why-animals-do-the-thing:

spellmain:

greysonderulo:

a few months ago my gynecologist told me that she was on call for the birth of the baby gorilla at the zoo. i still think about that every goddamn day, because:

1. the zoo either doesn’t have a vet who can deliver a gorilla baby, or they do but they have a human gynecologist on standby Just In Case
2. the zoo asked my gynecologist if she could deliver a gorilla baby at a moment’s notice and she said “hell yeah”
3. my gynecologist For Humans thought it was perfectly normal small talk to mention that she dabbles in ape vag from time to time

It’s not that uncommon for Human specialist doctors to get called in for specific things at the zoo, especially for primates! The zoo near me called in a human orthopedic surgeon for one of their orangutan’s broken fingers.

Yeah, this is pretty normal – it’s very common for local medical professionals to have relationships with zoos and help out with procedures. (Generally with apes, but I’ve also heard of local dentists doing root canals on otters and chiropractors adjusting tiger cubs). 

In this case, the zoo had likely had arranged for her to be present ahead of time, rather than at short notice. Even with the regular vet attending, sometimes having someone who specializes in ape reproductive anatomy and has experience with what you do when something goes wrong with a birth around is super useful. (Especially with critically endangered species). 

As another example, cardiologists from Brigham & Young in Boston ended up helping with a heart exam for a silverback gorilla at the Franklin Park Zoo.