill just for Willy B, Honey B, and Mave. The Courtyard, as we call it, is a separate space but at this time it is only separated by a single fence so we don’t allow the two groups out at the same time.

Next Steps: Phases 2 and 3

Phases 2 and 3 of our expansion plans were developed in conjunction with Phase 1, but building enclosures for chimps requires a lot of money so we knew we would have to break the project up into manageable pieces. Phase 2 consists of a large indoor playroom, divided into two sections, with 20-foot ceilings, catwalks all around, and large tree-like climbing structures from floor to ceiling in the middle of each room. Phase 3 consists of a divided greenhouse enclosure, connected to the playrooms, with a mulch floor and removable polycarbonate panels on the roof and three sides to provide warmth and shelter during the winter months (just like our existing greenhouse for the Seven). Originally these additions were designed for one group, but we decided to enlarge and divide each area to give us more options. Now, when both phases are complete, we will not only have a larger home for Honey B, Willy B, and Mave, but we will also be able to take in another group of chimpanzees from the now defunct Wildlife Waystation. The groups could be integrated but the space will allow two groups to remain separate if needed.

The south elevation of Phase 1
South elevation showing the addition of Phases 2 and 3

 

The view from above, showing the original building (on the left, oriented east/west) and the Phase 1 addition (on the right). The additions will extend into the empty area where the tractor is parked.

 

The future floor plan, showing Phases 2 and 3.

 

Funds for Phase 2 were raised before the pandemic struck, so we are excited to be breaking ground this year, as soon as permits are issued, with the hope of seeing Honey B, Willy B, and Mave enjoy their added space by winter. To save on construction costs, we will also be completing the foundation, steel framing, and hallway of the Phase 3 greenhouses at the same time, with the caging and polycarbonate panels to be installed later once additional funds are raised – hopefully by next spring or summer.

Additional Outdoor Enclosures

One thing we have learned over the years, much to our frustration, is that plans change. Five years ago, we made the decision to work towards expanding the sanctuary so we could take in more chimps. But there have been so many twists and turns along the way that making plans has been like shooting at a moving target. Ultimately, we focused most of our attention on the initial stages and left a lot to be determined as events unfold. Like the outdoor areas, for example.

Now that the future of the sanctuary is coming into focus, we realize that our three new residents, and those still to come, need their own outdoor spaces. To accomplish this, we have decided to rebuild the fences to create an additional 2-acre fenced enclosure, tentatively named The Bray in memory of our dear friend and former board member, James Douglas. James’ wife, Jennifer, is a long-time friend, supporter, and volunteer. She is sponsoring a good part of this project and chose the name, which we love. “Brae” is the Celtic word for hillside and James hailed from Bray, Ireland.

Enlarging the total footprint of the enclosures was only made possible because we now own all of the surrounding parcels and we don’t have to worry about maintaining a large buffer by the property lines like we did when we built Young’s Hill. Still, we can’t infringe on the power line easement to the south of the building and the topography limits how far up the hill we can build fences so we are limited to these two large enclosures at this time.

But because we may end up with three separate groups in the end, we do plan to build a third outdoor area just west of the new addition, opposite the building from the fenced enclosures. This one, however, will be a more traditional closed-top design. Why? As I mentioned, space is certainly a factor, but we also find that some chimps, even after several years, are more comfortable in closed-top enclosures and make more use of them. Ultimately it’s about choices and flexibility. We want Honey B and Mave to join Willy B outside and we want to give them all the time in the world to make that decision for themselves. But it never hurts to have other options. Other chimps will benefit from the option as well, as groups can be rotated throughout the facility to experience different enclosures.

The sudden closure of the Wildlife Waystation has focused our efforts as well as our resolve to expand. Like other sanctuaries, we will always struggle to find the right balance between providing what is best for our residents and responding promptly to crises like this. At times it feels like we are too cautious, but we know that our primary responsibility is to those already in our care. With the future of the remaining Waystation chimps uncertain, we are working as hard as we can to complete this expansion project so that we can welcome more chimpanzees to Willy B’s kingdom.

The After-Party

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Chad and I were just watching Honey B sitting on a pile of enrichment as a dragon would perch upon piles of stolen treasure. Chad remarked “Honey B is the kind of person who would leave their Halloween decorations up for months afterwards.” He’s right.

With all of the celebrating we’ve been doing lately, we’re standing beside her decision to preserve her hoard. Heck, we’ll even help her out.

This past week, we celebrated Honey B’s first birthday as a resident of CSNW (her 31st overall). Then, we briefly paused to celebrate Animal Sanctuary Caregiver Day with some vegan pizza and a group walk around Young’s Hill with the chimps. Finally, the festivities culminated in yesterday’s massive birthday bash to celebrate Negra’s 47th year on Earth (and her 12th as a fully-retired sanctuary resident).

