JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens gave more insight into how it dealt with the Shigella outbreak that has claimed the lives of the four primates.
On Tuesday, the zoo announced that a 3-year-old gorilla named Kevin died from the illness.
This comes several weeks after the zoo announced that two bonobo apes, Jumanji and Jenga, had died from the infection, which was a few days after they announced the death of a 35-year-old gorilla named Bulera.
Tracy Fenn, curator of mammals for the zoo, said Kevin was being treated intensively for the infection for about 20 days. For part of that time, he was treated in the zoo hospital’s ICU so he could receive IV treatments.
“The vet team had to work really diligently around the clock to level out his electrolyte imbalance. Once he was stabilized there, he came back to the building to be in proximity with his family again,” Fenn said. “And for about a week we were with him 24/7 administering treatments every couple hours, trying to get him to eat. And at times he would improve. But then, in the long run, his little body just couldn’t fight off the infection.”
The zoo has 17 apes remaining in their population following Kevin’s passing. Fenn said their gorillas and most of their bonobo apes are doing well.
“We have one sick bonobo currently who is being monitored closely and is on treatments. Currently, she was immobilized yesterday for supportive care, so she received fluid therapy, medications, and lots of special attention to try and get her over the hump. And she seems to be doing pretty well so far,” Fenn said.
While zoo staff is grieving the loss, some of the remaining apes are also sad.
“I’m especially concerned about Medini,” Fenn said. “She lost her mother, who was Bulera, and her son Kevin, so she is an individual we’re watching pretty closely, but she’s eating well. Her behavior is good. She’s interacting well with the rest of the family and spending time with them. So overall, she’s doing fine.”
The zoo feels confident there’s no risk of guests contracting Shigella during a visit.
“The guests don’t have access to the things that could be contaminated with Shigella, these thick glasses, the glass panels are a very good protective barrier,” Fenn said.
The zoo is working with specialists and consultants to find out where the Shigella outbreak started, but it’s possible they might not be able to figure that out.
But in the meantime, Fenn said she’s extremely grateful for the outpouring of support from the community as they get through this infection.
“The job often is quite fun, but then we have times like this where it’s pretty devastating,” Fenn said. “This is the worst part of what we do, but we carry on and we endure and we keep going forward, and we’re right now trying to celebrate all the ones we have saved.”
Fenn says the best way to help them is to continue to visit the zoo and support the work they do.
You can visit the Jacksonville Zoo’s website for updates on the Shigella infection.