In a message dated 7/1/99 5:37:30 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
[log in to unmask] writes:

<< I've understood breastfeeding isn't instinctive in higher graded mammals as
 humans and apes are. It is learned behaviour on the mothers part. If an ape
 isn't breastfed herself, and she hadn't been exposed to nursing babies she
 simply doens't know what to do. She picks up then baby but doesn't put it
 to the breast and the baby dies.>>

 Annelies, I agree with you on this.  We had a bad run of mother gorillas
refusing their young a little over 10 years ago at our area zoo.  A volunteer
mom brought her 9 month old to the zoo once a week and in an area that was
private and only viewed by the gorillas this mother breastfed her baby.  The
pregnant gorilla went on to bond and breastfeed her baby beautifully and this
gorilla taught all the others.  Heck, they even went on to tandem nurse
without incident.  Funny that the zoo thought this was normal but doctors
didn't. Sue

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