In addition to reflecting on the twelve years since the chimps arrived, we’ve also been absolutely thrilled with the success of our virtual online event, the Queen’s Brunch, through which we will continue to provide for chimpanzees. If you’re inclined to bid on any remaining items or simply make a donation, the event is still going on! In light of everything that has gone on this year, we are blown away by how amazing our supporters have been. This most recent outpouring of contributions, along with all of the assistance we had received previously, has been incredible. Thank you.

Today’s blog features a video of Honey B looking proudly content amid the piles of craft paper, plastic toys and fleece blankets that are left over from her epic birthday party. As J.B. mentioned on Friday, Honey B was reluctant to leave her spread of enrichment items so the crew decided to put everything back as soon as they were done cleaning the floors. We continued that tradition today, and will probably continue to do so until Honey B is ready for some new experiences. For now, though, we’re enjoying the after-party as much as she is.

Happy birthday, dude.

Happy Animal Sanctuary Caregiver Day!

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Today the sanctuary community is celebrating the fourth annual Animal Sanctuary Caregiver Day. Here at CSNW, we celebrated a day early because our staff were all here at the same time for Honey B’s birthday party and you can’t share pizza and ice cream over Zoom. Normally we don’t eat where the chimps can see us but there’s not enough room for us to maintain our distance indoors. Notice someone spying on us?

Not wanting to leave Jamie out of the celebration, the team finished lunch quickly and went on a run around the hill.

Burrito tried his best to keep up.

This is what impresses me most about our staff and volunteers. We set aside a brief moment for everyone to relax and eat and all they can think about is making Jamie happy.

I also appreciate the thoughtfulness that goes into their work. Yesterday, Honey B had her first birthday celebration here at CSNW, and the staff, led by Chad, our Enrichment Coordinator, spent weeks brainstorming ideas for her party. It’s easy to throw a party, but this had to be a Honey B party. And it was a hit – so much so that Honey B will not let the party end. Seriously, she won’t let us go in to clean up.  I guess we can keep the party going another day? (Update: At dinner she reluctantly let us close off the mezzanine. I made a deal with her that we’d move all the stuff, clean, and then put it all back again. She is pleased to once again be buried in her birthday mess.)

The most difficult thing about being a caregiver is not the physical work, though it can be exhausting. It’s the caring. It’s the relentless searching, day after day, for new ways to make others happy, even though you know it’s never going to be good enough. It is hard and it wears you out. I’m glad we have a day to formally acknowledge the importance of sanctuary caregivers. We are so grateful to our staff and volunteers, and to everyone else in our sanctuary community, for never letting up.

I’m sure this guy is grateful, too.

Tomorrow we celebrate the 12th Anniversary of the arrival of the Cle Elum Seven and Negra’s 47th birthday with our first ever virtual celebration. We hope you will celebrate with us! Join us on at this link for The Queen’s Brunch Facebook Live virtual event at 11:00 am Pacific Time on June 13th (you don’t need to have a Facebook account to watch!).

Health and Happiness

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Here at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest, we take the physical health of our residents quite seriously.

Each day, the staff works as a team to make sure all of the essential tasks get done, and one necessary chore is the administration of medications to individual chimpanzees. Today, Chad was responsible for getting everyone their prescribed doses and recommended dietary supplements. Currently, we monitor conditions and treatments using paper forms that we then transcribe into a digital database. One of my ongoing projects is to coordinate our transition to a more modern system that allows us to record, discuss, warehouse, summarize and retrieve all of this information in a more centralized fashion. It’s a daunting endeavor, but I’m hopeful that it will enable us to be more efficient while continuing to provide the chimps with optimal health care.

The whiteboard, currently

Some of the chimps’ health concerns are chronic conditions that require long-term solutions. Burrito, for example, receives a daily cocktail of meds to manage his known heart condition. At other times, we may give chimpanzees short courses of anti-inflammatory or antibiotic drugs to help temporary wounds heal. It’s no secret that primates, even in the best conditions, occasionally have altercations that result in injury, so the number of individual chimps on meds waxes and wanes on a weekly basis. Right now, Jody and Foxie are being treated for unrelated, minor bite wounds located on each of their right feet. Jody’s injured foot is the same one that Dr. Erin investigated during her most recent trip to our on-site veterinary clinic. For the most part, though, the other chimps have been loyally serving as Jody’s primary “doctors” by keeping the site clean. Hygiene is almost always a group project for social primates such as chimpanzees, so it’s normal to see them tending to each other’s injuries as the lacerations and bruises slowly heal.

