Last month, a baby gorilla was born at Fort Worth Zoo. It had to be born early because its mom was really sick and it was an emergency. The baby gorilla’s name is Jameela, which means “beautiful” in Swahili. She was very small when she was born, weighing only 3 pounds and 1 ounce. Normally, gorillas are born four to six weeks later. But Jameela came early. The good news is that her mom is doing well now.
The zoo explained that the gorilla’s mom, Sekani, was sick with something called preeclampsia. It’s a serious problem with blood pressure that can happen to moms when they’re pregnant, like humans and other primates.
The zoo workers talked with doctors who take care of pregnant women to get advice. They decided that doing an emergency C-section was the best way to help both Jameela and Sekani have the best chance of staying alive.
The zoo wrote on Facebook that primates, like gorillas, are very similar to humans biologically. They often talk to doctors who take care of people when they need advice about caring for the animals.
The zoo mentioned that they got help from Dr. Jamie Walker Erwin, who is a doctor specializing in women’s health and has worked with the zoo for a long time. They also got help from Dr. Robert Ursprung, a doctor who takes care of newborn babies, and Dennis Occkiogrosso, a nurse who helps with anesthesia. These experts, along with others, helped deliver Jameela safely and give her the care she needs.
Dr. Erwin, the doctor who helps women with their pregnancies, said that helping deliver Sekani’s baby gorilla was one of the best moments of her whole career. She felt honored and lucky to be able to help such a rare animal.
Dr. Erwin also mentioned how surprised she was that Sekani’s body was so similar to the bodies of the women she helps.
The zoo said that Jameela is the third gorilla ever born at Fort Worth Zoo, which has been around for 115 years. She’s the first gorilla to be born there through a C-section. Sekani, who is 33 years old, had three babies before Jameela.
Before the emergency C-section, the zoo thought Sekani’s pregnancy was normal, and they expected the baby to be born in early to mid-February.
On January 3rd, zookeepers noticed that Sekani, the gorilla mom, was acting strangely. The zoo said she seemed to be moving slowly and holding her head, like she had a headache. This made the doctors think she had preeclampsia.
Right after Jameela was born, she needed immediate help. The zoo had to do a lot of things to make sure she was okay, like helping her breathe, taking X-rays, and checking her regularly because she was born earlier than expected.
The zoo said on Facebook that Jameela is now 5 pounds, and she’s gaining weight quickly. They said this is partly because the team at Fort Worth Zoo takes care of her all the time, feeding her whenever she needs it, day or night.
Even though Jameela is getting bigger, her mom Sekani doesn’t seem interested in being a mom. The zoo tried many times to bring Sekani and Jameela together, but Sekani didn’t show much interest in taking care of her baby.
The zoo isn’t exactly sure why Sekani is acting like this, but they think maybe because Jameela was born early and not in the normal way, Sekani didn’t feel the usual things moms feel when they have babies.
After two weeks of trying to make Sekani interested in Jameela, the zookeepers decided to try something else. They are now focusing on another gorilla named Gracie, who is 24 years old. They hope Gracie will be like a mom to Jameela instead.
The director of the Fort Worth Zoo, Michael Fouraker, said he’s really proud of his team for working so hard to take care of Jameela and trying to find the best way to help her. He’s hopeful that Jameela will keep growing up healthy and strong.
