Judge Sides With Cincinnati Zoo in Gorilla Custody Battle With California Sanctuary

File photo showing Kibabu, a silverback gorilla, keeping a watchful eye on surroundings at the western lowland gorilla group at Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia, on Dec. 11, 2007. Mark Kolbe/Getty Images

A silverback gorilla named Ndume—out on loan to a California sanctuary—has been ordered returned to its home at the Cincinnati Zoo.

A federal judge in California ruled in favor of the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden on Feb. 1, in a gorilla custody dispute with The Gorilla Foundation, which wanted to hang on to Ndume, arguing travel would be bad for the animal’s health and “ill-conceived and contrary to his best interests.”