CLEVELAND — An orangutan at a U.S. zoo has become the first such animal in North America to receive an implanted birth control device.
The Plain Dealer newspaper reports that a Cleveland Clinic women’s health specialist was at the zoo Tuesday to demonstrate how to implant the contraceptive. It’s about 3.81 centimetres long, slightly thicker than pencil lead and is meant for humans.
General curator Geoffrey Hall says the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo doesn’t want the young Bornean orangutan, named Kira, to breed yet.