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Less than a month after moving to Santa Barbara from the Oakland Zoo, Nikko, a 35-year-old white-handed gibbon, has died.
Nikko, who had lived at the Oakland Zoo for 32 years, had been in quarantine at his new home at the Santa Barbara Zoo and was just starting to meet his new companions, Jasmine and her adopted daughter, Jari.
Both Nikko and Jasmine had lost their longtime mates and it was hoped they could form a new family group.
Nikko had been doing well until about 10 days ago, when his appetite began dropping off. On Sunday, his condition worsened and he was on his way to see veterinary internal specialists for advanced testing when he died.
A necropsy performed at the zoo found a mass in Nikko’s upper abdomen along with abnormalities of both kidneys and the liver. Neoplasia cancer is suspected, although confirmation will take two to four weeks.
Nikko underwent a thorough exam before being transferred to Santa Barbara. He had blood tests, radiographs, an ultrasound and an EKG, but none of the tests detected a problem. Zoo handlers had been pleased with how well he was adapting to the change, eating and behaving normally until recently.
Dr. Julie Barnes, the Santa Barbara Zoo’s director of animal care and health, said that surgery or treatment would not have been effective even if his condition had been diagnosed sooner.
“This would have proved fatal, regardless,” she said. “We are so sad to have lost him so soon after his arrival, as he had already won everyone’s hearts.”
The Oakland Zoo team who had cared for Nikko at the zoo also was saddened by his death.
“We are all devastated Nikko is gone. He was very special to our Oakland Zoo family,” Joel Parrott, president and CEO of Oakland Zoo, said. “He is, and will continue to be, greatly missed by our keepers, staff, and visitors alike.”
Oakland Zoo officials were concerned that Nikko, the only white-handed gibbon at the zoo, was lonely without his mate, who had died in January. Because gibbons are highly social creatures, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums stepped in to find him a new home, which turned out to be at the Santa Barbara Zoo.
Nikko’s caretakers had been concerned about his loss of appetite, but considering all the changes he’d been through, they decided against immediately putting him under anesthesia for an exam. His condition worsened, however, and on Thursday afternoon, a weakened Nikko was moved to the clinic where he received fluid therapy and staff did some testing.
“His blood and urine tests showed acute liver and renal failure,” Barnes said. “The radiographs and ultrasounds were inconclusive and it was proving difficult to get a diagnosis. On Sunday, we arranged to have him seen by veterinary internal medicine specialists about 15 minutes away, where he could have a more advanced ultrasound examination” but Nikko didn’t make it.
Nikko’s body will be returned to the Oakland Zoo for burial.