Overview
- Zoo staff first noticed Mizani’s symptoms in March when he hesitated to open his mouth, ate less and showed signs of head pain.
- CT scans at the Safari Park’s Harter Veterinary Medical Center diagnosed sinusitis and mastoiditis, an infection of the bone behind the ear.
- UC San Diego surgeons and Safari Park veterinarians planned a bespoke mastoidectomy that used adapted human microsurgical techniques to account for gorilla anatomy.
- The five‑hour operation at the Harter Center involved more than 20 veterinarians, physicians, technicians and wildlife specialists and included draining infection and removing diseased mastoid bone.
- Mizani has returned to his troop and resumed normal activity after a June recheck showed significant improvement, with routine monitoring and a follow‑up exam planned in about a year.