Leading with Heart for Chimpanzee Health
As our closest biological relatives, the chimps deal with many of the same health concerns we humans do. When it comes to heart health, Chimp Haven’s dedicated care staff is…
Blog
Dental care at Chimp Haven
While we all know the importance of brushing and flossing to keep our human teeth sparkling, imagine managing the mouths of more than 300 chimpanzees! Luckily, the chimps at Chimp…
Remembering Juan
It’s with heavy hearts that we share news of the passing of Juan, one of the very first chimps to retire to Chimp Haven when the sanctuary opened in 2005. We…
Teaching an old chimp new tricks
Teaching an Old Chimp New Tricks Animal Care Specialist Ellen shares the secrets to earning the trust of one of the sanctuary’s sweetest old curmudgeons: peanuts, persistence, and a healthy…
In Memory of Dr. Steve Ross
In Memory of Dr. Steve Ross Chimp Haven is mourning the loss and celebrating the memory of beloved primatologist and longtime leader and friend of the sanctuary, Dr. Steve Ross. Steve…
Puppy Love: Sanctuary chimps mesmerized by special guests for National Dog Day
Puppy Love: Sanctuary chimps mesmerized by special guests for National Dog Day Chimp Haven hosts regular dog visits as part of its chimpanzee enrichment program You can tell by the…
Chimps After Sunset
Chimps After Sunset by Selena Medina, Animal Caregiver The sun is starting to set and the chimps are settling down after a long day of exploring the habitats and playing…
Weather Update
Like so many of our neighbors across the southern U.S., last week, Chimp Haven experienced extreme weather in the form of frigid temperatures, snow, and ice uncommon to our area.…
Message from the President: Thank you for your support this year
As we approach the New Year, I want to take a moment to thank you for your generous support of the chimps and share just a few of the bright…
The chimps are coming to Disney+!
We’ve got some exciting news! Earlier this year we shared that the chimps would be coming to a TV near you before the year was up. Now we officially have…
Latoya (and Her Stuffed Animals) Raise Their Own Criteria
By Jordan Green, Behavior Technician When doing positive reinforcement training with the chimps, we often reference a set of guidelines written by Karen Pryor called “The Ten Modern Principles of…
My experience with diversity in the STEM fields
Today, as many of our STEM colleagues hold important conversations around diversity and inclusion in our fields, we want to share an important perspective from Dr. Raven Jackson-Jewett, Attending Veterinarian…
Training With Hawkins
Written by: Hailey Adams, Behavior Technician Long shadows stretch from the trees as I move along the narrow trail following my dog, Parker, closely. We are walking the “monkey trails”…
Everything a Chimp Eats in a Day
Written by Miranda Cave, Chimp Caregiver Chimpanzees in the wild are very resourceful as they find their meals throughout the day. Like humans, chimpanzees are omnivores, meaning that they eat…
Getting to Know Tabu
Written by Jordan Green, Behavior Technician As new chimpanzees arrive at the sanctuary, staff gets to know them while they spend time in our McGrath Welcoming Center settling it. It’s…
Chimpanzee Observations with Dr. J
Dr. J serves as Attending Veterinarian for the sanctuary’s more than 300 chimpanzees Tag along with Chimp Haven’s Attending Veterinarian, Dr. J, as she describes her daily chimpanzee observation process.…
Chimp Haven’s Picky Eaters Club
Written by: Miranda Cave, Chimpanzee Caregiver Just like people, chimpanzees can be very picky about which foods they like and which ones they don’t. Some of them also have certain…
10 Surprising Enrichment Items the Chimps Love
Written by: Jordan Green, Behavior Technician Behavior Technician Jordan Green The chimpanzees who call Chimp Haven home receive enrichment 365 days a year to help keep them healthy and thriving.…
Primatology Q&A with Behavior Coordinator Leilani
Are you interested in working with primates when you grow up? Chimp Haven’s Behavior Coordinator, Leilani, is answering 11 questions about working with chimps! Behavior Coordinator Leilani has worked with…
We’re working hard to keep our chimps and staff healthy
Chimp Haven supporters, As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact us all, I want to share an update on the latest measures Chimp Haven is taking to ensure the safety…
Hobbes and Friends in the Habitat
Written by: Ellen Brady-McGaughey, Chimpanzee Caregiver Sabrina Boyd, Chimpanzee Caregiver After arriving at the sanctuary early last year from a research facility in Texas, Hobbes’s group of six – which…
This Week at the Sanctuary
This week at the sanctuary, Donovan is feeling himself, Diane maybe forgot how to climb trees, Phyllis takes a much-deserved break, and more. First up, Donovan catches a glimpse of…
An update on how Chimp Haven is preparing for COVID-19
Chimp Haven Supporters, Like you, Chimp Haven is monitoring the news and developing situation around the COVID-19 virus. As a supporter of Chimp Haven, I want to let you know…
Meet our January 2020 arrivals!
