Samantha learning to be a mother

Something amazing is happening in the life of Samantha, mother of three daughters – they have one year of difference in age - , who failed to take care and raise them when they were born, so we had to do it for her for then return her daughters to her care.

We are very surprised, since we did not think that, after two similar motherhoods, the third would be different. Suzi is 1 year and 4 months old and a month ago we started to integrate her with her sisters: Sofia, 3 ½ years old, and Sara, 2 ½ years old. Meanwhile, Jimmy, who is the "adoptive father" of Sofia and Sara, oversees the integration of Suzi with her sisters.

Jimmy, who is a devoted father, immediately took care of Suzi, to avoid dangerous plays that could hurt her. When she screamed, he would come running to protect her. Sofia, who has also been like a mother to Sara, helped a lot,  because she protected Suzi and in a few days she was already integrated and happy with her sisters and her "father".

The only one missing was the real mother, Samantha, who was accompanying the integration watching from her enclosure and asked to participate. This time we did not do any preparation, as Suzi was doubly protected by her "father" and Sofia. With Suzi, Samantha reacted differently, compared to her other daughters, and showed no anxiety to touch her or pick her up and let Suzi slowly came to her.

The biggest problem of Samantha as a mother is that she did not carry her babies nor put them close to her chest, to stimulate the output of milk and thus be able to breastfeed. She cannot stand being touched by others, not even by her daughters.

With Suzi something magical happened. Suzi goes to her, tries to climb her back, but ends by hanging in her chest and abdomen, and Samantha awkwardly takes her from one place to another. Samantha accompanies Suzi everywhere and when we ask her to find Suzi, to give her the bottle, she brings her to us. With this constant training, we think that the grief she feels to put her babies close to her chest could have been overcome, and in a next probable pregnancy, she would fully assume her role as a mother.

One year and 4 month old Suzi taught her mother how she should take care of her children. Nobody imagined that this could happen one day!

Promotion images captured by Merivan Miranda, keeper of Great Ape Sanctuary of Sorocaba:

Photos of Dr. Pedro Ynterian with Samantha, Sophia, Sara and Suzi