A Best Friend to Everybody
Posted at 3:44 pm May 16, 2008 by Juan Fernandez
This is a farewell to Karim-Alam, a 1½-year-old siamang. Born December 13, 2006, little Karim-Alam, whose name means “generous nature” in Indonesian, was named in acknowledgment of all the generous donors who have supported the San Diego Zoo throughout the years.
From the beginning, little Karim fit right into her new mixed-species exhibit (siamang and orangutan). Just days after her birth, Karim was introduced to the Absolutely Apes exhibit at the Zoo to meet her new roommates. She quickly got to know everyone on exhibit and developed unique and individual relationship with each of the orangutans. Even Clyde, our 300-pound male, was used regularly by Karim as a stepping stone for jumping off into the mulch bedding below! But her most outstanding relationship was with her best bud, Satu, a 145-pound male Sumatran orangutan who made it known he was the primary babysitter of the exhibit. Karim could be observed being carried ever so gently by her best bud. Satu always made sure five-pound Karim always won their daily wrestling match, which took place at their favorite spot by the viewing window.
On May 5, 2008, Karim was taken to the hospital along with mother Eloise. Karim was showing signs of what appeared to be paralysis in her left leg and partially in her left arm as well. After X rays ruled out an injury, she underwent a variety of tests, including an MRI, which revealed lesions in her brain. Karim was diagnosed with encephalitis (a swelling in the brain) most likely due to an infection; as a result, she was put on a variety of antiviral and bacterial treatment until further testing could be done. Her paralysis spread in just a few days even with the treatment. Little Karim-Alam succumbed to her illness in just five days. She passed Saturday morning, May 10, under the care of our awesome hospital staff.
A special thanks to everyone at the Zoo’s hospital who made her life just a little more comfortable the last few days of her life. Thank you! Karim-Alam is surely missed by her exhibit mates and human mates. I’m sure she is running circles around Grandma Josephine whereever they are.
Juan Fernandez is a senior keeper at the San Diego Zoo.
Read Juan’s previous blog, Cinta Back with the Siamang Family. It has more photos of Karim. We will miss her!
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May 16th, 2008 at 4:03 pm
I will miss her dearly. She was so cute and the first baby monkey I have ever seen!:)
I hope that that you will be able to get more simangs so everyune can get a chance to see one!
PLEAS! Keep us updated! May Karim-Alam rest in beutiful as she was, Beutiful!
And may everyone remember that sweet beutiful funny and loveable girl who always made people smile!:)
May 16th, 2008 at 4:12 pm
My heart goes out to you all, the loving caretakers and animal friends, who will miss little Karim dearly!! Thank you for the sad but beautiful update in memory of this little girl.
May 16th, 2008 at 5:06 pm
I’ll miss her. She was so cute, holding hands with Satu or Karen and walking around the yard. She seemed so friendly and playful. I hope her parents and sister are doing OK.
May 16th, 2008 at 5:53 pm
What a sad day to learn that Karim is gone, she was the cutest and sweetest and was loved by all. I watched her grow and have fun with all in the enclosure, I will miss her greatly. This is such a sad time for all of us animal lovers. Atleast she isn’t suffering and she is in a happy place. Thank you for letting us know and i will always have fond memories of her.
Is the infection she had passed on to other primates? Let’s hope not. Bless all the keepers who new and loved her, I know you are sadden by your lose just as we are.
May 16th, 2008 at 6:38 pm
Our hearts go out to the keepers and the whole ” Absolutely Apes” family. What a sweet and silly little girl she was! We loved watching her grow, and we’ll miss her very much. She’s with God and Josephine now, and there is no pain or suffering.
May 16th, 2008 at 7:14 pm
My sympathy to the siamang and orangutan friends of poor Karim. She sounded like a spirited and charismatic little ape. I’m sorry that her time was so short but I know she had a wonderful life at SDZ under the care of her human keepers.
May 16th, 2008 at 8:28 pm
I will miss seeing her on my regular trips to the zoo. The first time I saw her, she brought me great laughter and from then on I visited her and her friends and family everytime.
May 17th, 2008 at 8:31 am
I am so very sorry for your loss of this sweet little girl. This post brought tears to my eyes.
May 17th, 2008 at 10:46 am
I am so very sorry to hear of the loss of this beautiful, charismatic little girl. I so enjoyed watching her run circles around the orangs. I will miss her so much. How is Eloise? You mentioned that she was taken to the hospital with Karim.
May 17th, 2008 at 12:23 pm
Juan, I am so sorry for the sudden loss of sweet Karim. I have many fond memories and photos of her romping and playing with her siamang family. She was forever in constant motion. Karim was so cute especially when she played near the viewing window with her siamang friends. I will truly miss her. Please let us know how Eloise is doing during this sad time.
