History of MGVP 

MGVP began as the Volcano Veterinary Center in 1986, a tiny clinic established by the Morris Animal Foundation at the request of the late anthropologist, Dr. Dian Fossey.  For 18 years, Dr. Fossey studied the mountain gorillas' behavior, social interaction and their environment in Rwanda's Volcanoes National Park.  Her studies indicated that the number of mountain gorillas was rapidly declining – much of the decline due to humans.  By the mid-1980s, only 248 known mountain gorillas remained in the world.  Dr. Fossey quickly changed her emphasis from mountain gorilla behavior to preservation.  In large part due to human influence within the park, this tiny population was dwindling rapidly due to respiratory illnesses and life-threatening injuries caused by traps and snares.  At that time, health care was not available to the mountain gorillas.

In 1985, Dr. Fossey met with wildlife enthusiast Ruth Morris Keesling, whose father was Dr. Mark Morris, founder of the Morris Animal Foundation and requested funding for a veterinary program.  Ms. Keesling responded with the idea of a veterinary clinic.  Sadly, Dr. Fossey's death followed this request.  Fortunately, the promise was kept.  The Foundation responded by working with the Rwandan government to create a health-care policy that would protect the mountain gorillas.  It built a veterinary center and hired a veterinarian, whose job was to provide medical care to gorillas that sustained human-caused illnesses or injuries.

As the years passed, the veterinarians treating the mountain gorillas realized more than medical care was needed to save these animals from extinction.  One of the greatest threats to mountain gorillas is exposure to diseases from other animals, including humans.  As a result, the center expanded its scope in the mid-1990’s.  Today, the Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project Incorporated is an independent 501(c)3 based in Davis, CA where it is closely affiliated with the UC Davis Wildlife Health Center http://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/whc. The program also maintains offices and laboratory space at The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore http://www.marylandzoo.org.