For Al and Kamaka, moving day brought plenty to explore.
The two chimpanzees and their group recently became the first residents to move into a new building addition at Chimp Haven. With 12 new bedrooms and four outdoor play yards, the expanded space offers room to climb, forage, rest, play, and spend time together.
Through the NAVS Animal Sanctuary Assistance Program (ASAP), NAVS helped Chimp Haven furnish the new spaces with enrichment items designed to promote the chimpanzees’ physical and emotional well-being.
And the chimpanzees wasted little time putting them to use.
A Long-Awaited New Chapter
Al, 52, and Kamaka, 55, arrived at Chimp Haven from the Alamogordo Primate Facility in 2025. Both were born in the wild and had spent decades under government ownership after being used in research.
Their arrival followed a long fight to secure sanctuary placement for chimpanzees who remained at Alamogordo years after invasive chimpanzee research ended in the United States. Although the CHIMP Act guaranteed lifetime sanctuary care for federally owned chimpanzees, their transfers were delayed until a federal court ruled that the government’s refusal to move them was unlawful.
After arriving at Chimp Haven, Al and Kamaka were introduced to Tabu’s group, which includes several confident female chimpanzees who quickly took an interest in the newcomers. They began forming relationships with group members including Roxanne, Zoe, and Wotoni.
Now, the group is beginning its next chapter together in a space built with the chimpanzees’ changing needs in mind.
Designed for Exploration, Comfort, and Choice
The new addition includes air-conditioned bedrooms, hammocks, climbing structures, foraging devices, ropes, large enrichment items, and outdoor areas where the chimpanzees can explore.
Special climbing aids and other accessibility features make the space easier to navigate for older chimpanzees and individuals with limited mobility. The addition also provides flexible space for chimpanzees receiving or recovering from medical care, an increasingly important need as Chimp Haven’s residents grow older.
Indoor and outdoor cameras allow caregivers to observe the chimpanzees and respond to their needs in real time, while still giving the residents the freedom to decide how they spend their days.
This ability to make choices is an essential part of sanctuary life. Enrichment encourages chimpanzees to engage in species-typical behaviors while providing different opportunities for movement, problem-solving, social interaction, play, and rest.
Al Reaches New Heights
On moving day, Al surprised his caregivers.
Although he had not previously shown much interest in climbing, he quickly began using the climbing aids installed on his new structure. Inside his bedroom, he has taken a particular liking to a thick ship rope, which he uses to swing his famously long legs back and forth, sometimes appearing to show off for his caregivers.
Zoe has found another use for the rope, holding onto it for support while she sits.
Outside, Tabu has claimed a lounging box as one of his preferred resting spots, while Roxanne has made her feelings about a large enrichment ball perfectly clear: it belongs to her.
These individual preferences may seem like small details, but they reflect something deeply meaningful. Each chimpanzee is engaging with the space on their own terms, discovering what makes them feel secure, curious, comfortable, and at home.
Helping Chimpanzees Thrive
The furniture, foraging tools, toys, climbing equipment, and other enrichment items provided with ASAP support will help keep the chimpanzees mentally and physically engaged. They also offer more opportunities to exercise choice, express natural behaviors, and interact with their surroundings in ways that meet their individual needs.
More chimpanzee families are expected to move into the addition, where these spaces and enrichment opportunities will serve them for years to come.
For chimpanzees like Al and Kamaka, sanctuary cannot undo what came before. But it can offer something they were denied for far too long: room to explore, meaningful relationships, attentive care, and the freedom to choose how they spend their time.
NAVS is proud to help Chimp Haven create a future filled with greater comfort, dignity, and possibility for every chimpanzee who calls the sanctuary home.
