Kwashi the gorilla, the gentle giant who is a favorite of visitors to the Knoxville, Tenn., Zoo, has developed progressive, incurable heart disease.
The 245-pound, 21-year-old primate was diagnosed Wednesday with infiltrative cardiomyopathy, a condition in which the muscles that form the heart become rigid and do not contract properly, the Knoxville News reported.
"Because gorillas are close to people, we will treat him as if he were human," said University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine cardiologist Dr. Becky Gompf.
Sam, another gorilla at the zoo, died of heart failure in 2000.
© Copyright 2004 by United Press International
