06/11/2026
Meet Goob, the first crowned lemur ever born at the Abilene Zoo!
He was born on May 8, and he is an important conservation success. There are only about 36 crowned lemurs living in AZA-accredited institutions, making every birth valuable. Not only that, but he has already conquered tough challenges.
When Goob was born, our animal care and vet teams noticed he was weak, not latching correctly to mom and had not successfully nursed. As first-time moms sometimes do, Seshen was not producing milk, and Goob was not strong enough to latch on his own. After evaluating the situation, our animal care and vet teams decided to intervene and begin hand-rearing him to give him the best chance at survival.
Since then, Goob has been receiving around-the-clock care from his keepers. He has a stuffed lemur to encourage natural behaviors, and is fed throughout the day and night while being closely monitored. Goob also faced a medical challenge days after his birth when he developed an eye injury that resulted in a corneal ulcer. Thanks to intensive treatment from our veterinary team and the expertise of Dr. Paulsen and the team at Animal Eye Clinic of Fort Worth, his eye has healed well and is expected to have full vision of the eye.
He is also maintaining a connection to his family, and the keepers are keeping that as a priority. Goob is fed in the same area as his parents, Chewie and Seshen, who can see, smell, and vocalize with him. This is important so the troop takes him as a member since they will all be living together when he gets older. A special holding space has been created for him to interact with the rest of the troop in the future. Goob will remain behind-the-scenes as he continues to grow. Despite all of his early concerns, Goob is growing stronger and thriving under the thoughtful care of our keeper and vet staff. Stay tuned for more Goob updates soon!
