HUGE Baby News! Baby Chimp!

Binti, a 37-year-old chimpanzee, gave birth on Friday, April 22, to a healthy female. Binti experienced some complications with the birth and needed medical intervention to address a retained placenta. Thanks to the quick action of her caretakers and the veterinary team from the UTCVM-University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine, Binti is recovering well. While she is getting her strength back, the infant is being cared for round-the-clock by the Great Apes team and is healthy and thriving.
Chimpanzees are an Endangered species, and being driven to extinction by habitat loss, disease, and their biggest threat, illegal poaching. Zoo Knoxville is working in partnership with 32 other zoos accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) to ensure a healthy population remains as hope for the future.
We’ll be updating on their progress, including when the new infant may be on view to the public, frequently over the next few weeks so please check back for the latest news!

[@mjax278]

Amazing how the other female chimps help take the baby so mom can heal or do her thing. Smart. Ensures the baby doesn’t die with mom in the wild should things go south.

[@remyasmar418]

Congratulations, truly adorable !! 😍♥️🥰

[@rolanmyers-we5pz]

Thank you for not playing music in your videos.

[@joanpetts1430]

God bless them both and hope and pray everything goes well ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@rosiepena8917]

Omg what a precious and adorable baby!

[@Liz_678]

🥰. Thanks for all your work to help mom and baby👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👍🏻❤️

[@paulhall1239]

He is a cute baby chimp. Hopefully he will join mum soon.

[@manaawe1]

Your Adorable mommy 😘 Congratulations 🎊🎉 On your Angel 👼🏻 Baby 👶 🙏 Pray Healthy n Long Life Together 🤗😘 Aloha From Hawaii 🙋🏻🙏😘

[@maryc530]

Are you blind?

[@fookpappyvanwinkle9162]

So, the mother woke up from the procedure but you still withheld the baby from the mother? So what’s the reason why you didn’t give it back to her mother yet?

[@ritamccomas9271]

You may want to rewatch the video again since the reason was told as to why the baby chimp wasn't 😉

[@scottjackson3940]

that little strong grip is something, mother nature is so amazing!!

[@ulaper6465]

That's right, mother nature is amazing...now leave mother nature alone...freaks

[@scottjackson3940]

@@ulaper6465 are you sensitive kitten??

[@missyd6771]

Why is it Almost every zoo channel says “ They regretfully have to pull baby primates from their mamas to hand rear “ ????

[@espanaguisado2153]

Creo que en lugar de preguntar aquí te vendría bien hacer un poco de investigación y estudiar algo de biología así entenderas

[@ritamccomas9271]

@@espanaguisado2153 Research? Ahaha! Some would just rather make a ridiculous comment than to try to understand reasons for why actions were taken in certain situations!

[@HonestlyAnnaFun]

Contrary to popular beliefs some apes struggle with being mothers. They may neglect a baby, causing emotional damage to the young. So many times keepers will step in for the baby and guide the mom to better care or find a female who will accept the care for the baby. It's like the Zoo version of CPS.

[@missyd6771]

@@ritamccomas9271 no I just watch an extreme amount of KZbin videos on animals and primates and took notice that the majority of the baby primates born are being hand reared notice the?‘s I asked a question I didn’t state an opinion !!! I don’t see the All of the other types of animals being hand reared….. That’s why I said specifically baby Primates

[@SusieNewBeginnningTarot]

Beautiful baby and mommy

[@secretariatgirl4249]

So lucky to have both mom and baby doing well!! Congrats!!!!

[@michaelcarnes4377]

Except they are separated from each other. The baby should have stayed with the mother for longer periods after the mother was awake. Too much human interruption is not good even if it's meant good.

[@00zarzu00]

pretty sure the zookeepers and vets know better than you. but perhaps not..

[@maryegarrett1950]

Amazing. Such a beautiful and precious baby chimpanzee. Glad that mommy and baby are both doing well and will hopefully be back together soon. Great job to all the staff.

[@PrimateProductions]

It's very doubtful the baby will go back to mom

[@almarivera1147]

Bless you all for a wonderful job you guys do with these beautiful animals 🙌🙌👍🏻👍🏻❤️❤️🙏🙏

[@krislv9219]

@@PrimateProductions really? That’s so sad

[@michellesmith7060]

You are amazing very lucky to have people like you fighting the good fight to keep these wonderful friends a part of the future ✌️✌️❤️❤️

[@pamparker4047]

What a cutie pie

[@shellos8]

Congrats on your new baby chimp. Hopefully mom will be fully able and willing to care for her new baby very soon. Great job taking care of them both in the meantime.

