Life-threatening complications suffered by a pregnant gorilla recently forced a Texas zoo to deliver the female gorilla’s baby weeks early — with medical doctors helping to get the job done.

The Fort Worth Zoo announced the arrival of a baby female gorilla, who arrived earlier this year on Jan. 5. (SEE the video at the top of this article.)

The baby’s mother, a 33-year-old gorilla named Sekani, was pregnant with her fourth baby and was expected to deliver in mid-February, according to the zoo. 

Those plans changed on Jan. 3, however, when veterinarians realized Sekani was moving slower than normal and holding her head as if she had a headache.

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Veterinarians figured out that Sekani was showing signs of preeclampsia — a blood-pressure condition that occurs in pregnant females, both humans and primates, according to the Fort Worth Zoo. 

After consulting with a local obstetrician and neonatologist, the zoo staff agreed that Sekani needed to give birth via emergency C-section as soon as possible. 

On Jan. 5, a team of doctors, including a volunteer medical team, performed a C-section on Sekani, welcoming a new baby gorilla to Fort Worth, Texas for the third time in the zoo’s 115-year history.

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Dr. Jamie Walker Erwin, a board-certified obstetrics and gynecology physician, said in a press release that the experience was a highlight of her career. 

“It is an honor and privilege to assist with care for this endangered species and to share my expertise with the veterinary staff at the Fort Worth Zoo,” she said. 

Neonatologist Dr. Robert Ursprung helped with the resuscitation and stabilization of the premature baby gorilla — and said the experience opened his eyes to how similar the birth in primates was to that of humans. 

“It was incredible how similar this mother-infant pair was compared to what I see in the hospital for babies born under similar circumstances,” he said in a press release.

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After the emergency procedure, the Fort Worth Zoo said it was interested to see that Sekani had little to no interest in caring for her newborn baby. 

Zoo experts said in a press release that they believe this might be because Sekani didn’t “experience the necessary hormonal cues that come during natural and full-term birth.”

Due to this, zoo employees have been raising the baby gorilla for the last month, including bottle feeding her every two to three hours, giving her weight checks, monitoring her other health needs and more. 

Now, however, staff have made the decision to train a 24-year-old female gorilla named Gracie to become a surrogate mother to the new baby. 

“It was incredible how similar this mother-infant pair was compared to what I see in the hospital for babies born under similar circumstances.”

Gracie, whom the zoo said has two offspring of her own, is already trained in different ways to be a surrogate mother. 

“Zookeepers are hopeful Gracie will be an ideal surrogate mother, exhibiting maternal behaviors that will be necessary for the baby to thrive: holding and carrying of the infant, protection, cooperation with zookeepers during feeding time and teaching the little one necessary social skills she needs to be a gorilla,” the zoo said in a media statement. 

Staff at the Fort Worth Zoo have decided to name the baby Jameela — which means “beautiful” in Swahili.

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