NY - Giraffe Watch: April, 15, due to give birth at Animal Adventure Park

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Indy Anna

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Amid the flooding, creme egg debacle and other disasters, I thought we needed an upbeat story to follow on here. April is due to give birth at any time now. A few noteworthy points from the article:

  • April is 15 - her 4th calf
  • April has never lost a calf nor had a stillborn - odd rumor
  • Oliver is 5 - his 1st calf
  • The calf will weigh around 150 lb and will be about 6' tall at birth.
  • The front hooves will come out first followed by the snout.
  • Mom will naturally raise the calf, with weaning could take between 6-10 months, maybe longer.
  • Giraffes are pregnant for 15 months
  • Those "things" on their heads are called ossicones.

snipped

http://www.wfaa.com/features/all-of-your-april-the-giraffe-questions-answered/414643940
 
My dang internet has been in and out since yesterday and I don't want to miss the birth! Gah! I'm no giraffe birthing expert (LOL!) but I'm seeing movement in her belly right now that I wasn't seeing this morning. I don't know if it's the calf moving or maybe contractions? This is such a happy distraction. Happy Mama's Day soon, April!
 
She was pacing quite a bit this afternoon. I thought I saw it moving around in her belly a bit.

Thanks for posting this, Indy Anna. [emoji275]
 
Love this pic of April! She knows she's a star.

13204351_G.jpg

http://www.wbng.com/story/34618293/giraffe-watch-noticeable-big-baby-kicks

And, yes, the article does say those noticeable belly movements are baby kicks.
 
She was pacing quite a bit this afternoon. I thought I saw it moving around in her belly a bit.

Thanks for posting this, Indy Anna. [emoji275]

I've been watching her closely to see if I can see her tummy tighten with contractions, but so far all I've seen is a really busy baby!
 
I'm really surprised there aren't more responses on this thread. April is so adorable!
 
I'm really surprised there aren't more responses on this thread. April is so adorable!


I'm surprised too! Glued to the live feed here. April and Oliver are just precious. Can't wait to see the new arrival stand on it's wobbly little legs! I'm going to be a sobbing mess! lol :loveyou:
 
I'm surprised too! Glued to the live feed here. April and Oliver are just precious. Can't wait to see the new arrival stand on it's wobbly little legs! I'm going to be a sobbing mess! lol :loveyou:
I was afraid the little tyke would arrive during the night and I would miss it. :)
 
I've been casting this to our tv lol. Night here now, curious to check in tomorrow!
 
She was smacking or chewing her lips a lot this morning around sunrise. Not eating, though it looked like a similar motion. I think she was probably uncomfortable or stressed. This afternoon I could see the baby moving around a lot! Wow.

[emoji4]
 
She was smacking or chewing her lips a lot this morning around sunrise. Not eating, though it looked like a similar motion. I think she was probably uncomfortable or stressed. This afternoon I could see the baby moving around a lot! Wow.

[emoji4]

I was wondering about the chewing so I looked it up on Wiki, they chew a cud like cows do:

Reticulated giraffes are ruminants, just like cattle and other ungulates, and their stomachs have four parts, with food passing through the first and water going directly to the second. The first stomach partially digests the twigs, leaves, and whatever else the giraffe has ingested whole. During the day, when the animal is not feeding, parts of this fermented mixture are brought back up from the stomach in hard lumps (eructation). Giraffes chew on these lumps, called cud, throughout the day, helping to further break the food down. Once they are done chewing on the piece of cud, it is sent to the third stomach, and finally the fourth stomach to be digested fully.[SUP][6]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reticulated_giraffe
[/SUP]
She definitely looks uncomfortable at times. Good heavens, those kicks can be intense!

And the baby watch continues...:baby:
 
I thought this was a neat video:

[video=youtube;IFcFqjEp9co]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IFcFqjEp9co[/video]

This zoo in Colorado has had almost 200 giraffe births!
 
Thanks for checking, that is interesting. (I am thankful I'm not a ruminant and have only one stomach). The necking behavoir discussion (wiki) is fascinating and bizarro.

Watching April is therapeutic... very calming.
 
https://www.facebook.com/AnimalAdventurePark/

Animal Adventure Park was live on their FB page this morning and answered questions.

A few important points:

They observed breeding behavior in October 2015. A giraffe's cycle is 17 days. Their "timeline" could be 17 days off, or 34 days off. They are simply going by the physical changes to her body, she is nearing the end of her pregnancy. She is NOT in labor - the media made up that headline.

They did address some viewer's concerns, but at this time there are NO concerns about the pregnancy, April's or the baby's health, or that anything will go wrong during the delivery. They are equipped to handle them if concerns should arise.

The video is about 20 minutes, I hope the FB link is ok to post. It was nice to see April and her enclosure from a different angle! It really puts her size into perspective when there are tiny humans around her. What a beautiful animal. :heartbeat:

#giraffewatch #aprilthegiraffe
 
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