PR Writing #1
Denver Zoo
CONTACT: Denver Zoo, Phone: (720) 337-1400, Fax: (720) 337-1401, email: intern@denverzoo.org
April 10, 2025
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
A Helping Hand for Hesty
DENVER — At the Denver Zoo at noon on Oct. 11, 2024, Hesty, the 14-year-old Sumatran orangutan, had a tussle with another orangutan, resulting in her being injured and undergoing surgery from the Conservation Alliances Veterinary Medicine team and Denver Health surgery team.
"Hesty's hands are so much like human hands and because we want her to have the high level of dexterity that she needs and the highest chance of success and full return to function, we decided to reach out to local hand and complicated elbow surgeons that work on people here in Denver,” Dr. Spencer Kehoe explained.
Dr. Kehoe was one of the veterinarians at the zoo who worked with Hesty, who had hurt not only her hands, but also her elbows and feet with the other orangutan.
When it comes to the Sumatran orangutan, their peaceful lives are better accompanied by living in the vast humidity of the rainforest swinging in the trees. The Sumatran orangutan also, like Hesty, is an endangered species that is incredibly social.
Interestingly, since Hesty is a female, the females do not walk on the earth’s floor and are often taking care of their children. Yet out of the entire Sumatran orangutan population, only nine groups of this species are known to exist, with three of them having a thousand or more orangutans.
With Hesty, she is a special case. Dr. Kehoe and the veterinarian team, with the combined efforts and help of the Denver Health surgery team, wanted to give Hesty the best care possible.
Dr. Kehoe said, “I think this gives us a unique ability to connect with the public and show them the level of care we provide for our animals and the amount of work that goes into caring for them. That transparency, I think, really helps with public understanding and public support for [the] Denver Zoo.”
If you are interested in where the company is located, here is their general information: 2300 Steele St., Denver, CO, 80205. Here is also the link to the Denver Zoo’s personal website if you have more questions: www.denverzoo.org.
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