Zookeeper Becomes Gorilla Dad: Heartwarming Tale of Love and Care

Quick Smiles:

• Alan Toyne, a devoted zookeeper, became a temporary parent to two baby gorillas.
• He hand-reared them by replicating natural gorilla behaviors in his own home.
• The innovative approach ensured the gorillas grew up integrated with their troop.

Alan Toyne’s journey as a surrogate parent to two baby gorillas is a testament to his dedication and creativity. For seven months in 2016, he transformed his Bristol home into a nurturing environment for these young primates, sharing his daily life with them.

Toyne, who had been a zookeeper at Bristol Zoo for a decade, was part of the pioneering team in the UK to hand-rear baby gorillas. This method aimed to replicate natural behaviors as closely as possible, a necessity after Kera, a lowland gorilla, developed pre-eclampsia and rejected her prematurely born baby, Afia.

“We were the first team to use the surrogacy method of hand-rearing gorillas,” Toyne explained. Unlike previous methods, this approach involved integrating the babies with adult gorillas much earlier.

Toyne’s home life with Afia was filled with memorable moments. “I still remember the first day bringing Afia back to my home in her car seat and putting her asleep on the table,” he recalled. His partner, Sharon, was instantly smitten, exclaiming, “Oh my goodness,” upon seeing Afia.

To teach the baby gorillas essential skills, Toyne and his team wore string vests to mimic gorilla fur. “It was all about training her how to be a proper gorilla,” he shared. During the day, Afia spent time with other gorillas to ensure she was accepted as part of the troop.

Toyne also cared for Hasani, another baby gorilla who faced similar rejection from his mother. Both gorillas spent around seven months under Toyne’s care, and he fondly remembers shared meals and playful interactions.

“When I first brought Afia home—gorillas all eat at the same time—so when we had our tea, we’d all eat together, having our dinner with a gorilla at the table,” Toyne recounted. Afia had her own way of waking him up, “slap[ping] me on the head like a bongo drum,” while being gentler with Sharon.

Although saying goodbye to the gorillas was emotional, Toyne took comfort in their successful upbringing. Reflecting on past practices, he noted, “Back then, if a baby gorilla needed rearing, they would go into a crèche all together, which spurs on their development and play behaviors; but the downside is they don’t understand gorilla social behavior.”

The innovative method Toyne and his team used allowed the gorillas to learn natural behaviors from a surrogate, ensuring they could integrate seamlessly back into their troop. After seven months, a surrogate mother helped raise them socially, while the zoo team continued bottle-feeding for three years.

Toyne’s unique experience is chronicled in his audiobook, “Gorillas in Our Midst,” capturing the unforgettable journey of living alongside these fascinating creatures.

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