Willy B

Word Around the Scuttlebutt

December 5, 2023 by Chad de Bree

You may be asking yourself, “What is a scuttlebutt?” Scuttlebutt is a U.S. Navy term for rumor or gossip. When on ship, a sailor’s water source was a “scuttlebutt.” “Scuttle” meaning drill and “butt” meaning cask. In layman’s terms, a scuttlebutt is a water fountain. This was just a long about way to say “water cooler talk;” a place where people gather to gossip.

The term (and concept) of scuttlebutt popped into my mind as I watched both groups converge on their tables or cattle troughs full of snow. My mind then wondered to what the chimps may be saying to each other in their secret language around the scuttlebutt. What kind of gossip would they tell each other?

Though I cannot say 100% for sure what they would gossip about, I think I have a decent guess on what Burrito would gossip about: the neighbors!

I will admit that I didn’t think of this blog until a little later on, so I missed out at the group gathering of Burrito’s group at the sandbox table. But I am not here empty handed.

Missy in particular has been seen at the scuttlebutt multiple times throughout the day

On her way to dinner, Negra stopped by for a quick refreshing treat

And of course sweet, sassy Foxie had to partake

Though the concept of snow is still new to Lucky’s group and they have yet to go onto the snow-glistened Bray, they have at least determined it’s a great treat.

(From left to right: Cy, Willy B, and Lucky on the log)

Rayne and Lucky in particular have been seen with snow throughout a majority of today

Willy B also was seen by caregivers returning to the source of the snow whenever he finished what he had

And Cy

There was also a nice moment with half-siblings Mave and Terry at the snow pile

Until something is invented to know what they are truly thinking, I will just sit back and imagine what they would gossip about.

Bonus photos!

A rare moment when Cy peels his eyes off his copy of People Magazine to see who is walking down the hallway

Rayne watching Terry and I grooming each other

Lastly, we are finally in the month of December! That means planning for Christmas is well upon its way. A lot has been added to our Amazon Wish List in preparation, with more being added each day. Be sure to check it out to see if there is anything you can help out with. We (chimpanzees and caregivers) would greatly appreciate it!

Caregivers, Assemble!

November 14, 2023 by Chad de Bree

I send my apologies to our supporters, followers, well-wishers, and passersby of today’s blog. Today is the first time staff had a meeting since a couple weeks before Jamieween. Usually, I can put together a blog and photos after the meetings, but since some time has passed since our last meeting, there was a lot to discuss. So please excuse today’s blog as it is really several ideas I had today to write about, but wasn’t able to let any of them to come to full fruition.

Willy B seemed a tad annoyed when I thought I would write a blog about him since it has been a little while

So I let that idea go.

Mave inspired the thought of trying to write about chimpanzee facial expressions

But a blog like that would require a little more time to do it justice.

Jamie carrying her boot onto Young’s Hill

And Cy carrying his magazine onto the Bray

I was going to have a montage of enrichment items the chimps bring with them into the outdoor enclosures, but I couldn’t find anybody else and I didn’t have time to go through our archives.

Rayne getting low to get a better look at the approaching stranger danger (really it was Jenna in her street closes that threw Rayne off)

And Jamie and Burrito going around Young’s Hill with caregivers Grace, Jenna, and Diana

Which in turn ended up Burrito going around Young’s Hill with me

Those last few sets of photos inspired me to think of writing a blog on chimpanzee/caregiver interactions/relationships. But again, time stopped me.

Maybe those topics will be covered someday, however today isn’t that day unfortunately.

And thank you to everyone that joined us during last nights online gathering for Comfort & Joy! If you couldn’t make it, you can watch the event on YouTube. And if you thought that was the end of the auction, it’s not! You still have time to bid on your favorite items until November 18th!

Perfectly Imperfect

November 7, 2023 by Chad de Bree

Picking and choosing which photos we include in the blog can be a daunting task. I can’t speak for my fellow caregivers, but there’s always some kind of embellishment that makes the photo unusable in my eyes. Whether it be bad lighting, a piece of poop center stage in the photo, a wound, caging getting in the way, a slow shutter speed which makes the photo blurry, etc. There is just always that one tiny thing that makes me call the photo bad, delete it, and move on.

Today is no exception. Between cleaning the enclosures to training new staff members, it has been a busy day here. When I finally got some time to go around and take some photos, I will admit I rushed it a bit. Mostly because though cleaning is over, training still continues into the afternoon as well as other Chimp House chores. I knew right off the bat that most of the photos I took were unusable (in my eyes at least) but I had some confidence there was at least a few decent ones in there some where.

Wrong! The vast majority I wasn’t a fan of. In fact, there wasn’t a single one I’m particularly attached to. There were, however, several that had potential to be great if it wasn’t for one thing or another I saw wrong in them. You might be wondering, “Why don’t you just Photoshop them?” Though Photoshop or any photo editing software is a great tool, we don’t use it in order to maintain our transparency to you all. Other than some basic color correcting, we don’t edit something out or in. Back in a former life as a photojournalist, our rule was simple as it relates to photo editing software. If you can’t do it in a dark room, then you shouldn’t do it in the software. We more or less follow that same basic rule.