Annie (back left) and Missy (right) groom Jody (laying down)
Jody groomed Foxie a few weeks ago; what goes around comes around!

The cattle have also received some preventative health care lately. For those of you who may be unfamiliar with bovines, their feet are covered by cloven (two-toed) hooves. These structures are composed of keratin, just like claws and nails. The hooves of domestic cattle grow at a constant rate because their wild ancestors ranged across vast steppes and prairies; the constant travel across such rough substrate would gradually wear down their hooves if they didn’t offset the process with new growth.

Betsy, one of the four cattle

Modern cattle, especially those inhabiting large-scale dairies and ranches, need their hooves trimmed regularly since they generally roam over shorter distances and softer terrain. The CSNW cattle have been exploring and grazing a variety of areas since they arrived, including the sanctuary’s expansive South Pasture, so they don’t need trims as frequently as other cows. Still, they need to have their feet checked and their hooves trimmed at least once a year (although we delayed this last trim due to the public health crisis). Overgrown hooves could lead to further problems, such as painful split nails, so we scheduled a professional hoof trimmer to take care of them this past week. He was excited to help out a sanctuary and was awed by Nutmeg’s massive frame. In the beef and dairy industries, steers like Nutmeg don’t live long enough to reach that size. He took a selfie with Nutmeg to show his friends and family, and the gigantic bovine seemed to make a new friend.

The professional trimmer shaves down Honey’s hooves
Nutmeg licks the truck…

The trimming process is fascinating and, admittedly, a bit tense. The cattle have to be herded into a small corral and then led one-by-one down a chute into a tilt table. The tilt table firmly sandwiches them while they’re standing upright and then tips them on their side so that the trimmer can safely shave down the ends of their hooves. This step goes remarkably fast, though, and also gave Dr. Erin an opportunity to give the cattle their injectable annual vaccines. Within seconds, each cow is lowered back down and released. You’d think that they would be upset or afraid, but each of them seemed more interested in the trimmer’s truck and table apparatus. Nutmeg tried to sniff and lick everything, including the truck itself. Just minutes later, the cattle were already marching back to the pasture like nothing had happened.

…and does a blorp.

Of course, health involves much more than medications and procedures. Over the past few decades, countless studies have supported that there are both tangible and intangible health benefits generated from having active lifestyles and enriching environments. Professionals in our field generally use the term enrichment to refer to puzzles, nesting materials, play structures, and other provisions that were once considered non-essential. More broadly, the term can be used to encompass anything and everything that contributes to the health and happiness of the chimpanzees. Burrito’s sanctuary experience, for example, is often enriched by rowdy play sessions in the Greenhouse. Foxie’s is enriched by a variety of dolls. Jamie’s is enriched by exposure to new footwear (and pictures of footwear arranged in a photo book, apparently).

Burrito goofs around outside
Foxie sits in the Greenhouse with a doll
Jamie sits inside with her new book

That brings me to today’s video (embedded above). One of the caregivers on the Saturday shift (Diana? Kelsi? Anna? J.B.?) threw a roll of surplus raffle tickets into the enrichment baskets that were specially prepared for this morning. Maybe the idea was inspired by the ongoing virtual auction and upcoming Queen’s Brunch celebration. (Note: You can see the items up for auction > here <. Have you seen the print of Willy B that’s receiving bids? What a cool-looking dude…)

Mave lays amid the shredded tickets

Whatever the case, the raffle tickets were a hit with Honey B, Mave and Willy B, and we all took a break from our chores to watch them roll around in the piles of torn paper. Staying healthy, after all, can’t be done purely through paperwork and pills. Sometimes it’s having fun (and watching chimpanzees have fun) that makes the biggest difference. Burrito knows this well.

 

 

 

 

Training Fun

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Getting chimpanzees to participate in their own medical care is incredibly important for their physical and psychological health. But some chimps, like Foxie, are reluctant to take part. After three decades in laboratories, who could blame her? But with patience, and lots of positive reinforcement, the chimps do learn to trust us. Sometimes, you just have to bend the rules and have a little fun.

Willy B spent some quality time in the courtyard today. I watched as he walked about eight feet across the grass to retrieve a cherry from the ground. He used a small plastic chair almost like a walker so that he had a grip on something familiar. Once he was safely back on the boardwalk, he pant-hooted and then climbed back up to the platform to relax. He even laid down in the shade out there for a while. He’s getting to the point where he only goes back inside for lunch…what a difference a month makes.

And guess who reached out to grab some cabbage from the boardwalk? This is how Willy B started – we’ll see if Mave follows the same course.