[@traceybenna3785]

You made the best decision. That has to be a tough decision to make . I recently learned that Apes can also suffer from Post Pardom Depression. I hop we mom does not have PPD . PPD ,is awful .Humans can tell you how they feel and with apes , that is determined by body language.

[@j871]

Amazing! congrats

[@Mr.Thermistor7228]

lmaoooooo the way they man handle that baby and its just flopping around in their hands i was dying

[@front331]

Where was the chimpanzee dad in all of this?

[@LittleLulubee]

Awww, I hope she gets to go back to her mama ASAP 🙏💖💕😭😭

[@twistoffate4791]

I truthfully question them "making the difficult decision" to take baby from its mother.

[@LittleLulubee]

@@twistoffate4791 Yeah, you never know. Zoos have done horrible things. But they’ve also done good things. So I’m gonna give them the benefit of the doubt, I guess. It is sad 😢

[@maryc530]

The story don’t match the video

[@krislv9219]

@@maryc530 tell us what happened

[@maryc530]

@@krislv9219 look at Second 23…the video shows the chimp being taken by evil Daisy…

[@robertnichols7251]

I love you guys.

[@maximshukanov3267]

I didn't quite understand what happened to her mother?

[@cookiesnmilk9200]

omg...cuteness overlord

[@searthasimon5412]

The baby is so cute

[@Darrenbrown68]

Omg….Wait! YOU drug the mum & she takes longer than YOU expected to come off the anesthesia so YOU decide to keep the baby instead of returning it to its mum? It’s been 6 days & YOU still won’t return the baby? 😎

[@Mr.Thermistor7228]

YOU need to chill tf out. they are Dr. Veterinarians that are surely specifically trained in primate care, they know wtf they are doing. calm down

[@ccoop3774]

Mom would have most likely died without surgical intervention to remove the retained placenta. They had to drug her! Know what you're talking about before you start making accusations!

[@Darrenbrown68]

@@Mr.Thermistor7228 no. 😎

[@Darrenbrown68]

@@ccoop3774 That was already explained in the clip. They aren’t hand rearing him because mum had surgery. Watch again. Maybe you’ll get it the second time round, girlie. 😎

[@ccoop3774]

@@Darrenbrown68 I understand completely, dude. You're the one making wrong accusations. They don't pull a baby for the hell of it.

[@debbiebrownstein9666]

The infants are so much like humans. So innocent and adorable.

[@LittleLulubee]

YES 🥰

[@ShyAnn291]

@Bruce Waynesjustice you mean great ape, monkeys have tails.

[@noneofyerbiznessfu1330]

Then you must know some powerfully ugly babies

[@johnmoore9824]

Great job 👍

[@stephanielong7609]

How sweet 😋!☆

[@TFlex01]

So, at this writing, it's now late September 2022. Are baby and mother back together, again? Have they rejoined the other chimps?

[@petercan1020]

Beautiful

[@salmakadiri2349]

Great job.

[@theotherther1]

It's good that they make sure to give her tummy time with her mother. This baby is in good hands.

[@magdalenajohannabooyens6774]

This is wonderfull !!

[@maryc530]

Are you blind?

[@delite8003]

The baby is so cute. But like other species, they lose the cuteness as an adult. The baby chìmps are absolutely adorable. I hope the mom recovers quickly and reunites with her baby.

[@jilldavis7229]

Adorable 👍🙏❤️

[@matimus100]

Superstitious graffiti nonsense

[@aundreacarroll252]

Give her baby back!,

[@biokosmos]

I hope she can grow healty. In zoos the individuals are often related and that causes problems

[@LittleLulubee]

They usually transfer enough of them to ensure genetic diversity

[@HonestlyAnnaFun]

We appreciate your concern but this is an AZA Zoo signifying special breeding plans to ensure animals aren't inbred.

[@KatherineUribe-1]

I'm happy baby is so healthy & bright. I hope things go well for mom & baby. 💕🐒🐒💕 Maybe Binti is getting a bit too old to have babies. 37 is pretty old for a chimp.

[@maryc530]

They did not protect either baby or mom…the story don’t match the video

[@krislv9219]

@@maryc530 what do you mean they didn’t protect mom or baby?

[@boxsterman77]

They always have some reason to take the baby from Mom and bottle feed it themselves.

[@bettinakrugermenschenkind9673]

❤️❤️❤️

[@maryc530]

Show us the mom…we seen Daisy steal the baby from mom..huge fight…dead mom? Show us

[@krislv9219]

Dead mom?

