Adorable video shows Koko the gorilla bonding with her adopted kittens

Koko adopted the two kittens.

“Not only have Koko’s maternal and play instincts kicked in, but she is signing more to her caregivers and generating new content everyday that can be used by The Gorilla Foundation to create empathy for great apes”, Kokoflix wrote.

The Gorilla Foundation, in Redwood City, Calif., just released video of Koko receiving a heartwarming visit from a cardboard box full of kittens in celebration of her 44th birthday.

The video of their meeting, published by the Kokoflix YouTube account, shows Koko gently lifting one of the cats – named Ms Gray – from a box and giving her a loving cuddle. In 1985 she asked for a pet and was given two kittens, whom she looked after for 10 years until they passed away.

Despite her enormous size, the gorilla treats the kittens carefully and lovingly, at one point playfully asking for one of the cats to be put on her head.

Koko reportedly is able to sign over 1,000 words and phrases.

Koko is famous for not only her “gorilla sign language” but also her affection with animals and humans. She has spent most of her life in The Gorilla Foundation, Woodside, Cal., alongside primary caregiver Francine Patterson. The two shared plenty of laughs and hugs. koko.org Koko the gorilla appeared solemn and somber after learning of actor Robin William’s death in 2014.