Cleveland Zoo Saddened by Death of Timmy, Former Resident Gorilla

Cleveland just lost a well-known and fondly remembered former resident.

Timmy, a western lowland gorilla, was euthanized Tuesday morning in Louisville Zoo in Kentucky.

He lived in Cleveland Metroparks Zoo from 1966 to 1991.

Timmy, 52, suffered from chronic medical problems in recent years including heart disease, heart arrhythmia and osteoarthritis, according to Louisville Zoo veterinarian Roy Burns.

Timmy was receiving treatment for these conditions for several months and responded well, at first. However, his condition deteriorated during the last few weeks and the decision was made to euthanize him.

Before he died, Timmy was the oldest living male gorilla in North America.

Timmy became the subject of controversy in 1991 when a court case was filed by an activist group who sought to block Timmy’s transfer from Cleveland to the Bronx Zoo in New York City.

The plaintiffs said that taking Timmy away from his infertile female companion would be bad for his health. The Cleveland Zoo's position was that Timmy’s wild-born status made his genes extremely valuable to the captive population.

He had not produced offspring and the zoo thought the move to a more natural social setting with several breeding-age female companions might improve his chances.

The judge approved the decision and concerns about Timmy's health subsided when he fathered 13 offspring, eight male and five female.

He was transferred from the Bronx Zoo to Louisville in 2004. 

Timmy was born in 1959 in Cameroon. He was brought to the Memphis Zoo in 1960 where he lived until being transferred to Cleveland on Dec. 14, 1966.

Western lowland gorillas are endangered in the wild. Population estimates vary, but gorillas remain vulnerable to poaching, habitat loss through deforestation and outbreaks of diseases such as the Ebola virus.