Extraordinary Home Video Shows 18-Month Old Girl Playing With Gorillas

Conservationist Damian Aspinall wants the world to know that gorillas are gentle and human-like beasts. So he made the decision to release a 20-plus year-old video of his then-18-month-old daughter Tansey frolicking with two gorillas.

Aspinall had been reluctant to show the video to the public in the past because he feared he'd get a visit from child protective services. But with his daughter now 23 and her little sister also grown up, he figured that's no longer an issue.

"If we can show millions of people how gentle and noble and wonderful these animals are, then I think we’re doing the gorillas a service. I’m happy to take the stick for that,’ Aspinall said.

As for Tansey, she was too young to remember what is going on in the video, but she does remember similar play with her gorilla friends from when she got a little older.

‘I obviously understand that people might find it quite shocking seeing a baby going in with the gorillas because that’s how they have been brought up – to see gorillas in that King Kong kind of way. But really gorillas are such wonderful, gentle animals and they’re so human-like. So I hope it’s a way of people understanding how gentle and kind gorillas really are,’ she told the Daily Mail.

What do you think? Does this video change your perception of gorillas? Or does it make you think Aspinall is lucky he still has a daughter?