New Feature - Friday Facts!

Happy Friday all! Today we are introducing a new feature on our blog - Friday Facts!

Our primate residents come from all over the world and encompass "New World" and "Old World" species. Old World primarily refers to monkeys from Africa and New World those from South America. In Old World monkeys, the nostrils face downward and are narrow. New World monkeys have round nostrils facing to the side. They are fascinating and have specific social structures and behaviours.

Today we bring you facts about marmosets. At Story Book Farm, we have three little ones - Pablo and Amigo - common marmosets - and Mickey, who is a pencil marmoset. Although they are tiny, they are so full of personality and highly social. There is not a doubt as to what they are saying and what they want. Especially Mickey when she goes wild over Veggie Stiks! When I first visited the barn, I heard beautiful chirping and wondered where the birds where. Turns out it is the vocalization of marmosets! Amigo loves looking into the mirror. Pablo runs across of overhead tunnel and if you are not careful you may get a surprise. Mickey is our Diva - she is so pretty and very particular. She does not like her mealworms in her bowl, but wants then served separately!

Did you know:

• "Marmoset" is derived from the French "marmouset" which means, loosely, shrimp or dwarf. An apt name, considering they are the smallest of the true monkeys (the lightest of the true monkeys is the pygmy marmoset).
• These monkeys use their specialized claws to establish a firm grip on tree trunks and gnaw little holes in the bark with their lower incisors and canines. This causes the tree to produce more sap, which is used to seal injuries to the bark. This tree sap is a valuable source of carbohydrates and minerals.
• Common marmoset is considered the best species able to adapt to human changes in their environment.
• The species was first introduced by humans in southeastern Brazil where it has propagated so successfully it is regularly observed in the marginal park districts of Rio de Janeiro.
• Marmosets live in mixed sex groups of up to 13 individuals. Only the head male and female will produce offspring. The mechanism that supposedly suppresses reproduction in lower-ranking females is still being studied.

Lumber Jack Day at the Sanctuary Today was a great day at the farm for Lumber Jack Day. There was a fantastic turnout of eager, hardworking volunteers and the weather was amazing! A big thank you to all the volunteers that helped chop, split, and pile wood that will be used to heat the barn for our monkey residents in the upcoming winter months. Buddy the goat loved all of the attention he received from everyone and I'm sure he will have sweet dreams tonight knowing he has made quite a few more fans :) Our monkey's also received specially wrapped presents with treats inside, including sugar cane, which they all seemed to enjoy very much! Thanks to everyone who came out and worked very hard to make a difference for our residents.

Another Thank You!

So sorry to be so tardy about this - but there are more huge thank-yous to be sent out!

First - the Toronto Veggie Food Fair - what a great weekend! Once again we got to meet many old and new friends.  We want to thank everyone for all the support that they showed us at this event! Many people signed up to help out at Lumberjack Days coming this Fall - the September one is over, but October and November are still to come.  Check the website and register to be a part of the team that keeps the monkeys warm over the winter!

And that is the second thank you:  to Kevin and Katharine who came to the Lumberjack Day in September and worked hard all day at getting the wood supply ready for the winter.  They got to meet all the monkeys too, and I think they enjoyed their visit! We hope they will be back!

It is now fall, and the monkeys have seen the last of the really warm days and nights. The doors are mostly shut now come evening, since it gets too cool in the barn for our tropical residents to be comfortable.

And that is why we need your help!  That wood furnace goes through a lot of wood, and we need to have an enormous pile ready to feed it over the next few months!  So - if you are looking for a way to support our rescued primates - please consider coming out to a Lumberjack Day!  The more people we have working, the faster the woodpile grows.  And if you have experience with a chainsaw or a wood splitter - you are GOLD!!!!!!

Check out www.storybookfarmprimatesanctuary.com to sign up!

So - once again - a huge thank you to everyone who supported us over the past season - Holly's Hope attendees and Sharon, its wonderful organiser, Open Day visitors, Baseball tournament participants and its great organisers, the Toronto Vegetarian Food Festival and all the visitors who dropped by the SBFPS booth, Lumberjacks - both past and future! We could not do what we do without your help.

One last word - we have 2013 calendars for sale as well, each month featuring a different resident.  They are selling for $20.00 each. If you are interested, find them on our website!

Happy Fall!!!!

Thanks for a great weekend

All of us at Story Book Farm want to thank everyone who came out to support us over the past weekend. The Baseball Tournament on Saturday was a great success, and the dance afterwards was fun!!!!  We had a great dj!!!
And Sunday, we had many people come through the barn during our second and final Open House of the year.  We sold out all the tickets we had and were busy all day with visitors.
Thank you all so much for making this such a great, fun and successful weekend!!!!!  Watch for news about other events coming up!

                                                    Julien had a great Open House!!!!

We will be at the Toronto Vegetarian Food Fair at Harbourfront on Sept, 7, 8 and 9.
And there are upcoming Lumberjack Days on the schedule too - one in September, one in October and one in November - getting all that wood ready for our wood burning furnace to keep the monkeys warm and comfortable over the winter!  We would love to have many of you come out to help - and meet the monkeys too while you are there!

Susie

There is more sadness to express, I am afraid.  Last week we lost our beautiful old Black Spider Monkey, Susie.  She was elderly - into her late 30's or even early 40's, although we don't know the exact date of her birth.  She died very peacefully in her sleep.  She will be very much missed in the barn, especially by her companion of many years, George.  Mr. Jenkins, who lives next door and is another Spider Monkey, is also grieving for Susie.  And of course all of the two-leggeds who help out in the barn are very saddened by her absence.
But we all know that Susie had 10 great years at the Farm.  She may have had a challenging life prior to arriving at Story Book with George in 2003, but since her arrival she has been loved and treated with respect and gentleness by everyone who has come into contact with her.

Susie loved to rest outside on her platform in the summer months.  She would spend the whole day out there, just soaking up the warmth of the sun.

Susie was always hard to photograph because she was so dark - but she loved to come over to see whatever was going on, and if she was feeling especially friendly toward you on any particular day, she would give you a hug with her tail.  That was a great honour!

We know she is resting in peace.

The TV was off...

Sunday was my first day to the farm after our beloved Chelsea passed.  For each of us, that first time in the barn after a death is extremely difficult.  Losing Chelsea has been particularly heartbreaking for all of us.  Amongst the hustle and bustle, cleaning the fridge, pressure washing the floor, making dinner I passed the tv and it was off.  The tv was off.  Then the pain hit again.. no Chelsea ... no tv.... The tv was there for her.  She loved watching it and we all made sure there was a steady supply of nature videos, children's shows, programs with monkeys in them... all the things that Chelsea loved to watch. Throughout her time with us, the tv's grew in size as volunteers and friends would get her bigger and better ones, a new VCR, a new DVD player, Leonard even tried to hook up the satellite in the barn for her!  She loved watching Mark Hebscher on CHCH and would make her happy num-num sounds.  Now, there is quiet - no rubber boots being thrown in the air, happy chatting, no shrieking to let us know that George had touched her boots, no little hands reaching out for a groom... the tv was off..

It's time for the Baseball Tournament

The annual Baseball tournament is almost here!
There is a slight error on the poster - the Tournament is actually on SATURDAY August 25!!!!  Our second Open House of the summer takes place on SUNDAY August 26!!!  A very busy weekend for sure!
This year we have added a dance to end off the tournament - should be lots of fun and tickets are only $10.00 for that!  Even if you can't make the dance, we would love to have you show your support by buying a ticket anyway!!!!!!
Hope to see lots of you on both of these days.
Remember to register for the Open House...the website will tell you how to do that!