Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

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Unexpected Story Time

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Last week, Cy was sitting in the front rooms with an orangutan book. While he absolutely loves to read, he was not even touching this one. However, to my surprise, when I sat down to spend time with him, he slid the book my way. Cy does not usually hand over his reading material, so this was unexpected. I even said to him, “You gave it back?!”. Instead of leaving to swap out his book with a different one, I decided to read it to him. Cy loves having quiet moments with caregivers so I assumed he would not mind. As I started reading, I had no idea that I would soon have a front room full of chimpanzees listening to facts about orangutans.

Dora and Honey B came first.

Then Mave.

Then Rayne.

Terry.

Gordo.

Lucky.

I somehow had eight chimps gathered around to listen. I made sure to hold the book up after every page so everyone could see all of the pictures.

I will admit, since you cannot see their faces well on the camera footage, some enjoyed it more than others. Honey B appeared captivated and enjoyed looking at the pictures. I could tell Terry just wanted to groom my shoes. Gordo did not even face my direction. However, with the exception of Willy B, they all chose to gather and that felt pretty special to me.

After a few minutes had passed, the audience started to leave. First went Gordo, followed by Mave, and Lucky. Then, Cy started blowing raspberries demanding his book to be returned to him. I slid the book under the caging and he immediately grabbed it and left to the Mezzanine. He had had enough.

Please enjoy the video up above showing these events!

Today is for Oliver

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Today is a special sponsor-a-day from supporter Kery Shaw about a rescued senior dog that she and her partner Terran cared for during his last months.

I would hazard to guess that most of the people reading this have had some personal connection to animals who were rescued, and all of you will appreciate Oliver’s story, as shared by Kery.

Oliver was a blind and deaf fifteen-year-old chihuahua terrier mix. Last year he was seen being kicked out of a car and dumped in LA California. A good samaritan witnessed this, and then saw Oliver walking around in circles. He/She picked Oliver up and then shared his story on social media.

A woman named Janie Mudrick, who works with Hand in Paw Rescue, contacted my best friend Piper Wood, founder of that rescue, asking if they could take custody of Oliver. I had been following Oliver’s story for a while and was trying to figure out a way that Terran & I could help.

After months of Piper having him and not being able to find a home, Terran and I offered to foster Oliver, in the hope of relieving some of her burden. After only a few days I had convinced Terran that we were his best option, and that truthfully no one could love or care for him like us. Being a senior dog and so severely neglected and abused, I honestly had no idea how much longer he had for this world, but we knew that we wanted to give him as much love as possible in the time he had.

On Valentine’s Day of this year, we had officially adopted him. Oliver had good days and bad days. He was a fussy eater and sometimes he kept us up in the middle of the night. Often he left us worried and scared with his seizures and feet swelling. Oliver loved the park–since he was blind, he loved being able to smell everything. He also loved salads, his vegetables, and “beyond chicken”. Oliver’s favorite movie was Pretty Woman, I think because it has such a great soundtrack. He loved music. The Opera scene was his favorite. Oliver was easy going. Terran and I would take him everywhere. He loved his stroller and his carry bag. He was always cold, but never fussed, even when I put his onesies on him. Oliver never barked, except for when he dreamed. Overall, he was the sweetest dog and we miss him dearly.

My advice to everyone is to rescue, especially senior animals. They are truly special.

 

Kery’s story struck a chord with me, having cared for a dog into her senior years. And, more close to CSNW, while you may not realize it between Burrito’s young-at-heart antics and Missy’s always-on-the-move persona, all of the Cle Elum Seven chimpanzees are considered senior. Each day with them is, absolutely, truly special.

Thanks to Kery for sharing this story and caring for Oliver and to everyone who has taken in someone in need.

 

Negra under blanket