Breastfeeding mums whip off their tops and bras to assist unmaternal primate

Breastfeeding mums got half undressed to help an orangutan struggling to effectively care for her offspring.

Staff at Dublin zoo intervened with mother nature when they learned zoo resident Mujur was pregnant for the third time.

The 19-year-old female’s first two offspring had died in 2019 and 2022 after she failed to “exhibit the necessary maternal qualities”, so the zoo brought in 30 breast-feeding humans in the hope it would improve Mujur’s maternal instinct.

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Midwife and lactation specialist at the National Maternity Hospital Lizzie Reeves and eight of her colleagues recruited 30 volunteers within a day, reports BBC.

The zoo closed down the orangutan house to the public, so the women could take off their tops to show the orangutan, whose species is critically endangered, how feeding an infant was done.

Reeves said: “ A lot of women said ‘Look, an orangutan doesn’t wear a T-shirt.’ So they whipped off their T-shirts and their bras so Mujur could literally see everything.”

The mid-wife described the project as a “match made in heaven”, adding: “Obviously with my area of expertise and I love these animals.”

As orangutans like to mirror behaviour, it was hoped the nursing mums’ efforts would teach Mujur what to do when the time came around again for her.

The nurse was full of praise for the mums’ support, describing them as “amazing”.

Reeves said: “They were so dedicated and so kind to Mujur.

“Even after the baby was born, three of the mothers came back and fed their babies in front of her.

“It was a really good example of women supporting women, regardless of species.”

First-time mum Nora Murphy signed up because she thought it would make a good story for her 10-month-old daughter Elodi, reports The Guardian.

She said: “You are going from being a mother yourself to trying to help a mother to be. You would be talking to her saying, ’Look this is what you are meant to do.’”

In a statement, the zoo said: “Mujur was extremely interested in watching the women feed their babies through the glass, even mirroring some of their actions.”

Mujur, who gave birth to a healthy male on July 31, was also shown videos of other orangutans feeding their young.

Although Mujur kissed, cleaned and cared for the baby, she wasn’t putting him in the right position for breastfeeding.

The zoo is now bottle feeding the baby until he is ready to be transferred to Monkey World in Dorset for specialist care, because of his genetic profile.

The infant primate was fathered by Sibu, who was considered an important patriarch in the European breeding programme. Sibu died in February.

The zoo said: “It will be difficult to say goodbye, however we are confident that he is being sent to the best possible place for him to continue to develop and thrive.”

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