Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

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young's hill

Spring and Missy have sprung

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The chimpanzees (and humans) are continuing to enjoy the arrival of warmer spring days and many forages on Young’s Hill. Missy, never one to miss an adventurous moment, has been warming up her fire hose tightrope walking skills:

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I particularly love her great form in this photo:

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During one of the forages, Missy spotted a piece of corn on the cob which had gone unnoticed. Corn on the cob is a highly prized favorite among the chimpanzees and you can see her casually looking around to make sure it’s OK for her to take it, before scooping it up:

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Here she is enjoying some of her spoils as she relaxes in the sun:

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It was warm enough yesterday that we were even able to open the barn doors at the end of the playroom. When these doors are open, the chimps have a view of part of their garden and it’s a great spot to sit in the afternoon sun. Most of the chimps get pretty excited when the doors are open, but Missy in particular loves it! She asks us to open them all winter long, as if she hopes it might be spring out that side of the building, and it’s always hard to tell her we have to wait for warmer weather. Needless to say, between forages, tightrope walking, an open air playroom, and countless adventures, Missy seems pretty thrilled that spring has sprung at the sanctuary.

Venturing Out

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Before the chimpanzees go out onto Young’s Hill, they’ll sometimes stand at the door and contemplate for a moment. I often wonder what they’re thinking during this pause in their busy day. Considering that they spent the first few decades of their lives in tiny cages barely bigger than their bodies, I like to think they’re taking a moment to relish two acres of possibility.

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Today the ground is wet from the melting snow, so Missy’s excursions outside were brief and purposeful.

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All’s right with the world

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Days and days of cold, gray skies and icy, freezing fogs have visited us here at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest recently. However, that hasn’t deterred the chimpanzees from enjoying the privilege of Young’s Hill. Today was no exception; once finished with breakfast the chimpanzees ventured out into the frozen landscape to patrol, explore, and relish their freedom. I was lucky enough to capture an action sequence of Jamie climbing to the top of one of the wooden platforms in order to get a good view of her world. I hope you enjoy it!

Jamie approaches the pole to the wooden platform:
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Jamie looks up to survey the pole before climbing:
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Jamie begins her ascent:
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And makes her way up, hand over hand:
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Jamie dismounts and looks down to Missy (still sitting on the ground below):
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Once achieving the platform, Jamie surveys her domain:
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Going Her Own Way

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Annie has been steadily growing in confidence since arriving at the sanctuary. And with her newfound confidence has come an increased independence. There was a time when Annie wouldn’t leave her best friend Missy’s side. Missy was not only friend but security blanket. And while Missy is still no doubt Annie’s favorite person in the world, Annie is spending more and more time in peaceful solitude. It seems Annie’s finally learned to enjoy her own company.

This afternoon when Missy decided it was time for a little exercise on Young’s Hill, Annie followed her out but then went off in her own direction for a lazy stroll.

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After several minutes of sprints on the hill, Missy wore herself out and headed inside to the warm playroom to rest. Annie watched Missy go inside but took her time following. When she did go in a few minutes later, she stopped in the empty greenhouse for a few moments of alone time. (She found a leftover corn cob from lunch to wadge.)

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A little later, Annie headed into the playroom to curl up next to Missy. Despite her growing independence, Annie’s always appreciated the comfort that can be found in a good friend.

Foxie and the power outage

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It was a bit of a weird day at the chimp house today. For the past few days the area has been surrounded in freezing fog and the frost line can be seen just above where the sanctuary sits. The tree line above Young’s Hill is completely covered in hoar frost and it really looks magical. But even though it’s very cold outside, that hasn’t stopped the chimpanzees from venturing onto Young’s Hill for quick trips before returning to the warmth of the chimp house. Before going out this afternoon, I caught Foxie sitting in front of the door to Young’s Hill with her troll, seemingly debating if she felt like braving the cold with the other chimpanzees.

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Foxie and her troll seemed to have a brief consultation over the situation.

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I guess they came to an agreement and then Foxie tossed the troll on her back and off they went.

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Foxie on a platform with the icy tree line behind her.

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Other than the cold temperatures, the freezing fog hasn’t seemed to affect things too much down here. Until today. In the middle of the afternoon we suddenly lost power. This isn’t a common occurrence, and when it does happen, it usually doesn’t last long. Again, until today. It seems the ice had weighed down the power lines. When it became apparent that it might be awhile before our power was restored we ushered the chimpanzees inside and began our emergency protocol to get the generator running and make sure the chimp house stayed warm.

Here’s Jody bringing in her prized chunk of ice she found in one of the tire swings on the hill.

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Of course, the chimpanzees knew something was going on but handled it all with ease. Thankfully the power company arrived quickly and went to work on the problem. Not without the supervision of Foxie (and her troll), who watched from the window, where she kindly allowed me to snap a photo of her beautiful face.

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Perhaps thanks to Foxie and her troll’s supervision, the power company had everything up and running again just in time for dinner. One thing’s for sure, there is never a dull moment at the chimp house.

Another beautiful day

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Today was yet another unseasonably warm day, and the chimps enjoyed another lunch forage on the hill.

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Once they had found all the food, Missy and Jody went on a mission to find ice in the tire swings. Despite the warm weather, temperatures have been dropping to just below freezing overnight, leaving icy treats all over the hill in the morning.

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Jody was the big winner.

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Missy didn’t seem to mind too much – she had better things to do.

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Later, part of the group spent time at the top of Young’s Hill, soaking in the sun and enjoying the view of the neighbor’s farm, the train tracks, and the river.

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