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Rare Gorilla Could See Clearly After Eye Surgery

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Oct 2, 2009 3:34 pm US/Eastern

Rare Gorilla Could See Clearly After Eye Surgery

MIAMI (CBS4) ― A lowland gorilla at Miami's Metrozoo hit a hospital room of sorts Friday to remove severe cataracts and implant new lenses in each of her eyes. The state-of-the-art procedure has been performed less than a dozen times on gorillas.

Before the surgery, the animal was practically blind, only seeing light, dark and shadows.

The gorilla, named Josephine a senior citizen by gorilla standards at 42-years-old.

"Though Josephine's advanced age brings a significant risk to this procedure, the possibility of restoring Josephine's eyesight outweighed those risks," Metrozoo spokesperson Ron McGill explained. "Our commitment is to provide our animals the best quality of life possible and this surgery is an admirable and dedicated effort towards that commitment."

If all goes well, Josephine could be back on exhibit Saturday.


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