Part of our mandate as a chimpanzee sanctuary is to rehabilitate orphaned, injured or traumatized chimpanzees. Majority of the chimpanzees at Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary are rescued from appalling conditions and it’s very rewarding to watch them develop and rise above their tragic past.

George is truly a testament to the difference love and care can make. He was rescued, in 2005, from a roadside in Mozambique where he was up for sale bundled in barbed wire. He was then brought to the Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary.

Last year Jane made a curious new friend – a warthog!  We were all surprised by this friendship because the chimps usually attack and kill any small animal that wanders into their territory. But the little warthog was never harmed. Jane adored him; she played with him clutching him like a little doll.

The chimpanzee social structure is divided into hierarchies led by a dominant male referred to as the alpha male. The alpha male not only mates with all the females but is also the most powerful chimpanzee controlling everyone and everything in the group. Who wouldn’t want to be an all powerful alpha male?

A door slowly slides open and two chimpanzees stick their heads out and peer into the open. After taking it all in, one chimpanzee takes a few tentative steps outside then turns back and hugs his friend. They are finally free!

The Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary is situated within the confine of the Ol Pejeta Conservancy and as a result we get to see some wild animals once in a while through the fence. Recently, a herd of elephants were passing by and stopped outside the Sanctuary for close to an hour.

The last part of the series, this week’s blog, will be on chimps raised in captivity versus those in the wild. The first thing to keep in mind is that captive chimps are generally raised from infancy by humans.

This week’s blog, which is the second part in a series dedicated to shedding light on threats facing chimpanzees in the wild, will look at pet trade, chimps in entertainment and the resulting perceptions.

Chimpanzee sanctuaries like the one on Ol Pejeta exist because chimpanzees are threatened in the wild and if not protected they will become extinct. The threats facing chimpanzees in the wild are mainly habitat loss, bush meat trade and pet trade. I believe education is key in eliminating some of these problems therefore the next few blogs will shed light on the threats. This week we will look into bush meat trade and pet trade which go hand in hand.

The recent rains have formed little puddles around the Sanctuary and the chimpanzees seem to have fallen in love with the reflections they see in these pools of water. Normally, Alley is the chimp that loves staring at her reflection in the drinking troughs but in the last few weeks nearly all the chimps seem to have caught the vanity bug and are staring at themselves in any reflective surface they find. It has been quite amusing watching this conceited behaviour.