They’re an odd couple, but Samantha the gorilla and Panda the rabbit are making the relationship work. The two were introduced by Erie Zoo officials who felt the elderly gorilla needed a companion.
Samantha, a 47 year-old western lowland gorilla has lived without a buddy since the death of her mate Rudy, in 2005. Officials at the Pennsylvania zoo were concerned that Samantha was lonely, but worried she was too old and fragile to be paired with another gorilla. So last month they introduced her to a Dutch rabbit, named Panda.
Reports from the zoo indicate that Samantha and Panda are getting along famously.