Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

sabrina

Send Love to the Caregivers

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Today is Animal Sanctuary Caregiver Day, a day co-founded by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS) & the North American Primate Sanctuary Alliance (NAPSA), as a way to celebrate and recognize the contributions of animal caregivers to the sanctuary field.

You know how amazing the staff and volunteer caregivers are at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest. You know they are some of the most big-hearted, hard working people out there. They take their jobs seriously and put everything  into providing for the chimpanzees and bovines.

Their hard work and the results of that work are shared every day through this blog for you to get a glimpse into what sanctuary life is all about.

For this year’s Animal Sanctuary Caregiver Day, I once again invite you to share your thoughts about the staff and volunteer caregivers and the work they do in the comments. Let’s hear it for the caregivers!

staff caregiver Katelyn with Foxie
staff caregiver Anna preparing morning medication for the chimps
staff caregiver Kelsi placing a lunch forage up high on Young’s Hill
staff caregiver Chad playing with Burrito
staff caregiver Grace helping with Terry’s tooth extraction in the clinic
staff caregiver Jenna kissing Lucky through a window
staff caregivers Sabrina and Krissy serving Jamie’s group together
staff caregiver Ellen loving on Meredith
volunteer caregiver and occasional fill-in staff caregiver Dusty wrapping presents for the chimps

And a huge shout-out to all of the volunteers, who play various important caregiving roles. If you are interested in volunteering, visit our volunteer page!

P.S. The Sweet 16 Online Auction features a painting, Spring Rayne, by staff caregiver Ellen! Bid on it to celebrate all caregivers and the many talents they bring to our world!

Hello from CSNW’s newest caregiver, Sabrina

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Hello all, my name is Sabrina and I am the newest caregiver here at CSNW!

As a Pacific Northwest native, I decided last year it was finally time to return home in order to be closer to my friends and family.  Fortuitously, CSNW was in need of a new caregiver soon after my return home – it’s like everything aligned perfectly for me so I can continue to work with chimpanzees in sanctuary.

Unlike the other caregivers at CSNW, this sanctuary is entirely new to me since I’ve never volunteered or interned here before being hired on as caregiver. The last couple months I have had the pleasure of getting to know the chimps, the cattle, the humans and getting a lay of the land at the sanctuary

Prior to working with chimpanzees, I spent many years working with domestic animals, mostly dogs, in shelters and veterinary environments. In my 30’s I decided to return to school and obtained my B.A. in Anthropology from University of Massachusetts – Boston, which led me to an internship at Center for Great Apes in Florida. This was my first experience with great apes and I was instantly hooked! I was offered a job at Chimp Haven as soon as I graduated. I have worked with over 300 chimps in Louisiana over the last five years and during my time at Chimp Haven I filled several roles including Caregiver, Pharmacy Technician and Positive Reinforcement Training Coordinator for the Veterinary department; I’ve learned innumerable lessons from the chimps I’ve cared for and built enduring relationships over the years built on trust and respect and I am thrilled to be able to continue my work here at CSNW.

 

One more thing! Don’t forget to sign up for next Saturday’s Virtual Visit about medical care. It should be a fascinating look at the sanctuary’s veterinary care process.

Welcome Sabrina!

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Last month we added our newest staff caregiver Sabrina to the team! Sabrina comes to CSNW with a wealth of  experience from her former job at Chimp Haven in Shreveport, Louisiana.  The last few weeks she has been learning our cleaning and safety protocols and starting to sow the seeds of friendship with the chimpanzees.  Next on the training docket she will learn to operate the remote doors and shift the chimps around their enclosures for cleaning.  At that point she will also take on the task of blog writer and get the opportunity to thoroughly introduce herself to all our followers.

Welcome aboard Sabrina, we’re so lucky to have you!

Lucky and Terry investigate Sabrina’s boots: