Koko shows motherhood empathy

[gl3110]

why is my face all wet?

[Caublasian1]

@gl3110 couse you got skeed on

[SoFreakingLegit]

I hope Koko gets a chance to be a mother soon. c:

[neonnights98]

Why don't you adopt a baby gorilla for her? Really it's a bit sad seeing her holding a plastic baby, whether she thinks it's real or not. I think it would be nice for her to adopt an orphan gorilla and not a kitten for a change, cause the cats won't take a shine to her as much as another gorilla would. Not being offensive, just saying.

[doctorsensual77]

Watching this video, at least you know, when the idiocy of man leads us to oblivion, the world we'll leave behind will be in good hands.

Somehow I'm just sure of it...

[gryffindorgirl17]

As much as Iove this gorilla...she scares me. 1) Shows beyond any doubt apes are far more intelligent than people want to give them credit 2) When they take over I'd be compelled to join their side because their just so darn lovable, even if they go all Planet of the Apes on us.

[kanenav]

tarzan O_o??

[rpkymadisonco]

koko didd'ent kill the cat it got ran overed by a truck you people are ensane

[antfmcman]

I don't like the way that woman talks to her

[LuckyIzzy659]

@antfmcman um why?

[Rypam99]

Beautiful!



[Rachulie]

this is like....vice versa tarzan. 

[vonlossberg]

So pathetic..in some office with a naked plastic human doll..so sad. I agree..with cujo55544 There must be a orphaned gorilla she could raise.

[bonkasthebluetoon]

the one dislike is from steve jacobs from rise of the planet of the apes

[KtotheY77]

Koko didn't kill the cat.

[ihlda]

Oh koko is so cute

[WESAM400]

all what that big dude wants is freedom you can seance it in his eyes

[dazza2151]

@WESAM400 The gorilla is a girl.

[NeedsMor3]

Black girls...

[cujo55544]

An interesting idea: Since Koko seems reluctant to breed on her own, why not allow her to adopt? I'm sure there must be plenty of orphaned baby gorillas in the world in dire need of a mother.

[HaniiPuppy]

@cujo55544 No matter what happens, it would be amazing to have a gorilla that natively speaks sign language.

[Marasma101]

@cujo55544 They are working on making that happen. Source: Says on this video's channel

[MochizMuM]

@cujo55544 wow, good idea

[squishmich]

@cujo55544

If she is reluctant to breed than it is possible that the natural urge for motherhood is absent, which does happen for many other species. From watching Koko's behaviour patterns over the course of 30 years, she understands the word 'baby' but probably not fully understanding the concept. She is wild however I think there would be a good chance of her abadoning any orphaned gorilla brought into her care.

[cujo55544]

@squishmich From what I've heard about Koko over the years though, she has expressed a desire for a baby of her own. The problem, as I understand it, is that we've been expecting Koko to do it like a human would, instead of a gorilla. First there was Michael, and Koko ended up seeing him as a 'brother', and now with Ndume it's almost right, but in the wild there'd be a silverback male and a group of breeding females and their young. I'm not a gorilla expert though, just a Koko fan.

[muchufoo]

If these guys are critically endangered, why hasnt this very intelligent gorilla had any babies??

[TheSweaterKid]

This sorta reminds me of that movie precious.

[SteveDutchy]

uhm why am I watching a full grown gorilla sitting like a human behind a desk caring a baby doll in her hand

[Funnyfish66]

Koko can have my little sister!

jk

[daisy63976]

koko is so cute :D

[LuckyIzzy659]

will they ever breed koko?

[theawesomairsoftman]

i want a gorilla

[Tazy50]

i have an idea, get another male gorilla to mate with her (i know its artificial selection but still) and get her to teach the baby sign language and make it an inheritance, and make them take it back to the wild

[LuckyIzzy659]

Are you going to breed koko and let her become a mom or no?

[randymbender]

Awe I would be so happy to see her become a Mommy. Love you Koko!!

[lilmissnosey]

I know its not the same but when I was little I went to the zoo and an orangutan walked right up to me and held up her little baby to show me, because she was proud of it :) it was amazing.

[PenEtTrant]

veri cute! :)

[GuacamoleKun]

Oh nooo, her cat died? That's awful. Why didn't they get her a new cat?

[Oodlesxofxnoodles]

@GuacamoleKun They did :) They let her pick 2 new ones. It's sad the first one died, but it was hit by a car when it escaped.

