Recently there was a discussion on our Facebook page about Nest Grunts. When the chimps are getting settled into their nests at night they will often make a hoohuhhoohuh sound which is called a nest grunt. Chimps in the wild will often make these vocalizations to check in with each other before bedtime. We’ve been trying to catch the vocalization on tape for the blog for some time now, and we were finally successful! It’s definitely one of my favorite times of the night.
Archive for October, 2010
Nest grunts
Monday, October 11th, 2010Online Auction ends in just 6 hours!
Sunday, October 10th, 2010Get your bids in NOW! Check it out, make some calls to your friends, and let’s reach our $25,000 goal – this counts donations to Young’s Hill as well as bids on our fabulous auction items.
Below is the video that Jonathan Houser made about the Young’s Hill project, with music by Robin Washburn.
Thanks for participating in our first-ever online auction and for helping get the chimps Out of the Box!
Young’s Hill – The Dream from Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest on Vimeo.
Thanks for the Boomer Balls!
Saturday, October 9th, 2010Jody and Missy would like to thank everyone who participated in our recent Chimps’ Choice request by sending Boomer Balls.
In the comfort of your own home
Friday, October 8th, 2010It may be sunny and beautiful right now, but this morning was very chilly and gray. It was definitely one of those mornings where all you want to do is curl up on the couch with your favorite blanket and watch a movie. So, it was no surprise when Missy decided to skip breakfast and stayed in her giant nest in the playroom. I certainly don’t blame her, but that meant cleaning the playroom was slightly delayed. Being behind in our routine did not stop the chimps from being adorably distracting. Jamie was looking quite bored, so I poured a little bit of (non-toxic) soapy water on the floor in one of the front rooms and gave her a couple of brushes. She cleaned a very large portion of the room and worked on it for nearly an hour (am I losing job security?). As if that wasn’t cute enough, Burrito spent some quality time with blankets today, which is something that we just don’t see from him very often.
The first blanket I saw him “cuddling” with is one that has a skull and crossbones on it :)

Then, Missy distracted him with a playful game of chase. He later returned to the same spot with a different blanket:

And then it got chilly, so he moved into the front rooms. I would say it was a very good morning to curl up with a blanket!

Getting comfortable
Thursday, October 7th, 2010This is one of my favorite sights: Jody gathering blankets for one of her huge, elaborate nests.
The Mural
Tuesday, October 5th, 2010Happy Birthday, Sarah Casey!
Tuesday, October 5th, 2010Steve Shaw sponsored today in honor of his wife Sarah Casey’s birthday.
Happy birthday from the Cle Elum Seven, Sarah!
The next chimpanzee birthday we’ll be celebrating is Jamie’s on October 31st. I wonder what she’ll be getting for her birthday…
Old projects and new projects
Monday, October 4th, 2010Life with chimpanzees is wonderful, but it is far from predictable. Sometimes things don’t happen when you plan (and vice versa). Awhile back, we did a fundraising drive to raise money for a new door in the chimps’ enclosure. In exchange for donations, we promised to paint donors’ names on a new mural in the outdoor area. Well, we may be slow, but we do keep our promises! Today, volunteer Kim McAndrews (who is our volunteer graphic designer from Peach Design who designed the Out of the Box auction logo, among many other things) is working hard on that mural. Here are a couple of shots of a work in progress:
As if that isn’t enough excitement for one day, David Binczewski (of Booshoot Gardens fame) and volunteer Ken Mikkelsen are here helping J.B. plant the first round of bamboo on Young’s Hill.
We’ll be sure to share more photos when the projects are completed!
Way, way Out of the Box
Sunday, October 3rd, 2010We had an incredible evening on Friday. The volunteers did a fantastic job and the attendees clearly had a great time bidding.
The Out of the Box auction so far has raised over $100,000
and the online auction continues to go strong – currently at $14,400.
More soon about the event – I just wanted to share the incredible news of the success of the evening and the online auction so far. Thank you, everyone, for your participation, and an especially big thank you to all of the volunteers, donors and sponsors who made the event possible. I am so full of gratitude for everyone’s generosity. Wow.
Let the Bidding Begin!
Friday, October 1st, 2010In case you didn’t get our newsletter this morning, you better get busy! Tonight in Seattle we’re holding our sold-out event, Out of the Box. I can’t wait! Whether you’ll be attending the event or just sending good wishes from the other side of the globe, you can get in on the action by checking out our online auction here. There are some really incredible items to bid on (I’ve been dreaming about Bora Bora for weeks), and it also gives you an opportunity to make a pledge towards Young’s Hill, our next big dream. So get started bidding!
PS. On the online auction page you’ll find a new video about Young’s Hill. It’s fabulous!
















