The Bub

What a face....

Binky otherwise known as the Bub, Binkster, Stinky Binky, Bubba…he loves all his little nick names especially Stinky Binky, when he is ready to play a game of chase!!

As everyone knows from Gloria’s amazing letter to everyone, Binky has just been through a huge ordeal with a serious foot injury from a bite. Many weeks of worrying about him taking care of his injury, having to be put down for a series of test and to clean his wound. Gloria would spend all her nights sleeping beside poor little Binky and tending to his every need. As much as it was a horrible time for him and all the other chimpanzees and us humans, it has changed him a great deal.

Binky always loved to be taken care of like the little boy that he was, even when he was not sick or injured. However, now he expects it. He loves to be feed his oatmeal personally with a spoon, peeling his oranges and feeding them to him through the bars. Cleaning his fingers and toes with a face cloth, and just sitting with him while he rests on his fresh clean floor for a while. If you leave before he falls asleep he will call you back to make sure you stay the whole time. It is quite special to see how he did appreciate all the special care he was receiving.

From a little boy to a rambunctious teenager to a special young man. The more mature Binky gets the more he resembles Billy Jo. It is quite amazing with some positions he takes while eating or just sitting on his platform, it makes us look twice and say to ourselves…Oh my god he looks just like Billy…not only resemblance but he also has the same endearing personality Billy did.

Since Binky has been back with smaller groups of chimpanzees he has been so happy, constantly looking for some special play time with his buddies, tickling Toby’s toes through the bars and annoying poor Chance by constantly bugging her to play, while she is trying to rest…Sitting out on the islands and running down the sky walk waiting for someone human or non-human to follow him out….Unfortunately he has not yet been reunited with his friend Yoko, but hopefully someday Yoko will want his friend back and we will be able to see how that works out. He is always the first one up in the morning to greet me when I come in and he likes to just stretch out sit and say good morning for a bit. Get his toes pulled and tickled, kiss my eyelids then poke me in the head…he finds that quite amusing…then off he goes to see who else he can wake up..

Enjoying his cardboard house, this is one of his favorite things!!

It is nice to see him back to his old self…well, I am not quite sure if he will every be back to his old self, because he is growing up….but the new grown up Binky is quite amazing also!!

Kim