Happy 5th birthday, Thandie! - Zoo Antwerpen (Belgium) - Zoovenirs (54)
The first part of the video was recorded during earlier visits.
On 26/11/23, Thandie celebrated her 5th birthday.
l was present as soon as l could enter the Zoo. A zookeeper was still cleaning the enclosure and hiding some treats. l was happy to witness it when the gorillas came in.
Sadly, Thandie and Vizazi will grow up without their dad Matadi, leader of the group. He has unexpectedly passed away in October due to the combination of viral and bacterial infections. Zoo vet Jonas tried everything, but nothing could be done anymore. All zookeepers of the gorillas were alerted and present when the gentle giant passed away.
Matadi was a caring and playful dad to his daughters Thandie and Vizazi. He was always patient and a good teacher, for instance, showing the tricks to get the treats out of the puzzle box. (see video Zoovenirs (48))
It was arranged that the gorillas could say goodbye to their leader, as it is a known ritual for these big apes. One of the females is expected to take over leadership. Introducing a new male is not an option yet, as the girls are still too young and would be in danger to be killed.
Matadi's death is a big loss for the breeding programme of the Western Lowland Gorillas. Fortunately, his valuable genes are preserved in his daughters.
His body was transferred to Gent University, where an autopsy and extended research will be done. That way, the beloved silverback can still be significant for other gorillas in the future.
Matadi is missed so much! The zookeepers noticed that the group is much quieter.
Music in this video :
"Fairy forest" by Derek Fiechter
l don't claim any rights.
#zooantwerpen
#gorillas
Edited by YouCut:youcutapp.page.link/BestEditor
Пікірлер: 11
Pretty Thandie! The spirit of your beloved papa lives on in you! Happy Birthday precious girl!🥹🎂
Thank you for sharing! Happiest of birthdays beautiful girl.❤🎉🧁
@carinagryp6264
6 ай бұрын
Thank YOU for your comment! 😀👍
Fun birthday for a birthday!
Happy Bday Thandie❣️❣️❣️
Happy,Healthy,Blessed Fabulous 5th birthday 🎂 🥳 🎉 Thandie,! Hopefully you got many treats & a gorilla toys, you grow up way too fast!!! Blessings, for strength, much happiness, &great health ❣️ 🎄💞🦍🤶🏻🧑🎄 I'm very sad to know precious Matadi passed so quickly!!! I blame Covid!!😝
@carinagryp6264
6 ай бұрын
In fact, in spite of all the precautions, the gorillas got indeed infected with covid at one point. They all recovered from it fairly quickly, except Matadi. When he got a bacterial infection on top, the zoo vet tried everything to get him healthy again, but at the end, nothing could be done anymore, unfortunately. Thank you for your comment. 😀👍
@rosa2dogs
6 ай бұрын
@@carinagryp6264 Thank you very much for your info! 💞🦍🎄🙏🧑🎄🤶🏻🤗👑💖
Happy birthday sweetie! Such a great home, with plenty of fun and enrichment. I loved seeing them look for the treats. 😊
@carinagryp6264
6 ай бұрын
Hi, Emily! Thank you for your comment! 🤗👍 The zookeepers got a lot of new enrichment items installed in September : new platforms, tree trunks, ropes, tyres, plastic tubes, folded fire department hoses... etc. That's done to benefit the animals, of course, but sometimes it makes it more difficult to record at a good angle. 😉😅 I went early, hoping to catch it when the zookeepers prepared a surprise for Thandie's birthday, but it turned out to be just the daily routine. First time l witnessed that, though, and l chuckled, watching how the gorillas knew exactly where to look for the treats. Thandie was persistent to get all of them out of the horizontal tyre. Exactly a scene l hoped for on her birthday, as was Thandie relaxing and sleeping in the 'hanging basket'. 😄👍 The clip with the birthday song was posted on my Instagram account. I included it to show you. 😉😀
@emilyinoregon6967
6 ай бұрын
@@carinagryp6264 Awesome! Thank you 😊