Thank you for taking such wonderful care of these amusing creatures.
May 17th, 2008 at 7:32 pm
WOW!!! I was stunned to read about little Karim Alam passing away last week! I know that had to be a huge shock to all of you. I know that you all loved her and gave her the best care possible, especially during this month. She was only 1 1/2 years old, and she was no doubt a very important siamang in the hard work you are doing of making sure this endangered species stays around for years to come. How is Eloise, her mom, doing after losing her baby? You didn’t mention her in your statement. So, I’m a little concerned for her and her emotional state right now. I’m sure that you will help Eloise get thru this loss, and the other siamangs and orangutans can also help her with their interactions with her. Please give us any updates about Eloise and how she’s been doing, ok? Eloise will miss her little girl alot! I’ve seen Karim on the apecam a few times when I could catch her and the other apes on the cam. She had a lot of life to live!
Gonna go. Write us another update about Eloise!
My condolences to everyone including the orangs and siamangs,
Chari Mercier
St. Pete, FL
May 17th, 2008 at 10:03 pm
Rest in peace, Karim-Alam! You will be missed by your keepers and your many fans!
May 18th, 2008 at 1:08 pm
it is so sad what hapend to karim i was criying so hard. kirim was a sweet girl alest she is with josie rest in pece.
May 18th, 2008 at 8:31 pm
I am sorry to hear of the death of little Karim-Alam. She sounded like such a cute and energetic girl from the beginning. How are Eloise and Satu doing without her? I am sure it must have been hard on both of them to lose her. My sympathy to all of you who cared for her, and loved her. You gave her a wonderful 1.5 years of life that was a good as it could have been.
It is so sad to think of the animals that have been lost in the past year or so to encephalitis. It must leave you numb from a feeling of helplessness when you tried everything but it was not successful.
May Eloise and Unkie have another little one soon. Rest in peace, Little Karim, knowing you were well loved and are sorely missed.
May 19th, 2008 at 8:36 am
Oh my gosh. I was hoping when I started to read this thread that Karim was sent to another zoo. I never thought it was about her death. I am sitting here crying. I can’t bear to look at her pictures. May she rest in peace.
May 19th, 2008 at 9:09 am
I would like to offer my condolences on the loss of Karim-Alam, such a sweet little precious playful thing. I do hope that whatever caused this infection cannot be passed on to the other apes. To all the keepers and staff you do a fantastic job everyday and thank you all for making her comfortable in her final moments. Keep her in your hearts and you will smile often. She will join all of our other friends over rainbow bridge
May 19th, 2008 at 9:13 am
I am very sad to hear about Karim. This news made me cry.
I hope her mom is doing alright… Beautiful Karim will be missed by all.
My heart is with her caretakers and staffs and everyone who loves her dearly.
Seiko
May 19th, 2008 at 12:02 pm
I am so sorry about little Karim-Alam. What a wonderful little character she was. My condolences to the staff who cared for her. She’s a little star in the sky now.
May 19th, 2008 at 9:08 pm
I visited the zoo today and although it was difficult I visited the Absolutely Apes exhibit. The entire exhibit was unusually quiet and Karim’s photo/bio had already been removed. What I saw was truly amazing. Karim’s mother was sitting by the window with Hitam, Karim’s older sister’s head in her lap, stroking her. The two siamangs were so obviously mourning. Karen, one of the orangs, sat closeby observing the two of them. Then Karen reached out and stoked Hitam as well. It was truly moving and speaks to the feelings these primates have. I will never forget it.
May 20th, 2008 at 10:13 am
What causes this? Didn’t Tatqiq the polar bear pass away from the same thing (encephalitis)?
May 20th, 2008 at 3:42 pm
#19 – Carole: The loss of this precious little girl is so awful, and your comments have broken my heart. Being an animal lover is one of the hardest things in the world to be. The joy they bring us every day is no less joyful because they are animals. In fact, perhaps it is more joyful because of their purity and innocence; their passing brings us so much grief for the very same reasons.
What is being done to keep other animals from being put in danger of encephalitis at the zoo?
Moderator’s note: Thank you for your concern about the animals at the Zoo. The term ” encephalitis” refers to a symptom rather than the cause of a disease. The reasons each animal developed encephalitis are unrelated and our veterinary staff do not feel there is any significant threat to other animals.
May 21st, 2008 at 7:19 pm
I am sorry for your loss for all the caretakers that took care of her and to all the Absolutely Apes who will miss her and I will miss seeing her myself. How is her mom Eloise doing? I am glad they made her comfortable before she passed and hopefully she was not in too much pain.