[hettybobcat]

Isn't this old footage from a long time ago? Wasn't there a time when they tried to get Koko a mate? I thought I remembered videos of that from elementary school.

[JenniferGonzalez971]

that was really short but cute though

[11301920]

That is cruel to not let her be a parent

[PortaleMedia]

She actually understands what we say O_O

[ironmadion55]

wtf, is she... breast feeding????

[knq1]

@ironmadion55 WHOA OMG NO WAY!! Kind of like how your mom breast fed you? xD

[ironmadion55]

@knq1 it's just suprising! O.0

[jesman1985]

i wonder if koko believes in God?

[socialnenvjustice]

@jesman1985 I've been wondering the same thing for years! I would really like someone who does sign language w/ these animals to ask them what/ if they believe in a higher power

[jesman1985]

@socialnenvjustice it would be a trip to see what they say.. im guessing koko wouldnt get the question.. but if koko can learn sign language then im sure other gorillas can.. and eventually at least one gorilla would understand the question..

[truvelocity]

@socialnenvjustice They don't think they believe in a higher power, because their adaptation with the way their brain works doesn't need to. In my opinion, I think they may have basic higher conscious thoughts like long term relationship memories and living in the now, which we humans need to get back in touch with. (Living in the moment) is valuable to remember how to do as we humans live in our past with a lot of emotional baggage.

[lookatmepleasesir]

@truvelocity they probably don't need to believe in an abstraction like a higher power because they're connected directly to nature. Monkeys sit and appear to contemplate their environment almost like they're meditating.

[truvelocity]

@lookatmepleasesir I agree with you completely. That's why people who suffer from stress or have had a brain injury get better with animal therapy like petting a dog or horse back riding, because animals get us back in touch with our true nature, which is kind of like meditating. You just become happy to be.

[lookatmepleasesir]

@truvelocity horse back riding is good for your brain

[lookatmepleasesir]

@truvelocity the actual motion of it and the alignment of your spine is what helps apparently

[codyschuyler]

just an extremely retarded human

[DT5236]

she like a human mother

[musikofthesoul]

Penny and koko should recieve an award....if Obama can recieve a Noble Prize (which in just my OPINION his not worth it )..then by far Penny and Koko should tooo cause they have done more!!!..

[RealDefentertainment]

@musikofthesoul I don`t think Obama deserved it to and I voted for him!!

I don`t see any reason he was awarded the damn thing

[jumpnoyr]

@fullonpsy lmfao I dunno why you've gotten thumbs down, that was hilarious..

[lilkiwi]

Idiot >.>

[Yusrararts]

koko want baby , not shotting and videos , its no fun ,

[bullyboymccoy123]

so cute!!

[dinoanimal15]

dude...no

[Heto107]

they let her have and take care of a kitten eventually. Unfortunately something bad happened to it :(

[lanimu808]

@Heto107 it got hit by a car.

[roryfitzpatric]

@Heto107 it got hit by a truck, koko was very sad.

[mrfcukmylife]

@Heto107 i cant find any proof of this. do you have a link?

[christmasjeer]

@Heto107 Oh no! Not the kitten!

[youngfreedom93]

@christmasjeer run over by a car

[christmasjeer]

@youngfreedom93 aw sad but phew I thought maybe Koko did eventually mangle her to death. Thanks :)

[luchie2088]

@Heto107 it escaped and got run over by a car

[brahmsterdam]

@Heto107

when the kitten died, Koko cried!!!

[Warunho]

@Heto107 What? What happened? He squeezed it to death didn't he?

[DianthaNota]

@Warunho

No, it actually got run over by a car.. And they conversed about it with the gorilla.

Search for 'koko' and 'all ball'.

[bonoboperson]

@Warunho koko is female

[Warunho]

@bonoboperson I know

[bonoboperson]

@Warunho why did you call her "he"?

[Warunho]

@bonoboperson I didn't.

[bonoboperson]

@Warunho you said: "he squeezed it to death, didn't he?"

[Warunho]

@bonoboperson No, I said "he squeezed it to death, didn't he?". I said he, not he.

[limbdarkening]

@Heto107 What happened?

[Tonganpride1000]

@limbdarkening cat got ran over.

