San Diego Zoo Safari Park works to protect heart of 51-year-old gorilla
SAN DIEGO — Silverback gorilla Winston is now 51-years-old, one of the oldest male gorillas in captivity in the world, and the San Diego Zoo Safari Park has been working since 2017 to protect him from heart disease.
Winston has lived at the Safari Park in San Diego since 1984. He has nine offspring and adopted two unrelated male gorillas — an uncommon behavior for silverbacks, according to the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance.
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However, in 2017, he began exhibiting signs of unusual lethargy and reduced appetite, which prompted concern among zoo staff and led to a series of diagnostic tests to identify the cause.
Those results showed heart function irregularities, according to the wildlife alliance, and those findings were shared with the Great Ape Heart Project, a cardiac health initiative for great apes in human care.
“Winston has always been an amazingly strong primate, but older great apes—particularly male gorillas—are susceptible to heart disease, a primary cause of mortality,” said Matt Kinney, senior veterinarian at the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. “Given Winston’s symptoms that year, we opted for an echocardiogram. The checkup was very limited, but it allowed us to address immediate clinical concerns and establish a baseline for Winston’s cardiac care.”
Four years later, Winston and his troop were the first known great apes in the world to be diagnosed with COVID-19 in January 2021.
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The wildlife alliance reports his COVID-19 diagnosis prompted his team to perform a series of tests, which led to diagnoses of heart, dental and kidney diseases, among other conditions.
A treatment plan was then prepared for Winston, which included cardiac medications, supplements and a heart monitor implant.
“The heart monitor is a remarkable innovation, offering invaluable data on Winston’s cardiac health,” said Kinney. “Along with his overall clinical condition and weight, we can make frequent adjustments based on the information received from his cardiac monitor.”
Winston also underwent monoclonal antibody therapy, a synthetic defense against COVID-19, which the wildlife alliance says was crucial to his recovery.
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Since his COVID-19 diagnosis, the Safari Park’s wildlife health and care teams, alongside Centers for Disease Control staff, have been monitoring Winston and his troop for potential long-term effects of COVID-19 on gorillas.
“Caring for Winston throughout the years have been an extraordinary honor for our wildlife health and care teams,” said Kristi Burtis, vice president of wildlife care at the Safari Park. “He is undeniably the beloved member of our conservation park. His thriving exemplifies our commitment to conservation and the deep passion of those who care for him.”
You can see Winston at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. For more information about Winston, visit stories.sandiegozoo.org/2023/09/19/heart-to-heart/.
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