That being said, here are some photos from today that had the potential of being great. Enjoy photos that would have been deleted on any other day.

Mave in mid-chew

This photo isn’t the portrayal of Mave I would want. Please trust me when I say she’s not scared here. She was just looking up and chewing snap peas when I took the photo

Honey B during a lunch forage

I forgot to reset the white balance on our camera which is why this and some other photos are either overexposed or have a orange/warm color hue to them. Plus she has a small scrape on her brow probably caused while chasing somebody

Gordo during the forage

I had the shutter speed lower than I thought, which is why this one is overexposed and blurry

Gordo again foraging

The caging got in the way which is why the center of the photo seems lighter than the rest

Gordo again!

The cause of lack of vibrant coloring is because the caging again was in the way. This means the caging was right smack dab in the middle of the lens’ focus

Also, I did spend some time trying correct that last one but it didn’t turn out like I had hoped for

Willy B and Honey B during the forage

This one isn’t terrible. I just took it with my camera phone, which the photographer in me thinks is cheating (I know. It absolutely is not and that’s a mindset that I’ve been trying to break for some time)

Honey B munching on some green onions

Burrito during breakfast with his apples

Low shutter speed again is the culprit in this blurry photo

Dora and Lucky head-to-head

Camera phone again plus it automatically set to a slower shutter speed and blurred Lucky out just a tad

Cy perusing through a magazine after lunch

Rayne watching me yesterday as I was cleaning the mezzanine

This was through a window that wasn’t cleaned yet. I tried to be creative with it, but it didn’t work out

Terry’s foot hanging off the platform in the one of his greenhouses after lunch

Though the caging got in front of the lens messing with the color scheme, this photo is still perfect because Terry is perfect!

Speaking of Terry, have you seen the Teeny Tiny Terry book in the Comfort & Joy auction? It truly is amazing and one of a kind! The auction is up and running through November 18th! Be sure to register and bid high and bid often!Good luck to everyone!

Never a Dull Moment

October 25, 2023 by Kelsi

I don’t think I have ever experienced a dull day here at CSNW. I truly don’t believe that there is such a thing with chimps. Especially when you have a chimp like Honey B always keeping you on your toes, or a chimp like Missy who seems to want nothing to do with humans, but all of the sudden you are playing chase and tug-a-war. Or when you put out enrichment, like a giant box, just hoping a chimp like Cy will hide in it while his friend Willy B playfully beats the box from the outside. Everyday there a lot of things happening here, even when we are there to observe. I think it is a testament to what sanctuaries like Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest can do. Sanctuaries offer dedicated care, security, stability, and opportunities so that every chimp can flourish and grow.

If you think we are as great as I do, we have an opportunity for you to spread your kind words! We would love it if you shared your love of Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest TODAY by going to this site: https://greatnonprofits.org/reviews/write/chimpanzee-sanctuary-northwest and giving us a rating. The deadline for us to be a “top rated” nonprofit for 2023 is October 31st and we need nine more people to submit a rating. You all say such nice things about the chimpanzees, the staff, and the sanctuary everyday, so we thought you’d take this challenge. You can even take something you’ve already said and copy and paste it as a rating. And we can update the silly badge on our website and feel good at the same time. Thank you!

The Grass Isn’t Lava Anymore

October 23, 2023 by J.B.

It seems like all of the Californians are making great strides these days. Honey B, Mave, and Dora have all been on the Bray multiple times (true, only to chase the boys but hey, you’ve got to start somewhere), Cy is exploring the very top of the hill, and now Willy B is learning that while he may not enjoy it, the grass is not, in fact, lava.

I’m posting this video to celebrate Willy’s accomplishment, but I can’t help reflecting on how great a guy Cy is. Willy B is a great guy, too, but he’s not always an easy friend to have. He’s riddled with anxiety, he’s socially awkward, and while he’s not particularly aggressive himself, his displays and outbursts often have the effect of stirring his group mates into conflict. Whether Cy sees past all this, or just realizes that he has to work with what he was given, it amazes me to see how patient and kind he can be to his new buddy. Willy B may not always deserve Cy’s patience and understanding, but he’d be lost without it.

By the way, are you getting excited for Jamieween? Care to help us throw a big party? Check out our wish list here.

Unseen Bits

October 18, 2023 by Kelsi

As caregivers, we collect photos and videos on our phones constantly throughout the week. However, not everything makes it to the blog. Often when we get to our designated blog day, the chimps do something that inspires an idea or specific theme so we end up saving the content for later, or if we are nice, we share it with a co-worker if they are in need. The only thing about saving it for later is that it can get lost on our camera roll. Luckily for all of you, I have found some of the best unseen clips from the vault (aka my phone) and made a video to share! It would be a tragedy if these videos did not get shared with all of you!

Photos from the vault!

