Binti Jua rose to popularity after a 3-year-old boy drowned in the gorilla pit at Chicago’s Brookfield Zoo in 1996.
The child injured his head and passed out as a result of the fall. Visitors to the zoo began to panic at that point. When they noticed a gorilla approaching, they started shouting, fearing it might hurt the fainting infant.
⠀The gorilla approached the infant and, like a protective mother, held him in her lap, pushed the other gorillas in the ditch out of the way, and made her way to the gate through which the keepers could enter.
⠀He came to a halt there and began rocking the baby till he heard the keepers unlock the door. At that point, the 8-year-old gorilla walked away, kindly leaving the child laying on the floor so they could aid.
Many individuals have argued that there was no need to kill Harambe, a 17-year-old silverback gorilla that was shot dead at Cincinnati Zoo after a 4-year-old boy managed to slip into his enclosure, alleging that the animal was actually trying to take care of the boy. Amanda O’Donoughue, a former zookeeper, has a completely different viewpoint, which she shared in a recent Facebook post.
“The job of an adult male silverback gorilla is to guard his group.”
“Now, gorillas are regarded as ‘gentle giants,’ at least when contrasted to their more aggressive cousins the chimps, but a 400-pound male in his prime is as strong as about 10 adult humans.” How much weight can you bench press? Now take that amount and double it by ten. The function of an adult male silverback gorilla is to guard his group. He accomplishes this by bluffing or frightening anybody or anything who threatens him.”
Harambe’s incident with the child is “very much the stuff of any keeper’s nightmares,” as one keeper put it.
“I’ve viewed this video several times, and the Harambe’s posture and tight lips are the stuff of any keeper’s nightmares, and I’ve had enough while dealing with them.” This is not a job for the smug. Gorillas are gentle, curious, and occasionally amusing creatures, yet they are also massive and powerful creatures. I always had my OCD with me at work. Before entering to clean, I double-checked and triple-checked locks to ensure that the creatures under my care and I were separate.”
Harambe didn’t strive to defend the child; instead, he used him to terrify others.
“I’ve heard the Gorilla was attempting to protect the boy. This does not ring true to me. Harambe the Gorilla reaches for the boy’s hands and arms, but only to better position him for his own presentation. When enraged, males put on elaborate shows, banging and dragging objects around. To make as much noise as possible, they would typically pull big branches, barrels, and heavy weighted balls around. Usually, it’s not with the intention of harming anyone or anything, but rather to intimidate. It seemed obvious to me that he was responding to the yells from the crowd.”
Why weren’t tranquilizers an option?
“They didn’t use Tranquilizers for a few reasons: A. Harambe would have taken too long to become immobilized, and the drugs used may not have worked quickly enough depending on the stress of the situation and the dose B. Harambe would have taken too long to become immobilized and could have seriously injured the child in the process as the drugs used may not have worked quickly enough depending on the stress of the situation and the dose C. Harambe would have taken too long to become immobile If Harambe had been immobilized in the water, he would have drowned in the moat, trapping and drowning the youngster as well.”
“I can’t blame anyone for Harambe’s death, but we need to take a hard look at the visitor safety of the animal enclosures…
I know one thing for certain: those keepers have lost a stunning silverback and companion. This week, I’m grieving with them. As educators and conservationists for endangered species, all we can do is shed a light on their beauty and majesty in the hopes of igniting a desire to save them from extinction. They are not child killers. It’s regrettable for the species’ protection and the economic loss that a lovely zoo-like Cinci will suffer.”