<em>By
Jessica Franck, Keeper
Mesker Park Zoo, Evansville, IN</em>

<strong>Abstract</strong>

A colobus named Zoe lost multiple infants during, or shortly after, birth before finally giving birth to a surviving infant in November 2009. Zoe’s maternal care was initially inadequate and the infant may also have had some other underlying issues. However, with intense supplemental care the infant was able to remain with Zoe and the social group. She was undersized until about a year of age, but now appears to be a normal colobus.

<strong>Introduction</strong>

Mesker Park Zoo (MPZ) in Evansville, IN has exhibited Guereza colobus (<em>Colobus guereza</em>) since 1975. Their current housing is an outdoor exhibit [33ft. (10m) Length x 20.5ft. (6.25m)Width x 17ft. (5.2m) Height] connected by a raised chute [42.75ft.(13m)L x 3ft. (0.9m)W x 2ft. (0.6m)H] to three indoor, off-exhibit holding stalls [each 8ft.(2.4m)L x 6ft. (1.8m)W x 8ft. (2.4m)H]. When I started working with the colobus in June 2008, the group consisted of 1.0 Michael (born 24 Dec 1990) and 0.1 Rafiki (born 2 Apr 1989). Michael and Rafiki both had successful reproductive backgrounds at MPZ. Due to a Species Survival Plan (SSP®) recommendation, a second female named Zoe came to MPZ in July 2008.

<strong>Zoe’s History, Gestation, and Parturition</strong>

Zoe (born 7 Feb 1994) did not have a normal upbringing. She was born at the Houston Zoo to an experienced mother. However, at a young age Zoe went through an apparent depression (thought to be caused by the death of a group member) that included anorexia. Although she was able to remain with her mother and is classified as parent-reared by Taxon and Specimen reports, staff had to provide intensive supplemental care. As a lasting result, Zoe has an unusually close relationship with people. She solicits grooming from caretakers even when conspecifics are nearby.

Zoe was moved to the Oregon Zoo in October 2005 per an SSP® breeding recommendation. While there she had the chance to watch another experienced female raise offspring. Zoe had some difficulty fitting into the group, which consisted of 3.1 colobus (adult male, adult female, and their two juvenile male offspring). It is possible that the stress of the situation contributed to her first stillbirth on 31 January 2007. Her medARKS record mentions the infant had internal hemorrhages suggestive of dystocia. The infant may have succumbed to a hypoxic death since the placenta detached and was delivered intact with the infant. Following the stillbirth, Zoe showed a renewed interest in the other female’s infant (born December 2006) and spent time holding and interacting with her. After Zoe’s second pregnancy was confirmed, the two juvenile males were moved to a separate on-site holding facility. Zoe had a second stillborn infant on 12 September 2007. Once again the medARKS record reports an intact placenta. It also mentions the infant’s low birthweight, 372 grams [13.12oz.] compared to more normal birth weights of around 600 grams [21.16oz.]. The infant also had a congenital anomaly. A third birth occurred on 29 March 2008. This infant lived less than a day with the cause of death determined to be a traumatic cerebral hemorrhage. Even though keepers had prepared for this birth by heavily bedding the holding area, Zoe’s inadequate holding of the infant probably caused the trauma. After this last birth, Zoe was kept separate from the male until her transfer to MPZ.

Zoe’s integration into the colobus group at MPZ in August 2008 went smoothly. She exhibited appropriate behavioral responses to both Michael and Rafiki and within a few weeks it became evident that she had become the dominant female. Based on weight gain, pregnancy was first suspected in late October 2008. By December she was showing a rounded belly and some mammary enlargement. To prepare for the birth, the shelves and limbs were lowered to less than two feet off the ground in early January. Shortly thereafter Zoe was separated from the other two individuals overnight in a bedded stall. Anecdotally, Rafiki was said to be a “baby stealer” - behavior excessively beyond the normal colobus allo-mothering behaviorii, and though she was a good mother, her milk production was non-existent. We thought separating Zoe initially would give us a chance to better monitor her maternal skills and avoid potential trauma caused by having to take a baby back from Rafiki who was a skittish individual.

On 21 February 2009, a deceased infant was found in the straw. It was cold to the touch with an intact umbilical cord and placenta. Zoe was calmly sitting on the shelf above it. Unfortunately, the necropsy cooler malfunctioned and the body was frozen. A subsequent lung float test made the vet believe the baby had been stillborn. However, the pathologist who later examined tissue samples believed that the baby had been born alive.

