Snow removal crews
December 30, 2015 by Katelyn -
After days, weeks really, of endless snow and treacherous commutes for staff and volunteers alike, this morning dawned a new day. Achingly gorgeous clear, blue skies, a pink sunrise with bald eagles flying overhead, glittering snow, and much to the caregivers’ delight, clear (and dare I say almost dry!) roads to drive to work on. The quintessential beautiful winter day:
The chimpanzees, especially Jamie, have been real troopers waiting out the snow. So first thing this morning, Diana, Anna and I decided to shovel some walkways and around Young’s Hill and line them with straw for the chimpanzees to venture out. All the chimps had been watching us intently from the playroom windows and when we stepped back into the greenhouse, Jamie was more than ready to get a look at what we had done.
When I gave the chimps access to Young’s Hill, Jamie was ready and waiting and literally squeezed through the doorway as it was opening. She immediately headed onto the hill, grabbing the toy shovel we had left on her way and headed out to help finish clearing the pathways.
And it wasn’t long before she had a back-up snow removal crew member with Annie! Annie! Can you believe it?! (The other chimps were watching from the raceway while sitting in the sun):
Jamie initially started shoveling with the shovel side down and then tried out the handle. The second I reminded her to turn it back around she did and carried on with her snow removal project.
That’s their breath clouding around Annie:
When Jamie was satisfied (and probably a little cold!) she headed back inside, but Annie decided to enjoy the morning sun for a view minutes on her own.
Once she’d had enough of the cold morning she headed back to the warmth of the greenhouse. I don’t know what we humans would do without some help from these amazing chimpanzee people:
The chimpanzees and humans have been so incredibly fortunate this holiday season, our hearts and sanctuary home filled with the kindness and generosity of all of you. I would like to share another very special gift the chimpanzees received! The amazing children of Ms. Horton’s 5th grade class made this Christmas tree and each beautiful, heartfelt ornament on it. We are so touched that they all would take the time and care to make the chimpanzees such an awesome gift for Christmas and send it all the way from Texas! We hung it up right outside the chimpanzees’ front rooms where they can all enjoy looking at it. Thank you so much!!
17 Comments
Subscribe to the Blog and
Get Notified of New Posts First!
If you like what see, be sure to subscribe. Personally written by the caregivers themselves, 365 days a year, you’ll get an insiders glimpse of all the goings on at the sanctuary. Follow us!
I Love these beautiful, resilient creatures! They’re so far away from their natural environment, yet they are very much at home! “Bloom where you are planted!”
It’s wonderful how the chimps have adapted to their environment. The Christmas tree made by Ms. Horton’s class is beautiful!
Thanks for posting the tree Katelyn! I can’t wait to show the students on Tuesday when they come back. They will all be so thrilled that the chimpanzees can look at it!
Shelly, it’s just so special, we love it! Please give them all our thanks and let them know how wonderful it is that they cared enough about the chimpanzees to make their days more beautiful. And thank YOU so much for all you do to make your students lives more beautiful!
Wow- Aninie helping Jamie, Annie has become such confident little girl ~ requiring less and less re assurance from her peers, – Its so heart warming to view how far each adn every individual chimp has flourished and developed and blossomed, – Their lives are belong to them now, – they have come to know every season – and the weather it brings, – they now know winter means snow, and snow wet and cold, – they also know Christmas is RED – GREEN and it means LOTS and LOTS and LOTS of Care Packages and Parcels and Field Roast, Opening gifts is what they all ENJOY- For Burrito it can only mean MORE FAVE Foods, for him to zone out on,
now their lives are a predictability to them but a GOOD predictability, Meal time, – Play time, Staf Cleaning night room time – – everything in their life is SAFE- they KNOW and they FEEL they are loved and well cared for, – they can ask – and they receive- Youngs hill just keeps growing too, I recall when it first opened adn how afraid they all were to explore, I recall how tear jerking it was for me to see how much they supported each other – in full locomotion – re assurance hugs – We all waited for Negra to finally go in to her Negra Structure or Fort- I cried to see her sit there -peacefully, knowing full well it took all of the courage she could muster to venture out that far adn just sit and relax, – Its all about doing it all in Chimp time, and not ours, – Life in all its seasons is wonderful for the CE-7
I so enjoy Maggie’s quote “Bloom where you are planted” — so true and perfect for the Cle Elum Seven. Annie bravely, without hesitation it appears, venturing out on her own into the snow to help Jamie?! I feel so happy for her it is difficult to express. Oh how Annie has bloomed this year.
Knowing that this winter has dumped an unusual amount of snow on their home, I am curious if this is the most snow the chimps have seen since they arrived at CSNW?
To Ms. Horton’s 5th grade class — that tree and all the colorful custom ornaments and packages is simply AWESOME! What a creative group of students, compassionate too. You guys rock!
Hi Kathleen,
The chimps are so inspiring. They have seen this much snow before. It’s closer to a “normal” winter for us, we just don’t usually see so much all at once!
That tree is amazing! Ms. Horton and her students deserve loud pant-hoots. 🙂
I’m thinking you guys need to have a snow-blower donated. :-0 I would think the snow is dry in your area compared to the coast.
Thank you for all your selfless work!!
The children and I really enjoyed making the tree. My very favorite ornament is the one that reads, “Jamie – You’re the Boss Applesauce!” Also, there a few that say, “Missy and Annie = BFF” They pay very close attention to what each chimpanzee likes and they all have their favorites.
That was the first thing we noticed, Shelly! I also love the one about Missy sharing in a love of tomatoes! I was so impressed. It’s just wonderful. 🙂
I wish I had you as my 5th grade teacher! What a fun experience for the class to follow the chimps. Something they will never forget. Now that they have an understanding of the individual nature of these captive wild creatures your students will be the best ambassadors for chimpanzees from here on out. Hoots to that!!!
What wonderful pictures of two good friends venturing out together. The gift of the beautiful Christmas tree made by the 5th grade class is so thoughtful and creative. These amazing chimps inspire people all over. We can learn so many lessons from them. Happy Healthy New Year to All.
I work with Bonobos in Des Moines, Iowa. Our bonobos love the snow, but we bring it in to them and use it for fun enrichment! Is there a minimum temperature you use when making your decision to allow your chimps outside? Thanks for taking good care of your chimpanzee family!
Hi Gaila, thanks for your question!
That’s great that you give the bonobos snow – the chimpanzees love it for enrichment as well – they love eating it! Generally speaking, the chimps have access to Young’s Hill, their outdoor habitat, year-round though we do monitor the voltage on the surrounding electric fence to make sure it stays at a safe/consistent level. If it’s really cold/windy and we know that the chimps are not going to show any interest in having the door to the hill open, we will sometimes keep it closed to help keep the adjoining greenhouse warmer for them. Even though they don’t often go outside in the snow, they seem to like to have the option on most days. 🙂
Thanks for your reply! Love reading about your chimps and facility.
Thank you, Gaila! And thank you for caring for the bonobo family you work with! All our best to them (and you). 🙂