Kiyo's birthday before ANNIE leaving | Update on GENTARO! | Gorilla

#Gorilla #Shabani #kiyomasa
November 1, 2025.
Today is Kiyomasa's 13th birthday—he's Shabani and Nene's son.
Let's celebrate him!
Also, there are only a few days left until Annie's move.

Now, today Shabani and Kiyomasa had some time alone together indoors.
Kiyomasa has grown significantly, but standing next to Shabani, Shabani is still much larger.
Meanwhile, Kiyomasa's mother, Nene, was basking in the sun and happily munching on a tomato.
Shabani and Kiyomasa often display assertive behaviors, but it never escalates into a fight.
I sincerely hope this will be a good year for Kiyomasa.

And news has been updated about another beautiful young male gorilla Gentaro!
The staff member in charge of Gentaro shared updates on his condition during transport and after arriving at Ueno Zoo via their blog.
You can view photos of Gentaro via the link below.
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https://zoo.city.kyoto.lg.jp/zoo/enjoy/blog/breeder-blog/20251101-82370.html

As the blog text is in Japanese, an English translation is provided below.
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October 27th, the morning of Gentaro's transport day.

Though the stuff in charge was extremely nervous, We believed the months of training for the move would pay off and proceeded to administer Gentaro's anesthetic injection. Thankfully, Gentaro allowed the injection as usual, leaning his shoulder against the fence. The anesthesia took effect very smoothly. After completing procedures like blood sampling, we were able to place Gentaro into the transport cage as scheduled. For safety, we waited until he had woken up a little from the anesthesia before loading him onto the truck and departing.

During the transport, we confirmed that Gentaro had fully awakened from anesthesia. There were no further issues afterward, and camera footage taken during the trip showed Gentaro remained very calm. We also made several stops to directly observe Gentaro's condition.

And we arrived safely at Ueno Zoo that night.

Even during the unloading process at Ueno Zoo, Gentaro showed signs of being relaxed. He opened his mouth to beg for food from the staff standing near the transport cage, and he nibbled on some leftover rice grains from the rice straw bedding (made from rice harvested from the zoo's own paddy fields) inside the cage. He smoothly entered his room and began eating the prepared food.

Gentaro had been fasting since the evening before to prepare for anesthesia. Since giving him too much food during transport isn't ideal, he'd only had a small amount of water, so he must have been ravenous. Of course, the unfamiliar surroundings made him nervous, but by the next morning, he had completely and neatly finished all the food that had been prepared for him!

Due to fasting before anesthesia, their bellies were completely flat upon arrival, but by the evening two days later, they had grown noticeably larger. Gorillas have large bellies due to the gas produced by the fiber-rich foods they eat and the gut bacteria working to digest them. When they fast, the accumulated food and gas are expelled, and their bellies become surprisingly flat in no time. It takes a little while for them to fully return to their original state. It might take Gentaro a little time to fully regain his original large belly too, but since he's been eating well right from arrival, I don't think there's any cause for concern.

After that, we observed him steadily relaxing more and more. We confirmed he was sleeping properly at night, eating his meals well, and even responded to training the very next day after arrival! Occasionally, we could hear the voices of other individuals in the same building, but he showed no particular reaction and remained calm. Even within just a few days of moving, we saw plenty of behavior typical of Gentaro, and I felt certain he would be able to live at his own pace, being his usual self, here at Ueno too.

I always thought Gentaro had a high adaptability to people and objects, but this time he demonstrated it far beyond my expectations. We were able to hand him over to the staff at Ueno, and seeing Gentaro's condition, I felt reassured that he'd be fine and could return home.

As with any species, not just gorillas, after a move there is a quarantine period to check for diseases or parasites. During this time, he will not be on public display. Please await further announcements from Ueno Zoo regarding when Gentaro will be on public display again.

Eight and a half years—it felt both long and fleeting. The time spent with Gentaro was incredibly enjoyable, and I learned so much. I pray Gentaro continues to live happily, being his true self, and I look forward to seeing what his future holds.

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Timestamps
00:00 Kiyomasa drumming
00:11 Gorillas' breakfast time
01:58 Shabani and Kiyomasa
06:42 Annie and Kiyomasa
08:02 Lunch time
09:06 Kiyomasa and Nene
10:02 Kiyomasa and Shabani