Updated 1/27/2009 8:06:31 PM
ATLANTA -- The gorillas at Zoo Atlanta are victims of their own prosperity. They have been thriving in their environment; having babies, expanding their family groups.
And, because they are so healthy, they are living longer. That presents the zoo's veterinary staff with a challenge: geriatric gorillas.
You can tell -- it's an effort for the female gorilla to move. That's what happens when gorillas -- and people -- get old.
Zoo veterinarian Dr. Hayley Murphy runs down the list of things she looks for in geriatric gorillas.
"Age problems related to joints, arthritis, that kind of thing," Murphy said. "Dental disease you start to worry about."
In the wild, gorillas live 30-to-35 years. Zoo Atlanta has one of the largest geriatric gorilla populations in North America. There are five gorillas here between 47 and 50 years old. The zoo staff wants to keep their geriatric gorillas active. They'll treat their arthritis with anti-inflammatories, and keep their diet easy to chew. The trick is to examine them without putting them to sleep.
"On these geriatric animals, the risk of anesthesia goes up," Murphy said. "Certainly having them trained for the veterinarians to examine without anesthesia is a huge benefit."
This is where Taz comes in. A silverback, Taz has been trained to respond to commands. He's 20 years old. But the training he is getting now will allow veterinarians like Dr. Hayley Murphy to do comprehensive exams on him when he does reach old age.
"We're always watching cardiac factors," Murphy said. "Biochemical markers, ultrasound exams. And that's why we're training them here to have awake exams."
Zoo Atlanta is working with Georgia Tech and Emory University to come up with a way to take a geriatric gorilla's blood pressure without putting the animal to sleep.
A healthy gorilla is a happy gorilla -- and eventually, an old gorilla.
"Years ago, you never heard of a 50-year-old gorilla," said Murphy. "And now it's fairly standard."
Every day Zoo Atlanta's geriatric gorillas amble over the grounds, comfortable and content. And the zoo's staff is working hard to keep them that way.
