SO SORRY for falling off the wagon there, life got a little ahead of me there for a week and I am just now catching up! I've been trying to step away from the computer more as the weather gets better and I am able to spend more time in the garden, and for a second I forgot I had this wonderful blog! Shame on me as a 22 year old forgetting to write about MY adventures. lolz.
Saying that nothing of note happened at the sanctuary is like saying "yeah I went to Paris the other day but I didn't do anything cool." What I mean to say is that SO MANY THINGS happened yesterday during my shift, but things that probably most of you won't think are really cool or noteworthy. TOO BAD you have to read about them anyway huh.
Lets talk about Jamie for a hot second (blarg, I'm literally becoming my best friend.)
ugh, she is so freaking BEAUTIFUL. (photo by CSNW)
Anyway, if you've been reading this long, you will have already read that Jamie is the alpha of the group, the leader, and all of the humans at the sanctuary will agree she is the boss. Before you serve lunch, before you play with another chimp you just ask Jamie if that's okay. (and trust me, she will let you know if it's not)
The small interactions I have with Jamie are some of my favorites, because to me its like getting approval from el presidente. She is the big boss and if she doesn't throw poop at me, I am literally the most giddy person. Jamie loves boots and sometimes socks, so when I'm at the sanctuary I try to always wear different bright socks or different boots for her to look at. Normally Jamie ignores me completely (another reason her giving me any attention makes me feel like a puppy at the park) because I am not serving her food yet or able to interact with her she doesn't really know that I'm even there, unless I'm doing something wrong. On monday, I was doing laundry standing in the door way between the kitchen and the chimp house and she walked to the gate and started nodding at me. (This is a good sign, normally when we enter the chimp house and the chimps are looking at us we head nod as a sign of friendship, and we aren't here to cause trouble) So her doing that alone was awesome. I head nodded back and said a quiet hello and continued doing laundry. Moments later she bangs on the caging, sticks her two fingers through and shakes them, pointing at my boots. This is her way of asking to see them. I stick my leg out and show her my boots along with my brings flowery tights and head nod to her, to which she responds with a head nod and goes about her business. To me, this was James saying, "okay, your boots are pretty cool. You can stay." Which, makes me disgustingly happy.
She also let me walk around the hill with her, which is a pretty big deal. She likes to walk the sides and run across the top, and I can almost hear her yelling at Missy who sprints by her "PUHLEASE we are NOT running until I say we are running."
Mondays enrichment was "lots of paper" so we used rolls of butcher paper to cover the greenhouse and playroom. My favorite part of lots of paper is when the chimps use it and blankets to create a super nest. All of the noise of the rumbling paper is wonderful.
Above: Here is Missy and Annie playing and chasing each other around the playroom.
Below: Jamie inspecting the paper and looking for some snacks!
On another note, if you have any boots, old clothes or blankets you are trying to get rid of, please let me know! The chimps could always use new enrichment. I would be more than happy to take it off your hands and give it to the lovely chimps!
Thank you to those who send kind email questions and things, I'll respond to some soon! That is all for now, soon an update on the amazing books I am reading and my adventures in grant writing, and laying groundwork for opening my first chimpanzee sanctuary.
meowmeow
-B.
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