Gladys the Western Lowland Gorilla, who resides at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, is pregnant! In fact, she is very pregnant and due this fall. Gladys has had an interesting story, with so many triumphs happening right here in Cincy! Cincinnati Family Magazine is so excited to share a Q+A with Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden zookeeper Ashley Ashcraft.
Cincinnati Family Magazine (CFM): Gladys the gorilla is such a triumphant creature! Can you tell us a little bit about her birth story and how she came to live in Cincinnati?
Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden (CZBG): Gladys was born at the Gladys Porter Zoo, but unfortunately her mom didn’t take care of her. She came to the Cincinnati Zoo since we had several potential gorilla surrogates for Gladys. A human team cared for her initially 24/7, acting like gorilla moms to teach her what she needed to know with the intent to get Gladys back with gorillas as soon as possible. Being a gorilla, it is incredibly important to be with other gorillas. M’linzi, one of our female gorillas, showed interest in her right away and vice versa. After slowly building their bond and teaching Gladys everything she needed to know, we fully introduced them—and they’ve been together ever since!
CFM: Gladys also showed off resiliency when she underwent surgery for a broken arm and got a titanium cast! How long was she in a cast? What challenges were there during that process?
CZBG: Gladys was in her cast for 8 weeks. This was a challenging process as Gladys needed time to herself in order to heal and not hurt her arm more. She was always in visual sight line of the rest of her troop, and the keepers were very attentive to her during this time. Since we cannot explain to her what’s going on and why, it’s the keeper’s job to keep her as comfortable as possible during this not ideal situation. Giving her extra enrichment to stimulate her mind, more training, and just spending a lot of time with her to ensure her welfare. Thankfully, gorillas heal very fast and Gladys was fully integrated back with her troop as soon as possible!
CFM: We would love to learn a little more about Gladys’s pregnancy! We listened to the Cincinnati Zoo Tales episode about Gladys (embedded in the article, below!), which was such a fun listen! Thank you for giving us a glimpse into the gorilla world at the zoo with that chat—we can’t wait for the follow-up update. In the meantime, here are a few pregnancy questions that popped into our mind that we thought Cincinnati Family Magazine’s readers (specifically the mommas) may find interesting, too.
CFM: The Zoo Tales episode delved into the fact that Gladys did experience morning sickness! That is so interesting to us. Can you chat about how long that lasted for Gladys and what that looked like for her? Did she actually get sick, or was she just “off”?
CZBG: Gladys experienced morning sickness that lasted until she was about 15 weeks along. Although she didn’t get physically sick, she let us know in other ways she wasn’t feeling her best. She was laying around a bit more, which is unusual for her. She also had a decreased appetite during this time. Especially in the morning, she wasn’t interested in eating anything for a few weeks. The keepers made sure to offer her more eating and drinking opportunities throughout the day so that she consumed the calories that she needed to grow a baby.
CFM: Keepers also mentioned an aversion to citrus at one point during Gladys’s pregnancy. Any other aversions or cravings?
CZBG: Gorillas tend to have a sweet tooth just like humans. So, fruit items were favored during this time, except her citrus! Pear and plums were a hit for awhile. We also offered her sugar-free diluted juice, like apple juice, to ensure she was staying hydrated and she really enjoyed that. She also really enjoyed peanuts. Not a fan of her vegetables during this time 🙂
CFM: Do the keepers have to adjust a pregnant animal’s dietary intake?
CZBG: At the Cincinnati Zoo we have a Nutritionist that we collaborate with on all diets. At this point, Gladys’ diet has not been changed; however, she is on a prenatal vitamin that she takes every morning. Once she has the baby and is spending more calories producing milk to feed the baby, then we will increase her diet to account for that.
CFM: Keepers have been giving Gladys bi-weekly ultrasounds to check on babies progress. Can you share any of those images?! Also, we have to know… can you feel the babies kicks during those ultrasounds???
CZBG: As of two weeks ago, we have started weekly ultrasounds. This is just an extra safety measure that we take to ensure that things continue to progress well the closer we get to her due date. We have an amazing Sonographer, Mary Ann, that volunteers her time to help guide the keepers where to put the probe. The baby is very consistently moving around a lot during these exams and we have felt the baby moving around.
CFM: We love seeing photos of Gladys’s pregnant belly! Do you know how much weight the average lowland gorilla gains during pregnancy?
CZBG: As of right now, Gladys has gained about 30lbs during her pregnancy. This is right on par with other pregnant gorillas.
CFM: We think it is so interesting that keepers were able to confirm Gladys’s pregnancy with a regular old pregnancy test on urine collected from a pipet! After stopping birth control, do you have an estimate at how long it took for Gladys to get pregnant?! Did any of the keepers cry with excitement???
CZBG: We had taken Gladys off birth control about a couple of months before she became pregnant. Keepers knew she was pregnant before she even tested positive just from the minor behavioral changes that we were seeing from her! Keepers really know their stuff! We are all very excited for Gladys and there are 4 of her keepers that helped assist-rear Gladys when she came to the Cincinnati Zoo back in 2013. So, it’s certainly a full circle moment!
CFM: Zoo Tales discussed that Gladys has been doing some operant conditioning to prepare her for motherhood! We found this SO compelling, especially with Gladys’s mother abandoning her. How is the training going? We would love to know how often Gladys works on developing her skills. Have other programs found success with training animals to mother?
CZBG: Gladys’ training is right on track! She is doing everything perfectly at this point. She is trained twice a day to develop these skills. She just voluntarily received her RSV vaccine in prep for the baby, which is a part of her training program. Training gorillas’ maternal behaviors that could assist with picking up a baby and holding the baby to their chest to feed along with many other things, is incredibly important. Although this training is hopefully not needed, it is certainly valuable to use if it is. We had successes with another female at the Cincinnati Zoo with this training when she was carrying the baby too low on the first day. It is recommended that all pregnant gorillas get this type of training and it’s even more important as a first-time mom. Gladys is a first-time mom, and we are fully prepared for every outcome.
CFM: Has 24-hour baby watch started yet?
CZBG: Not yet! But, we are getting really close!
CFM: What signs will keepers look for to signal that birth is near?
CZBG: One of the first signs of labor in gorillas is restlessness, inability to get comfortable, tiredness, stomach wall tightening that could indicate contractions, water breaking, loss of vaginal plug. Gorillas typically give birth in an upright almost squatting position. We are keeping a very close eye on her as her birth window approaches.
CFM: We have a million and one more questions! BUT, we don’t want to keep you from your duties. We hope to connect again once Gladys’s baby arrives 🙂 Thank you SO much for your time and for caring for Gladys and all of the Lowland gorillas at Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden.
Congratulations to mom Gladys and dad Mbeli—we can’t wait to chat with keepers once baby arrives.
Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden
3400 Vine Street, Cincinnati, OH 45220
(513)281-4700 | www.cincinnatizoo.org