[@clovers1962]

All I know is I'm saving humans

[@stephenhatt742]

CONGRATULATIONS !! Beautiful wee baby girl , sincerely hope both Mom & Baby will be ok . Would her Mom receiving meds not have spread to baby if Mom had been able to give her little girl her 1st milk ? Thank you for all you do :) Zoe , Canada

[@kimmieh8419]

Exactly my question! I’m so happy I didn’t post it as well. Yours was the third comment so I didn’t have to look far to run into someone with those same thoughts! My concern was the milk would have too much of the meds and it would harm her, but she’s good! They must know that her initial milk wouldn’t have absorbed it that quick? 🤷‍♀️ I know in human babies the Colostrum is the most important milk to give their immune system a boost. And new moms who deliver babies and get meds breast feed right away also so there must be a way that it doesn’t get into the milk that much OR if it does, there’s only trace amounts. In any case, she’s fine so it’s all good!😁👍

[@LittleLulubee]

@@kimmieh8419 I was wondering, too!! How can she breast feed while taking pain meds?! 🤔

[@maryc530]

Milk was not there yet..the story don’t match the evil video…mom and baby were not protected from evil “Daisy” how did they get the baby away from evil Daisy…

[@islanders1329fan]

Baby Chimps are adorable yes they are. But everyone needs to remember that they grow fast and once they are a fully grown adult, look out. They’ll have the strength of 5 men and will be impossible to manage and control and even worse, they’ll show just how horribly dangerous they can get. That’s why people can’t get so moved by how cute they are as a baby and give in to the temptation to wanna adopt one as a pet. Socializing it with among humans since it was a infant and treating it like a child of their own will not domesticate them. Chimps are always gonna do what Chimps do when they become a fully grown adult. It’s in their DNA.

[@elliesouza717]

No one needs to concern themselves with that unless they are stupid enough to try to make them a pet, illegally. They are experts and the point is to allow them to live like the chimps they are. You aren't actually making any point

[@cyndydejoy6129]

So adorable 🥰🙊😍❤️💗♥️💕🥰🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗

[@traviscoates6878]

I just bought one from the dark web. Can’t wait!!!

[@clovers1962]

Keep that to yourself

[@misstree8554]

Oh my goodness her lil baby is so precious! We hope that mom & baby will be together soon. A huge thank you to all who take care of these incredible chimpanzees.

[@pommiebears]

Absolutely beautiful. 🌸

[@yomama8873]

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@claredavies21]

Seriously crying right now. How beautiful and I hope Binti is with baba now♡︎♡︎

[@islanders1329fan]

Gotta remember that this is still a wild animal and grows very quickly. Once it becomes a full grown adult, look out.

[@acm9711]

Hope that Mom and baby will be reunited so she can care for her little peanut!! I understand we humans reacted in what they thought was best, but he should have been returned to mom after checking him over and giving him some colostrum!! Mom looks to be a mature female that has probably had other babies.

[@SapphirasMama]

Mum was weak from the delivery and the procedure to remove the retained placenta. You don't want baby to deteriorate because mum herself was too weak and slow to recover from the everything that happened. Every baby is precious and we would also be in an uproar if we found that baby had died because the staff didn't step in when mum was to weak to look after her baby. Once both are strong enough, I am sure they will be reunited

[@acm9711]

@@SapphirasMama You’re totally right!! I am always concerned when they say “baby will be returned…….” because so many infants never get returned or are returned so long after delivery they don’t remember their baby. What would normally be 3 to 5 days maybe turns into weeks or months. If the care staff allows momma to hold, love, groom, and be near momma daily, that can change the problems separation create. But I’ve only seen that on very, very rare cases. I love these mommy’s and their babies and believe they should absolutely be protected. 🐒🐒🐒

[@pamelajackson6954]

I agree. Never seen a zoo that didn't make the tough decision. Momma's and babies are always separated which makes it easier to break that bond and bond them to zookeepers instead. A week would have been long enough but they keep them apart for other reasons.

[@acm9711]

@@pamelajackson6954 That is so sad. I guess that’s what comes with captivity. It MUST break momma’s heart to not have her baby. And I’m sure many females make themselves sick with worry and concern for their little one. 😢😢

[@LittleLulubee]

@@acm9711 I believe their goal is to always keep mamas and babies together, when possible. They’re only separated when the mom can’t properly care for the kid. But in this case, because the mom is already improving, I hope they can be reunited soon 🙏💗💗

[@stevelee4653]

awesome baby is so precious. and mom is beautiful

[@angelikarosenau9501]

😘😘😘❤❤❤❤👍👍👍

[@jimterryh1983]

Excellent news. New baby and mother are well ❣️

[@FoggyDay196]

Sweet baby and mom. May you have a wonderful life together! ❤️

[@PrimateProductions]

Well um did you watch the video? The baby and the mom are not together!!