[Tonganpride1000]

@Heto107 the cat was taken home by an employee, the cat was playing out in the yard and then cat dies. Koko signs bad, sad, bad. Frown cry-frown sad.

[GOLDxDEAGLE]

@Heto107 Are you suggesting she killed it?

[AnimalLover24561]

@GOLDxDEAGLE no she didnt kill it, All Ball escaped and got hit by a car. Koko was very upset

[NinjaOutfitInTheWash]

@Heto107 Why does this comment have so many thumbs up?

[Heto107]

@NinjaOutfitInTheWash Idk man I still get comments on it a year later. Probably because it lets people know what happened to the Koko's cat later and people agree that it was a horrible occurence.

And to address a couple comments I've had, no I didn't mean she did something to the cat. It was ran over. Which is still terrible.

[NinjaOutfitInTheWash]

@Heto107 I am so sorry, I assumed Koko had killed her :/ Now I know the story and understand why your comment gets thumbed up. Poor Koko, poor All Ball.

[47lionking]

@Heto107 did you mean.. koko kills the cat..

[p0pp4]

@47lionking All-Ball, the cat, was an outdoor cat. He was hit by a truck on a logging road one night and found dead the next morning. Koko was devastated.

[rpkymadisonco]

@47lionking no it got ran overed by a car and the next morning all ball was found dead

[rabblerouzer1]

She wants to have a baby, why dont they let her get pregnant or adopt a baby gorilla for her?

[mckohtz]

They have tried to get her pregnant and it hasn't been successful and as to adoption they would have to get her to lactate which is difficult in humans who have never been pregnant. I can't imagine it in a gorilla who's never been pregnant, if they could find an orphan gorilla.

[graaar]

@rabblerouzer1 they tried to bring some males in for her to bond and mate with but it didn't work.

[teengirlsquad52]

@rabblerouzer1 not that easy, the documentary explains it

[roryfitzpatric]

@rabblerouzer1 because she wants her own but has trouble conceiving, and i think they have chosen not to do AI, although they should ask her.

[Phelan666]

@roryfitzpatric I think cellular biology may be a little too much for her to understand.

[roryfitzpatric]

@Phelan666 but explaining it she would get the idea of whats happening to her

[Phelan666]

@rabblerouzer1 That's what they're trying to have happen, but they're not going to force her to have a kid if she doesn't do it naturally.

[purplepullover]

@rabblerouzer1

i read that they tried that with Michael who also could understand sign and speaking language but they wudn't mate, unfortunately Michael died. After that they let her choose via Video-Dating her next life companion which is Ndume but she isn't mating with him either. And adopting a baby gorilla is not as instinctive as becoming a mother to her own.

[joshscomputer]

@rabblerouzer1 They're trying. She lived with a male named Michael for a long time, but they had a sibling relationship, and never mated. He died a few years back.

She chose another male by the name of Ndume out of a set of videos of potential mates, and he came to live with her. No mating yet, but they're working on it.

And also, you can't just import wild babies anymore, and there aren't any zoos willing to give up one of theirs. So adoption's probably not gonna happen.

[Woostercat]

@rabblerouzer1 They're trying. Unfortunately, she isn't warming up to her would-be mate, Ndume. Adoption isn't an option because the AZA isn't allowing a transfer.

[ebb1501]

@rabblerouzer1 7 million to house Koko. How much more to house the baby?

[daniyyelv]

@rabblerouzer1 actually i think they've been trying to get her pregnant for years, but she just won't mate with the partners they've offered...

[daniyyelv]

@rabblerouzer1 actually i think they've been trying to get her pregnant for years, but she just won't mate with the partners they've offered...

[Kellox17]

@daniyyelv Koko is a very smart ape isn't she? could that also influence on her having higher standards for a male mate?

[geico300]

@Kellox17 LOL!!! NICE COmeback!!!!!!!!! XD

[yaomon18]

@daniyyelv She did find one that she liked but he ignored her when they met.

[Dovefeather888]

@rabblerouzer1 they gave her a kitten

[FilmmakerRyan]

@rabblerouzer1 They've tried to set her up with a mate, but it didn't work out.

As for adoption, I don't know how Koko would react. It would be easy to assume that since she wants a baby, and handles kittens so well that she would be open to it, but a baby gorilla is much different than a kitten.

I'm sure of that was an option, they would have explored that possibility.

[AlecAndElliot1]

@rabblerouzer1 she is pregnant