Samantha (1963-2012)

Samantha was a western lowland gorilla who raised at Erie Zoo at the time of her death in 2012. She was born during 1963 in the wild and was captured and taken to Erie Zoo in 1965. She gave birth thrice in her lifetime, but all three were stillbirths. She was hand-reared by keepers and thus was comfortable amongst humans. For some time, her companion was a male gorilla called Rudy, who died in 2005. In February 2012, zoo keepers introduced her to a Dutch rabbit called Panda, as they believed she was too old to be introduced to another gorilla. The Erie Times-News reported that Samantha and Panda get along well. Samantha would gently scratch under the rabbit’s chin and share her food. She was euthanised on the 22nd December 2012, due to her falling health. Preliminary findings indicated Samantha suffered from congestive heart failure, complicated by age-related kidney problems. At the time of her death, she had been a resident of Erie Zoo longer than any other animals and was one of the oldest gorillas in North America.