Keep up with this wonderful web cam. I love looking at the Apes, Polar Bears and Pandas and Elephants.
May 22nd, 2008 at 12:13 am
I have never been to the San Diego zoo and am planning on going there next week. Igot online to do a little research, before tonight I had never even seen her, but as I was sitting here reading about her and her life I was filled with wonder and saddness. I am crying now and so upset for the loss of that sweet, playful soul. It is a blessing to have people in this world that love and care for animals as much as the keepers.
Love Always.
May 23rd, 2008 at 10:45 am
From Juan Fernandez, Absolutely Apes keeper:
Thanks for all the wonderful comments. In regards to Eloise morning the loss of Karim-Alam. I’m sure she is grieving the loss. She is spending lots of time grooming with Unkie and Hitam-Lucu. This might provide much needed comfort for Eloise during this time. Otherwise she is doing well. I’m trying to keep her busy with training and behavioral enrichment in her bedroom quarters when they are not on exhibit.
There has not been much change in Satu, other than there is just much less activity going on in the exhibit. He is spending lots of time breeding with Indah, and hanging out with Hitam-Lucu.
Thanks again everyone.
May 23rd, 2008 at 4:35 pm
I am so happy to hear that the vets feel there is not a significant threat to the others. How interesting that Satu is breeding with Indah. Is another pregnancy a possibility at this time?
May 30th, 2008 at 1:28 pm
That is so sad that she died of brain damage!
May 30th, 2008 at 10:43 pm
Well, well, well! Satu and his girlfriend Indah having some fun together! I do hope that Indah will be pregnant and be able to have a baby of her own. That won’t replace the loss of Karim Alam, but having a new baby siamang around will be a great thing for all of the apes in the exhibit. Eloise could be the best aunt and help Indah with the baby sometimes. Let us know what is happening with Indah, ok? Will be checking back to see if Indah will be expecting a baby! I’m glad that Eloise is staying busy with the rest of the orangs and siamangs, and that they are comforting her and keeping her active during the day. Your training sessions will also help Eloise in not focusing on her loss but to keep focusing on herself. She sounds like that she’s a very intelligent siamang. Hopefully someday, she will have another baby of her own again.
Sue (#20), Shakiri was the polar bear that passed away a couple of years ago, but I don’t remember what his illness was right now. Tatqiq is doing pretty well right now with Chinook and Tilluk (?) in the pool with her. The polar bear keepers are hoping for a baby polar bear soon!
Gotta go!
Chari Mercier
St. Pete, FL
May 31st, 2008 at 5:48 am
This story is so sad, especially because Karim was so young. She will be missed
June 1st, 2008 at 9:04 am
OMG! Im so sad i always went to the zoo and saw her! But she is Now in a better place. (hard to belive, the zoo is awesome)
June 13th, 2008 at 2:21 pm
Even far away in Illinois we are mourning the death of one of the cutest siamang who gave us joy on our visits. Satu will sorely miss her too as we know all these genle apes mourn when one of their goup passes. Bless all of you keepers for your care and loving of these animals in life & death.
June 15th, 2008 at 1:10 pm
I have missed this little ape for along time but I have moved on
June 25th, 2008 at 7:45 pm
I was so sad to hear about her death! But i dont understand one thing why did Ellie go with her?
July 28th, 2008 at 6:40 am
I don’t believe Karim-Alam died so young! I’ll miss her, Rest In Peace.
July 31st, 2008 at 1:23 pm
I too must add my condolences to the rest. What a beautiful little girl. Rest in peace, sweet baby. Thank you Juan for your post and for taking care of the family as they grieve.
September 26th, 2008 at 1:17 pm
It makes me sad cuse she was barely two. I hope more babies come to you during the year.
Love always,
lexi Allen
March 31st, 2009 at 12:34 pm
i am sad of that because she was a perfect girl and make evry body loved you you will always be in are harts and dreams. you died at the age of two .i hope your mother will remember you til the end o her life and your father. and i must say my condolences. peace and love. you gave life of her . she will always look for you and you will always be in her hart til the end of the world.
April 14th, 2009 at 7:12 am
we are allways going to miss you Karim.
but we are not going to forget you!we are going to have you locked in your heads all the time. 
September 26th, 2009 at 4:36 pm
byeeeeee
November 8th, 2009 at 1:59 pm
I just started reading about the apes and am very sad to hear that one so young has passed away. The San Diego Zoo is an amazing place, with the best caretakers in the world, and I know how hard it is for you to lose a little animal who had already made herself precious to everyone. Bless you all for the good work that you do every day in taking care of these marvelous beings.