Jamie and Foxie spent some quality time with trolls today. I still can’t get over how integral troll dolls have become in the lives of these chimps…
troll
Chimpanzees and dolls
Foxie’s not the only chimpanzee with a doll. In addition to countless examples of other captive apes carrying trolls, Sponge Bobs, and stuffed chimps, there is now evidence of wild chimpanzees treating sticks as dolls.
Knowing how intelligent and imaginative chimpanzees can be, this shouldn’t be surprising. But I can’t help being amazed. One young chimp was actually seen making a second nest, just for his doll…
Playful Jody
In one of our recent blog comments, the topic of whether or not Foxie likes any other types of dolls (other than troll dolls) came up. Diana explained that for the most part, it seems like Foxie doesn’t like stuffed animals and that she and Jody will sometimes team up and violently shred them. Though I’ve seen Jody do this many times, Diana saying that reminded me of this clip I caught on Thanksgiving Day. Maybe it’s a love/hate kind of thing…?
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.
Snow day
What do you do when it snows in early November? If you are Jackie, you give the troll dolls “snow-fro’s” and put them out as part of the chimps’ dinner forage.
Happy Foxie
We should all be more like Foxie…
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.