Terry grooming Honey B. It was such a tender and sweet moment between the two of them:

Rayne intensely grooming Mave:

Rayne striking a pose on the firehose:

A bonus photo!

This morning as we all arrive to the sanctuary it was very chill, but the morning fog looked so beautiful:

Jamie seemed to enjoy the fog and crisp air because she was so excited to go for a walk this morning. She came sprinting out of the raceway!

The Humans Aren’t Alright

October 10, 2023 by Chad de Bree

(Note: Before reading on, just know, the humans are indeed okay! It’s just a play off of yesterday’s blog title: The Chimps Aren’t Alright)

Before we get into the blog, let’s play a game! Can you guess who was hoarding PVC Tubes from the night before in their nest? The answer will be at the end of the blog!

Today is World Mental Health Day! World Mental Health Day was first celebrated in 1992 as a way to raise awareness, education, and to try to help break the stigma which surrounds mental health. With it being today, I thought I would talk about something that is gaining more traction in the world of chimpanzee caregiving: Compassion Fatigue.

Compassion fatigue affects those who work in a occupation relating to caregiving; i.e. doctors, nurses, EMT, psychologists, physical therapists, veterinarians, and yes, caregivers of both human and non-human animals. In 2010, Dr. Patricia Potter described compassion fatigue as the “traumatization of helpers through their efforts at helping others” in her study of compassion fatigue in oncology nurses. Compassion fatigue consists of two things: burn out and secondary traumatic stress. Caregivers who are burnt out may experience unhappiness, disconnectedness, insensitivity to their work environment, exhaustion, and feelings of being overwhelmed, bogged down, and being out of touch of who they want to be. Secondary traumatic stress is when caregivers simply cannot get those whom they help out of their thoughts. It can cause sleeplessness, forgetfulness, and the inability to separate private and professional life.

Dr. Potter’s study was then replicated by Dr. Mary Lee Jensvold of the Fauna Foundation and Central Washington University to specifically look at compassion fatigue in chimpanzee caregivers. To the surprise of almost no one, chimpanzee caregivers experience compassion fatigue. I will plead the 5th on saying if any of my fellow caregivers here (both staff and volunteers) have or have not experienced compassion fatigue at any point, but I will talk about my own experiences with it in an attempt to try to break the stigma around openly talking about mental health.

I have showcased some of the symptoms of compassion fatigue. For me, it’s very hard to separate my personal life from my caregiving one. The chimpanzees are always on my mind, even on my weekends, holidays, and vacation. I sometimes stay awake at night, particularly if the chimpanzees have been worked up and there’s a lot of fights or other emergencies. I also have this constant, nagging feeling what I am doing is not good enough for them. Not to say what I do is terrible, just that feeling like it’s not enough for them. Even just trying to hang out with the chimpanzees can take its toll when you have not just one or two trying to vie for your attention, but several. It’s just one of those moments when you wish you could clone yourself several times over, but can’t, so you’re going to leave somebody disappointed. A terrible feeling for a caregiver.

Though I know I personally will not be able to address every single one of these things that contribute to my own fatigue, I can address most of them.

Recent articles detailing compassion fatigue do have many tips in trying to combat it. This next part is mostly for other caregivers around the world, but for all the well wishers still reading, maybe you can use it as well. My first humble suggestion is to read more about compassion fatigue, what it is and what are the symptoms of it. The two articles linked in this posting are great starts. Second suggestion is to look after yourself. It is 100% okay to take those days off you’ve been wanting to take. Go see family and friends. Go for a hike. Go travel to places you have never been to but always wanted to go. Do whatever it is that makes you happy and brings peace into your life. Don’t think about work. Your time off is just that: YOUR time off. It’s incredibly difficult to not think about work when you aren’t there, I know. But you have to in order to continue on in this field. Turn off you work notifications. Hide anything that is work related in your home. And most of all, trust your fellow caregivers. They are well trained, know their job, are just as capable as you, and can handle anything while you’re away. (I don’t mean to imply I don’t trust the other caregivers here. I do 100%. But I know that is a feeling associated with compassion fatigue.)

This job is a truly unique life experience. It is not a mundane, putting checks in boxes type of career. You constantly have to be on your toes, think outside the box, and be prepared for things you probably haven’t thought of. This job requires a lot of stamina, passion, and hard work and decision making. In order to do that, you have to take care of yourself and recharge. I once asked an activist I know how she is able to continue to carry so much passion for what she believes in and continue to fight for it. She told me, “you cannot pour from an empty cup. Make sure you’re taking care of yourself mentally and physically so that cup can always have something to pour.” So those are the words I will leave you with.

Now onto another plugin. Jamieween is quickly approaching. Be sure to continue to check out our Amazon Wish List for items for one of the biggest celebrations we celebrate! In fact, today and tomorrow is Amazon Prime Day! So some things may be at a reduced cost!

And it wouldn’t be a blog without some photos, right!?

Negra fishing peanut butter out from between Frisbees