12 January 2018
Gorilla exotic vet surgery
When keepers noticed that 24-year-old Effie, mum to two-year-old Gernot, was off her food and spending increasing time away from the rest of her close-knit family, they called on the Zoo’s expert veterinary team for help.
Our vet Amanda Guthrie said: “After a few days of refusing her favourite foods it was clear there was something really wrong with Effie, so we worked with her keepers to perform an ultrasound examination. Once we saw the problem we decided it was best to operate on her that day.”
After anaesthetising her, the team succeeded in removing eight inches of infected bowel, most likely caused by some trapped food in her digestive system.
Effie is recovering well after the operation, which took place on 29 December 2017, and has now been reunited with her family in the Zoo’s Gorilla Kingdom.
Amanda added: “We’re really pleased with how well Effie is recovering from her recent surgery. Her keepers and the ZSL vet team have been keeping a close eye on her and are happy to report that she’s back to her usual self, eating her favourite treats again and playing with Gernot.”