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Meet the baby Gorilla being given a helping hand by keepers at Bristol Zoo

baby-gorilla-bristol-zooImage source, Bristol Zoo Gardens
Image caption,

This little guy has been given a helping hand by the keepers

A baby western lowland gorilla has been given lots of special care from zookeepers.

Staff from Bristol Zoo have been looking after him since his mother, Kala, found motherhood a little hard.

He wasn't getting enough milk from her, so the keepers have decided to bottle feed him.

They will need to do it around the clock for at least four months!

Image source, Bristol Zoo Gardens

The baby gorilla is two months old and has been spending his days in the gorilla house.

This is so Kala and the other gorillas can see him, smell him and continue to make him a part of the family even though he's being fed by humans!

In the evenings he is taken to on-site zoo accommodation so that the keepers can keep him warm and fed.

Zoos will try lots of things before stepping in to hand rear an animal.

Image source, Bristol Zoo Gardens

Mammals curator Lynsey Bugg said: "Hand rearing any animal is not a decision we take lightly as our preference is always for an animal to be reared naturally by its own mother.

"Sadly this doesn't always happen and in this instance we decided that it was in the baby gorilla's best interests for us to hand rear him to ensure he had the best chance of survival.

"It's really important for him that he remains a familiar member of the group, as well as being used to all the sounds, sights and smells of the gorillas."

He still has no name though. The zoo has managed to pick out its four favourite names and is asking the public to decide which they like best:

  • Motuku which means chief of the village in Bubi

  • Hasani which means handsome in Swahili

  • Luango which is a town/city on the coast of Equatorial Guinea

  • Kidosi which is a popular African name, particularly in Central Africa