We’re always on the hunt for new enrichment ideas. Here are a couple simple ones that we’ve recently introduced. Both are Jamie-approved!
tool use
Trying new things
The other day, after the PRT session that Elizabeth filmed, Jamie and I followed a typical post-PRT routine. Because I had spent the last fifteen minutes requesting that she do things, it was her turn to request that I do something (I’m pretty sure that Jamie believes it is ALWAYS time for the humans to do something for her, but I digress). So I put on her latest favorite pair of boots, we did a perimeter walk, and afterward we settled in for a grooming session in the greenhouse.
Jamie is easily the most dexterous chimpanzee I’ve ever known, and she’s a master at using tools. Her fine-motor ability is really quite impressive. Just watch this video of Jamie giving J.B. a “manicure” and read this story about her tool-altering skills and forethought.
It was just Jamie in the greenhouse, grooming my fingers and the boots, when Annie came over with a tool of her own.
For the first several years of Annie’s sanctuary life, she didn’t pay a whole lot of attention to the humans – not because she wasn’t interested in us, but, I think, because she was a ball of anxiety, and she didn’t want to over-step her place in the social world of chimpanzees and humans. We have written many times on the blog about Annie’s ever-growing confidence in the last few years (for example, this touching post from Elizabeth).
We’ve witnessed all of the chimpanzees trying new things over the last nine+ years at the sanctuary. We’ve gotten to know them so well that when they do something new, it stands out. You may already be familiar with “Fake Neggie” – a nickname for Missy when she is adopting Negra’s quintessential blanket-over-head nesting style.
You may not know that there was a time a few years ago when Negra decided troll dolls were her thing too, carrying one with her from bed to meals to adventures on Young’s Hill.
It lasted for a few weeks, then the fad seemed to pass for Negra and she’s been mostly troll-less ever since, leaving the doll obsession to Foxie.
Jody is sometimes seen with troll dolls, and Annie tries them out once in a while too.
Imitation is an important part of observing and learning. J.B. wrote a blog post back in 2012 about how copying the behavior of others shouldn’t be dismissed as somehow intellectually unimpressive. It’s worth the read.
When Annie confidently walked towards me with her rather blunt tool and pushed it out through the caging to groom the boot I was wearing, my smile could not have been any bigger. She was clumsy and awkward with the over-sized tool she had chosen, but she gave it a go, even with boss Jamie sitting right there to watch.
Annie didn’t stay long, and I don’t think she had any kind of magical insight about why Jamie spends so much time engaging in this behavior.
To have an interesting and full life and to get a better idea of who you are, you have to try new things – even things you aren’t sure you will be good at doing. Annie seems to know this now. She’s 100% signed up for this sanctuary life, and I have no doubt she and her chimpanzee companions will continue to try new things, figuring out more about themselves and delighting and surprising us along the way.
Peanut butter in containers for evening enrichment
Evening enrichment puzzles are given to all of the chimps at the close of the day, when staff are finishing tasks before leaving for the night. Watch the video to see how Jody and Burrito use tools and their own creativity to get at the peanut butter in the bottom of the containers.
Salon time
Jamie’s Mission Today
If you are new to the blog, Jamie is our master tool user here at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest. When she has something on her mind, she tends to find just the tool to get the job done. Sometimes she finds small sticks and plants on Young’s Hill to use (the 2 acre outdoor enclosure), while other times she picks from an assortment of enrichment objects we give to the chimps.
Check out J.B.’s recent video blog post of the chimps using various tools at the sanctuary.
This afternoon, I was taking photos of Annie in the Playroom, with her leg up in the air, grooming herself. It was a quiet, peaceful moment, when all of the sudden, Jamie came running through the doorway between the Greenhouse and the Playroom. Her mission….
…yes, you probably guessed it. It was to get chunks of snow from Young’s Hill.
Once she dug at the snow, chunks came off and she brought them back to the Greenhouse to eat.
Tool Use
Tool use was once thought to be a defining characteristic of the human species.
Digging Out
Our cold snap seems to be over for the time being. Today’s high of 30° is a marked improvement over the highs in the teens that we’ve been experiencing for the last several days. This combined with some welcome sunshine means that Jamie is very eager to get outside. Unfortunately, the chimps’ outdoor habitat is still covered with a thick blanket of snow (including several inches of fresh powder from last night). Jamie briefly considered shoveling herself a path out, but ultimately thought better of it.