Then the other gorilla would move away.
At first, we told ourselves it was normal.
Gorillas are highly social animals, but they don’t automatically accept every newcomer. Introductions can take days or weeks. Sometimes longer. We had dealt with difficult introductions before, and I reminded the staff that patience mattered more than speed.
But Ghost’s situation was different.
He had lost his mother. He had already been through the trauma of being taken from the only environment he knew. He was surrounded by unfamiliar people and unfamiliar gorillas, and every attempt to find him a companion ended with another rejection.
Our first introduction was with an older female named Lila. She approached the baby cautiously, sniffed him through the barrier, and watched him for several minutes.
Ghost became excited.