Our first five arrivals of the year came to us in January, and they’ve spent the past few weeks getting settled in. Meet our newbies below! Alfredo Alfredo may be…
Love Stories: Cammy & Theo
With Valentine’s Day coming up, we’re celebrating ALL the love here at the sanctuary. One of the most wonderful things about life at Chimp Haven is watching new friendships, families,…
Love Stories: Happy & Grumpy
With Valentine’s Day coming up, we’re celebrating ALL the love here at the sanctuary. One of the most wonderful things about life at Chimp Haven is watching new friendships, families,…
Love Stories: Taffy & Peanut
With Valentine’s Day coming up, we’re celebrating ALL the love here at the sanctuary. One of the most wonderful things about life at Chimp Haven is watching new friendships, families,…
Love Stories: Randy & Rero (The Bromance)
With Valentine’s Day coming up, we’re celebrating ALL the love here at the sanctuary. One of the most wonderful things about life at Chimp Haven is watching new friendships, families,…
Love Stories: Sindee and Pearl (The BFFs)
With Valentine’s Day coming up, we’re celebrating ALL the love here at the sanctuary. One of the most wonderful things about life at Chimp Haven is watching new friendships, families,…
Message from the President: Thank you and Happy New Year!
It’s that time of year: when we pause to reflect on all that the present year brought us, and all that we hope to accomplish in the year to come.…
How to Speak Caregiver
by Jordan Green, Behavior Technician (formerly Animal Caregiver) If you’ve ever visited Chimp Haven, you may have heard some terms and phrases we use as caregivers that are unique to…
Statement Regarding NIH Chimpanzees at Alamogordo Primate Facility
The below is a statement from Rana Smith, President and CEO of Chimp Haven, regarding this morning’s decision from the National Institutes of Health to withhold all 44 chimpanzees who…
Update: Welcome Them Home Sanctuary Expansion
With 31 new chimps joining us at the sanctuary so far this year, the Chimp Haven family has now grown to nearly 300 chimpanzees! As we prepare for more new…
Summer is still going strong at the sanctuary
While summer is technically winding down, you wouldn’t know it at Chimp Haven! The chimps are still enjoying long summer days and their favorite warm weather activities. Here’s what they’ve…
Remembering Sarah Anne
It is with heavy hearts that we share the sad news that Chimp Haven’s oldest resident, Sarah Anne, has passed, just shy of her 60th birthday. Sarah Anne came to…
Update: Welcome Them Home Sanctuary Expansion
With nearly 30 new chimps joining us at the sanctuary so far this year, the Chimp Haven family has now grown to nearly 300 chimpanzees! Right now, our new arrivals…
Lives You’ve Touched – Recent Arrivals
These chimps are spending their first spring at the sanctuary thanks to you! Taffy is not the type of chimp to shy away from a challenge. When she and her…
Diving Into Spring at the Sanctuary
If you were to ask the chimps, we bet they’d say spring is their favorite time of year. With cold weather on the way out and sun on the way…
Update: Welcome Them Home Sanctuary Expansion
As all of us – humans and chimps! – happily welcome spring at the sanctuary, we also continue to welcome new chimp retirees to our Chimp Haven family. We’re thrilled…
Chimpanzee Myths and Fun Facts
by Jordan Green, Chimp Haven Animal Caregiver It’s safe to say that caring for chimpanzees – let alone more than 270 of them – is a unique profession! Caregivers are…
Training Tales: Getting fit with Roxanne
Chimp Haven retirees are trained (using positive reinforcement) to participate in their own veterinary care and individualized wellbeing plans. Chimps can be trained to show care staff a scratch on…
Update: Expanding the Chimp Haven sanctuary to Welcome Them Home
Today the Chimp Haven sanctuary is home to more than 270 chimps, most of whom have been retired from biomedical research. But with more than 200 chimps still remaining in research…
Love Stories: Toya & Ashley Lynn
With Valentine’s Day coming up, we’re celebrating ALL the love here at the sanctuary. One of the most wonderful things about life at Chimp Haven is watching new friendships, families,…
Love Stories: Pierre & Angela
With Valentine’s Day coming up, we’re celebrating ALL the love here at the sanctuary. One of the most wonderful things about life at Chimp Haven is watching new friendships, families,…
Love Stories: Sarah Anne & Marie
With Valentine’s Day coming up, we’re celebrating ALL the love here at the sanctuary. One of the most wonderful things about life at Chimp Haven is watching new friendships, families,…
Love Stories: Ariah & Murphy
With Valentine’s Day coming up, we’re celebrating ALL the love here at the sanctuary. One of the most wonderful things about life at Chimp Haven is watching new friendships, families,…
Love Stories: Pee Wee, Fancy, and Jane Austen
With Valentine’s Day coming up, we’re celebrating ALL the love here at the sanctuary. One of the most wonderful things about life at Chimp Haven is watching new friendships, families,…
Love Stories: Jill & Hulk
With Valentine’s Day coming up, we’re celebrating ALL the love here at the sanctuary. One of the most wonderful things about life at Chimp Haven is watching new friendships, families,…
Love Stories: Bowen and Maurice’s Bromance
With Valentine’s Day coming up, we’re celebrating ALL the love here at the sanctuary. One of the most wonderful things about life at Chimp Haven is watching new friendships, families,…
Message from the President: Thank you for a wonderful year!