[@AngelHernandez-mp6tm]

I'm pretty sure they'll appreciate it.

[@wandapereira630]

😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍

[@carolinejayes157]

Beautiful,thankyou for your hard work ,we want more chimpanzees.

[@infinitejest441]

Lovely baby. Gorgeous eyes. ❤️🐒

[@zindoliveira]

Lindo maravilhoso,a vida tem momentos difíceis para todos nós? Mas para um bebé estar junto da mãe biológica é o melhor do mundo 👍🌻

[@--ag]

Ok now this baby is super cute 😍

[@khamp6958]

Omg they are like living stuffed animals toys. Adorable.

[@ompaloompa4970]

Aww, sweet little doll🥰

[@green-ws8iq]

Lucu amatt ya

[@tavibaby]

Beautiful. ❤

[@katherinesmith816]

That is the cutest baby! Hope he is a makes it through for a long life!

[@niecyh2313]

Awww sooooo cute

[@marysmith9361]

Baby is adorable! Hope it all works out well for Mom and baby. Congrats to all!

[@sonjam314]

How much did baby weigh? Why didn’t you try to introduce baby to mom once she was alert? I’m just curious and baby is absolutely gorgeous💙❤️💙❤️💙❤️ hope both mom and baby continue to do well💖💖💖💖

[@SapphirasMama]

Mum took hours to recover from the procedure to remove the retained placenta. She was also still weak from the delivery and meds given to her. So the keepers were doing what mum couldn't do at the time. They will eventually introduce mum and bub to each other when both are strong again. They want to avoid baby getting weaker cause mum was not strong enough herself to care for her baby.

[@krislv9219]

@@SapphirasMama others were saying baby was never introduced…

[@christinamoore9618]

Aww this is so cute omg

[@paulbrookes413]

Great work!

[@cishfips2802]

I think that the baby should go back to Mum asap otherwise there is risk that Mum will not bond with her new baby. After all she belongs to the chimp mum.

[@D_M_S_4]

Congrats Mom and baby. So cute!!

[@renayconner7171]

So precious God bless

[@suzsnnesanders4742]

This is on my bucket list yo hold one of these tiny gorillas I would die happy

[@clarachavez1112]

Amazing Good Job !

[@gritskennedy5007]

Great job please tell them to watch for empty bottle feeding or the baby will for sure develop painful colick.

[@GTRNR]

How about you release them to their homeland? What crime did those animals do for such a life sentence?

[@flytothemountains824]

these people know EXACTLY what they’re doing. calm down Karen

[@ponderinglife5582]

Isaiah 65:17 and Isaiah 11: 6 -9

[@marciasagadore2158]

The poor little thing is so homely, he's cute! The hair! Maybe the mother is too old to be pregnant and safely give birth.

[@masterj4777]

Cute baby but its just like taking care of a human kid!

[@clarabetrisey6280]

Elle fait quoi? Le bb est aussi maigre et en mauvais état que la mère Vous avez bien fait les soigneurs

[@gritskennedy5007]

Initial breastfeeding contains antibodies the mother developes just for the baby whose immune system is unable to protect baby from bacteria and viruses. The concentrated thick sticky serum called colostrum also contains electrolytes vitamins minerals fats and hydration enough calories to properly hydrate and give baby the nutrition needed until the mothers milk comes in which can take up to 48 hours.

[@elliesouza717]

It's a good thing you are here to tell experts what to do

[@bigsassyster]

Look at all the those wires and tubes connected to the mom. Just like nature; because mother chimps never make it out in the wild....

[@ritamccomas9271]

If a mama doesn't successfully expel the placenta in the wild, not only does that mama die, but her baby dies as well, from starvation and neglect since the baby had no mother to feed her. This cute little one nor mama would have lived if it hadn't been for human intervention, those wires and tubes hooked up to mama for surgical removal of the placenta saved her life.

