Unlikely Friendships - Jennifer S. Holland [13]
The relationship was cut sadly short. The winter after Koko took the kitten in, Ball escaped the gorilla enclosure and was hit by a car. Those working with Koko say the ape’s tremendous sadness was clear, revealed in hand gestures, her silent language of grief, and her crying calls.
In a National Geographic article about the remarkable ape, her signed words were translated this way:
When asked if she wanted to talk about her loss, Koko gestured: “Cry.”
“What happened to your kitty?” her trainer asked.
“Sleep cat.”
Pointing to a photo of a cat that resembled Ball, Koko’s big hands spoke again:
“Cry, sad, frown.”
But in gorillas, as in humans, time heals even deep wounds, and there is room in the heart to care for another. Koko soon bonded with two new kittens, Lipstick and Smoky. Her mothering instinct rekindled, the gorilla impressed her human caregivers again by showering gentle affection on animals so unlike herself.
THE GORILLA FOUNDATION KOKO.ORG
Dedicated to the preservation, protection, and well-being of gorillas, this foundation, established in 1976, is best known for its groundbreaking work with two western lowland gorillas, Koko and Michael, who were taught to become fluent in American Sign language (ASL).
{SOUTH AFRICA, 2006}
The Hippopotamus and the Pygmy Goat
HIPPOPOTA MUS
KINGDOM: Animalia
PHYLUM: Chordata
CLASS: Mammalia
ORDER: Artiodactyla
FAMILY: Hippopotamidae
GENUS: Hippopotamus
SPECIES: Hippopotamus amphibius
CAMEROON MOUNTAIN GOAT (PYGMY GOAT)
KINGDOM: Animalia
PHYLUM: Chordata
CLASS: Mammalia
ORDER: Artiodactyla
FAMILY: Bovidae
GENUS: Capra
SPECIES: Capra aegagrus hircus
Humphrey the hippo arrived at the Rhino and Lion Nature Reserve at about six months of age. The reserve is best known for the animals listed in its name, especially the endangered rhinos that have been successfully bred there in the last decade. But other species are also welcome on the grounds—as was the case with Humphrey.
According to Lorinda Hern, whose father Ed owns the South African facility, the hippo had been completely hand-reared. He’d lived inside a house with his human “family” and lounged around in their backyard pool until he grew too huge for domestic life. At that point the family tried to keep him outside, but Humphrey, spoiled by his days as a house pet, would have none of it. He broke down doors to get back inside.
Perhaps his fervor shouldn’t have been surprising. A hippo isn’t the kind of animal to sit quietly and take whatever comes—unless it is relaxed and wallowing in a cool river. Mostly, hippos aggressively guard their territory. And though they may seem slow and lumbering, they can run over 20 miles an hour. In Africa, many consider the hippopotamus to be the most dangerous of all wild creatures, as they are said to kill more humans than any other large animal—including crocodiles and lions.
Fortunately, in the case of the human-friendly Humphrey, there was never any fear of an intentional attack. It was just the unintentional “collateral damage” of keeping a 4-ton hippo in a house that finally pushed his owners over the edge, which is how Humphrey ended up on the reserve.
Once he was there, the staff decided to introduce Humphrey to a “friend” right away to keep him from getting lonely and possibly acting out his frustrations again.
Enter one Cameroon mountain goat (also called a pygmy goat). The two seemed unconcerned by differences in size and species, and each found a friend in the other. The goat proved to be a somewhat unfortunate role model, however. Cameroon mountain goats are endlessly curious, excellent escape artists, and notorious climbers quite capable of scaling a fence or even getting onto the roof of a building to see what’s there. And the hippo, already prone to poor behavior, seemed content to copy his bovid friend’s antics. He’d happily climb the fences of his pen—as much as a hippopotamus can be said to “climb” anything—and he’d surprise terrified tourists into giving up the contents of their picnic