From scrawny to brawny
December 9, 2014 by Debbie -
When the chimpanzees first arrived at CSNW six and a half years ago, they were frail, weak, almost sickly ghosts of themselves. Through the years we have seen their once physically and mentally deprived selves transform into thriving, healthy, and fit chimpanzees full of personality.
The other day Jamie was sitting on a step in one of the front rooms and it struck me how strong her thigh muscles have become from her daily perimeter walks. It’s really very impressive!
She’s really come a long way. These photos from the first days in sanctuary really highlight her fragile, atrophied leg muscles.
In this photo you can see not only how scrawny and skinny her legs look, but also how much she plucked her hair from her belly while in the lab, likely due to sheer boredom:
Sanctuary has provided Jamie the opportunity to patrol her territory, stretch her legs, and keep her mind active. Her life now is full of so much enrichment—both for mental stimulation and physical activity—that she doesn’t get as bored as she used to.
Of course, captivity is not perfect and Jamie still does pluck her belly every now and then, perhaps because it became a habit but also possibly due to periods of boredom. No matter how great we make her environment, we can never recreate the life she and all captive chimpanzees should have had in the wild. But for Jamie, the next best thing is taking walks around Young’s Hill while her caregivers follow along on the other side of the fence—always with at least one of her favorite boots, of course!
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I love the work you do. My husband and I are planning to visit next summer. Can’t wait. Love every one of them!
I love Jamie, she is a force….
Makes me want to get outside and walk my neighborhood a few times every day! Jamie is in amazing shape. What a transformation!
(love the little sock on her foot!!)
Kathleen, I keep wondering how *my* walks around the hill don’t result in such impressive fitness 😉 It is a pretty steep hill and still knocks the wind out of me (and everyone else too, I’m told) but Jamie marches on unfazed. And Missy usually sprints, which is remarkable. Their daily walks plus very healthy diet are a fat loss / muscle gain model for us all! 😉
Thanks for sharing. To all the staff, all the best, hope you have a great holiday!! You do great work!!
It’s still hard for me to believe these are the same 7 that arrived 6 and a half years ago. When I see the pictures it’s shocking. Well done you! Jamie and the others all look fabulous!
She is absoulutly majestic. No other words to use.
She’s so beautiful. You all do such wonderful work. Thank you.
I truly enjoy the emails that I receive on the progress of these literal “friends of humanity”; were made to sacrifice so much for us while in captivity, now that they are free to be as nature intended them to be- free from forced disease and stress.
When I see these pictures it also reinforces my faith in humanity… that perhaps one day, we, as sentient beings, will ALL be compassionate and A LOT smarter, so, that we will leave animal testing behind in the past forever.
Thank you for the work you, caretakers and friends of our primate loved ones, do on a daily basis, as well as, the information you continually provide us.
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