[@dbstrikerz]

Congrats you Have an actual pet baby chimp. No longer a wild animal raised and nurtured by humans. Idk something supposed to be beautiful is awful to me

[@ritamccomas9271]

Obviously mama was not able to take care of her baby after her life was saved by having the placenta surgically removed because it had not expelled naturally. Or would you rather this cute little baby have been left with her mama while she became septic and died over the next few days from the undelivered placenta? Hmm?🙄

[@maryc530]

Why was Daisy allowed to rip baby from moms uterus, why was mom not alone to give birth naturally…your story does not make sense

[@uthmanibn-jafar1159]

Take a wild guess. The answer to that question is so obvious I can't believe you actually have to ask it.

[@HonestlyAnnaFun]

Chimpanzee social systems are different than ours. Sometimes alloparenting occurs and other females compete to care for the vulnerable young. Very strong paternal instinct in primates.

[@elliesouza717]

Smh 🙄

[@hillbillymal9351]

Why couldn't you wait until mum woke up to put them back together? And you didn't say how mum is coping with her baby being snatched away from her

[@chloeshann8142]

Smh🙄

[@kristinekalapos1066]

A true baby monster. It's poor mother is unconscious and could be in serious danger. But all this thing cares about is sucking on her. And the zookeeper is petting the little monster like she's the one who needs comfort and not the mom.

[@krislv9219]

Why weren’t mom and baby separated when mom started labor? I think Daisy getting the baby ruined things

[@elliesouza717]

I think the experts know more than you

[@korneliawrase3738]

🐒🐒🤮

[@nena2281]

Personally I feel the baby needs to be with its mother. I know mom needed medical intervention, but baby needs to be returned to its mother. I'm willing to bet that if they were in the wild the after birth would have come out on its own and mom and baby would be happily together. It must be so upsetting for mom to have her newborn taken away from her. Of course I'm not there, not a vet, and probably talking out of my behind. I just feel bad for the mother.

[@StoneInMySandal]

Placental retention is one of the leading non-violent causes of death in chimpanzees, wild or otherwise. People look at the apes the same way they look at dogs, but that’s just not the case. All the apes (including humans) have the same complex and highly dangerous birthing processes. In 1900 maternal mortality in the US was 835 maternal deaths per 100,000 births. Today is 17.5 maternal deaths per 100,000 births. The same medical practices that have saved so many human mothers are now used on the apes and they have seen an 85% rise in successful births as a result. Primate reproduction is brutal.

[@elliesouza717]

Personally, I'm 100% sure you don't have a clue. They aren't humans and you aren't an expert

[@thomaslindell5448]

You people always use any excuse to get in the way.

[@ritamccomas9271]

17 comments and you're the only hateful, disrespectful one there is. Smdh. Better be glad humans stepped in for mama, she might not have lived very long if the placenta hadn't been removed.

[@SapphirasMama]

Also mum was too weak to look after her baby properly. I know most people would be in an uproar cause baby was left with a weak mother and had died (that is if the staff didn't step in). Every baby is precious cause we humans decide that their homes have better use for land and lumber, used as a show piece (circus), entertainment for tourists on the streets (not including zoos and reserves) or as a pet that is more than likely neglected.

[@ccoop3774]

It's very likely mom and baby would have died had the zoo staff not intervened.

[@renez4198]

I very much agree, they need to learn that their interference can hinder their lives more so then help , they don't even give them the chance to adjust naturally,and it's wrong ,if there is severe means to take the infant then that is one thing but that baby latched rite on to her mommy so this comment is correct in my eyes

[@lubatiflides3374]

It is a Epic Fail of birthing. Mother needs hour to hour offering of her dear baby. Care for the mother so that she can care for her dear baby. Babies need their mothers.

[@chloeshann8142]

They know more than you

[@elliesouza717]

Are you a primatologist with years of experience?

[@ranchopantera6954]

More insanity....humans saving the most ungrateful and cruel animals around .

[@wandarask8444]

Imagine someone taking your baby the mother chimp won't get better if you don't let the baby be around mother or very close by , stop making out they don't know what to with there babies,

[@chloeshann8142]

Lol... you obviously don't realize these aren't humans. So trying to compare is just stupid. They know far more than you what's going on and how to care for them

[@elliesouza717]

Is this based on your years of experience?

[@joanbrockel7642]

i hate chimps

[@ritamccomas9271]

Then just scroll on

[@suetaylor1127]

Make sure to keep that baby away from the adult chimps. They will eat her alive.

[@maryc530]

Did you watch?

[@HonestlyAnnaFun]

Chimpanzee social systems are complicated but even so, they have special rules just for young in their family group. The keepers wouldn't attempt interactions between the members of the family unless they knew it would be safe for the baby.

[@teresagonzalez9452]

Sad fate of this species: living in confinement, far from its natural habitat.