Breastfeeding a baby for the very first time is a difficult challenge for any new mom.
It’s an even bigger challenge when you have not had any exposure to it, or no one has taught you how to breastfeed properly.
It’s the same for animals, also.
If they’ve never seen how breastfeeding is done, then they won’t know how to do it.
That was the case with Zoe.
Zoe is an orangutan at the Metro Richmond Zoo. She had her first baby, Taavi, at the zoo but it was the zookeepers who raised him.
Since Zoe was orphaned at the age of nine months, she didn’t really have any exposure to raising babies and children.
Zoe wasn’t a bad mom, she was just an unaware mom.
The zookeepers at Metro Richmond Zoo were determined to have Zoe experience being a mom.
At the same time, they knew that her maternal instincts could kick in once she experienced breastfeeding.
Zookeepers were ready for Zoe’s 2nd baby.
They called one of their zookeepers, Whitlee Turner, for help. Whitlee was a new mom and she was breastfeeding her baby.
The zookeepers asked her if she could breastfeed her baby in front of Zoe so the orangutan could learn how to do it.
Whitlee immediately agreed and brought her baby to the zoo.
“I just had my breastfeeding bra on, and I was able to show [Zoe] everything with zero modesty. I wanted her to be able to see the whole process because orangutans don’t wear shirts. I wanted her to be able to see my breasts and see Caleb and be able to see him rooting and looking for it and the latch,” Whitlee explained.
Zoe kept her eyes on Whitlee.
The whole time Whitlee breastfed, Zoe watched intently with what seemed to be an undercurrent of realization. She understood what she was being shown.
Whitlee pointed to her breasts, to her baby, and to Zoe. She wanted Zoe to learn how to do it on her own.
Then, Whitlee’s baby latched onto her breast.
She made sure Zoe saw it.
“The whole time she just kept watching me curiously. She didn’t immediately breastfeed her baby, but she was definitely watching the whole time,” Whitlee shared.
They didn’t stop there.
The zookeepers also brought in a TV to where Zoe was so she could watch orangutan mothers giving birth and taking care of their babies.
The lead zookeeper, Jessica Gring, even patiently taught Zoe how to hold and breastfeed a baby using a stuffed orangutan.
“I would have [the stuffed animal] so it was going around my waist and around my neck just like a baby would be clinging on to [Zoe’s] side. I was able to show [Zoe] and spread [the stuffed animal’s] legs a little bit and hold them up to the front so [Zoe] would see and check it out. After he was born, [Zoe] immediately came over and did the exact same thing and showed me and let me look at his feet and his body… so she was able to do exactly mirror image of what we had shown her which was really, really exciting,” Jessica shared.
All of this worked because Zoe breastfed her baby for the first time less than 24 hours after watching Whitlee.
Zoe and her baby are bonding.
Plus, her maternal instincts have finally kicked in because Zoe has learned how to become a mom.
A huge thanks to the zookeepers at Metro Richmond Zoo for their patience and determination to teach Zoe.
See more pf Zoe’s maternal journey in the video below!
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