Giraffe calf born overnight at zoo

**Honey** · February 27th, 2008, 09:03 PM

A zookeeper arrived at work Monday morning to find the newest resident of the zoo, a baby giraffe, had made its long drop into the world, LaMarca said.
Giraffes give birth standing up, which is a drop of about 6 feet. Nature designed them that way to kind of give the baby a shock, LaMarca said. Giraffes stand up immediately so they can escape predators in the wild.
Zookeepers are keeping a close eye on the baby girl, which looked strong Monday but didn’t immediately feed. If the unnamed calf doesn’t nurse from her mother, Gezi, soon, the zoo will resort to bottle feeding, LaMarca said.
“We try to avoid it, and this is an experienced mom, but the baby has to eat,” she said.

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