This holiday season, as we reflect on all that we have to be grateful for, all of us at Chimp Haven remain so thankful your support. In 2018, we welcomed an…
Training Tales: Crystal’s Walking Club
Chimp Haven retirees are trained, using positive reinforcement, to participate in their own veterinary care and individualized wellbeing plans. Chimps can be trained to show care staff a scratch on…
Training Tales: Working Out with Cocoa Puff
Chimp Haven retirees are trained, using positive reinforcement, to participate in their own veterinary care and individualized wellbeing plans. Chimps can be trained to show care staff a scratch on…
Meet the new Colony Director
This summer, Michelle Reininger took the reins as Colony Director at the sanctuary after serving on the Animal Care team for five years. A native of South Dakota, Michelle began…
Chimp ‘babies’: A look behind the sanctuary’s most fascinating attachment items
If you’ve met Opal, you’ve no doubt met Opal’s keys. Since the 38-year-old arrived at the sanctuary in 2016, it’s hard to remember a time when she didn’t have her…
Chimp BFFs: Kelsey, Backus, & Andy
Jordan Zivnuska, Animal Care Giver, Chimp Haven Loving. Playful. Protective. These words all describe Kelsey, not only as an individual, but in her role as a best friend. Kelsey arrived…
Training with LaToya
Clicks and juice for LaToya! This lady recently made some great progress in her positive reinforcement training. One thing you should know about LaToya is…she doesn’t like to shift. Shifting…
Construction underway to welcome remaining chimps housed in research facilities
Today the Chimp Haven sanctuary is home to more than 250 chimps who have been retired from biomedical research. Here, they spend their days enjoying the Chimp Life, with forested…
Tinkerbell vs. Windchime
Jordan Zivnuska, Animal Care Giver, Chimp Haven Chimpanzees, being incredibly intelligent tool users, are always coming up with new ways to surprise the care staff at Chimp Haven. Tinkerbell is…
Old Sisters, New Friends
Angel and Opal are part of the latest crew to retire to Chimp Haven and like the majority of chimpanzees at the sanctuary, these two come from a research background.…
Chimp Haven Says Goodbye to a Chimp Icon
Robust, compassionate, playful are just a few words Magnum’s care givers used to describe him upon learning of his passing last week. Admired for his ability to govern a family…
Chimp Haven Mourns the Loss of Animal Care Director Kathleen Taylor
Chimp Haven sadly announces the passing of its Animal Care Director, Kathleen Taylor. Kathleen peacefully passed on December 26, 2017, surrounded by family and friends after valiantly fighting a seven-year battle…
A Message from Chimp Haven’s President and CEO
I am reaching out to share some important news regarding upcoming changes at Chimp Haven. It has and continues to be my honor and privilege to serve as President and…
A Barrel of Fun
Elijah, one of our newest retirees, has grown very attached to a blue barrel that is in his group’s outside enclosure. When he notices that it is time to shift…
A Message From Chimp Haven’s President
Recently, there have been a number of articles and blog posts focusing on the retirement of federally owned chimpanzees to Chimp Haven. This story really began many years ago when…
Happy Birthday Sarah Anne!
Chimp Haven’s oldest resident, Sarah Anne, just got a little bit older. Because she was born in the wild we do not know her exact birthdate, but we can estimate…