An endangered Western lowland baby gorilla was safely delivered on Feb. 12 at Bristol Zoo Gardens after an unusual caesarian section. It is believed to be the first successful gorilla C-section delivery in the United Kingdom.
CBS News reported that the adorable baby gorilla, which is yet to be named, was prematurely born via rare caesarean section. The zoo considered the three-hour operation as "very challenging" and was performed after the baby's mother, Kera, showed signs of pre-eclampsia, a potentially life-threatening condition.
"The birth of any gorilla is a rare and exciting event; but the birth of a baby gorilla by caesarean section is even more unusual," John Partridge, senior curator of animals, said in a report of the zoo's website. "It wasn't a decision that we took lightly - Kera was becoming quite poorly and we needed to act fast in order to give the best possible treatment to mother and baby, and to avoid the possibility of losing the baby."
The delicate operation was handled by Prof. David Cahill, a gynaecologist in St. Michael's Hospital, who has delivered a baby gorilla by C-section for the first time. He said that they decided to perform the operation after Kera showed some signs of being unwell in late pregnancy.
"Along with having my own children, this is probably one of the biggest achievements of my life and something I will certainly never forget," Cahill shared. "I have since been back to visit Kera and the baby gorilla, it was wonderful to see them both doing so well."
Rowena Killick, the zoo's veterinarian who assisted the procedure, told BBC that the operation was "very challenging" because they thought the baby girl gorilla would die. "We couldn't see any signs of life apart from the heartbeat... and then eventually, she showed signs that she was going to breathe for herself."
Killick said that the baby gorilla is now getting stronger every day while her mother is recovering. The baby gorilla is not currently on display at the zoo.