Zoe remained separated from Michael until 5 April 2009. The reintroduction was uneventful. In early June, some bleeding was seen. This discharge was attributed to cycling even though black-and-white colobus are not known to have visible reproductive signalsiii. Based on this suspected cycling, mid-December was thought to be when the baby was due. At the end of her last pregnancy, I was able to feel fetal movement during a grooming session. With another possible pregnancy, I decided to use this component as an opportunity to monitor fetal health. Fetal movement was first suspected on 29 Aug 2009, however it seemed too soon to be feeling anything. An ultrasound was performed on 3 September 2009 and pregnancy was confirmed.

After pregnancy was confirmed, I tried to feel the baby moving at least twice a week. Mammary duct development was reported on 14 September 2009. Overnight separation began 8 November 2009. This time I asked to have Rafiki separated with Zoe, believing that Zoe’s main issue was care for the baby immediately following partruition. However, still believing that Zoe wasn’t due until mid-December, the holding limbs were not yet lowered and I, the primary keeper, left for vacation in California.

On 13 November 2009, Zoe gave birth to a live female infant. When keepers performed AM checks, Rafiki was holding the baby. By the time management and veterinary staff formulated a plan for retrieval of the baby, Zoe had retrieved her. However, when she was approached, Zoe dropped the baby from approximately five feet onto the concrete floor. The baby was pulled for a health check. Zoe was also sedated for a health check and clear fluid was expressed from her nipples. Because of Zoe’s inadequacy and a continued worry for latent neurological issues related to being dropped, the baby, named Garnet, was initially hand-reared with the goal of returning her to Zoe as soon as possible. I returned early from my trip on 17 November 2009.

<strong>Garnet’s Challenges</strong>

We did a visual introduction with Zoe and Garnet to gauge Zoe’s interest on the afternoon of 18 November. She was very interested and frantically tried to make contact with her infant. The decision was made to physically reintroduce the infant the following morning. The holding stall was prepped by lowering limbs/shelves to less than 18 inches off the ground and heavily bedding it with straw. The baby was weighed, fed, and measured at 0800hrs and then placed in the stall on her surrogate (a heated bag of fluids covered with furry fabric). Zoe, in her inexperience, focused on the surrogate and not the baby. When Garnet fell off at 1045hrs, she was retrieved and Zoe was pressured to drop the surrogate and then Garnet was returned to her. Zoe held the baby inappropriately, low or upside down at times. When jumping onto limbs she tried to hold the baby with her mouth, a carrying form seen only in olive colobus (Procolobus verus)iv. Staff did not observe any nursing and the decision was made to pull the baby at 1430hrs. Zoe and the baby were put in a squeeze cage where Zoe was given a sedative and then Garnet was pulled from her. Reintroduction was performed again over the next two days with the same results. On 22 November, Rafiki was added to the mix, but Zoe would not let her hold Garnet. I was able to express clear fluid from Zoe’s nipples in the squeeze cage that afternoon and I unsuccessfully attempted to position the baby close to the nipples. Zoe was amazingly tolerant of this interference.

The decision was made to anesthetize Zoe on 23 November. We were able to express milk from both nipples and managed to get Garnet to latch on and nurse. At one point, she let go of the nipple and then found it again on her own. We also shaved the area around the areolas to give observers a better visual of nipple location and any nursing. We decided to not pull Garnet that evening. When Zoe was still recovering and being physically supported, the baby nursed from the opposite nipple without much assistance. After Zoe fully awoke, no additional nursing was observed. Garnet would cry and Zoe would appear distressed. Nursing was finally observed again at 1735hrs. No nursing was seen when checked at 2200hrs, but nursing was seen at 0300hrs and throughout the following two days.

On Thanksgiving Day, 26 November, Rafiki was put back with the pair. There still appeared to be nursing, but at 1200hrs Garnet appeared to be leaning backward from Zoe. Rafiki had Garnet at 1505hrs, but when Zoe approached she gently let her take the baby back. Something was obviously wrong with the baby at this point. She was leaning backward and wasn’t holding on well. Her color was pale. The decision was made to pull Garnet again. When her condition was assessed, her weight was found to be down over 150 grams [5.29oz.].

Thus began a nightmarish cycle of regurgitation, multiple daily administrations of subcutaneous fluids, and an episode where Garnet’s blood sugar dropped so low she began seizing. She was a different animal. Her motor skill development had regressed. She cried constantly to the point that her voice was hoarse. It took her 10 days to recover to the point that we felt comfortable putting her back with Zoe again during the day.

At this point, it seemed clear that something was improper with the nursing. Several problems could include that Garnet was not getting the volume needed or Zoe’s milk was somehow nutritionally lacking or Garnet wasn’t processing the milk properly. We decided to work on supplemental feeding…
<div><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2227" title="franck_2" src="http://aecetia.net/gws/aazk/wp-content/uploads/franck_2.jpg" alt="franck_2" width="614" height="461" /></div>
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<div><strong>Feeding Garnet in the Creep Cage. </strong> <em>Photo by Jessica Franck.</em></div>
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