- Title: ARGENTINA: A baby giraffe makes her debut at a Buenos Aires zoo
- Date: 16th July 2013
- Summary: BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA (JULY 16, 2013) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF BABY GIRAFFE IN PEN WITH MOTHER VARIOUS OF THE BABY GIRAFFE VARIOUS OF CHILDREN SUGGESTING NAMES FOR BABY GIRAFFE THE BABY GIRAFFE JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) BUENOS AIRES ZOO VETERINARIAN, MIGUEL RIVOLTA, SAYING: "A giraffe was born which at the time of the birth weighed 85 kilograms (187 pounds and 6.24 ounces) and was 1.92 metres (6 foot 5.6 inches) tall. (The birth) was monitored by video camera and staff were monitoring it for 24 hours; following the pregnancy and the delivery and the start of nursing. And thanks to all this work, today we can say that the (mother) giraffe and her baby are doing excellent." VARIOUS OF THE MOTHER AND BABY GIRAFFE AT THE ZOO (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) BUENOS AIRES ZOO VETERINARIAN, MIGUEL RIVOLTA, SAYING: "For a month or a month and a half they eat only their mother's milk and little by little start to ingest some solids from the mother's diet. So slowly it starts to transition from a strictly milk diet to one of solids and this takes about six months." VARIOUS OF BABY GIRAFFE WITH HER MOTHER AT THE ZOO
- Embargoed: 31st July 2013 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Argentina
- Country: Argentina
- Topics: Light / Amusing / Unusual / Quirky
- Reuters ID: LVAKK5CVSA2UB7OBH4F3HJ2Y8EN
- Story Text: The Buenos Aires Zoo presented its newest resident, a nearly two metre (6.5 feet) baby giraffe, on Tuesday (July 16).
The healthy baby giraffe was born on July 10 in a natural birth closely monitored by the zoo's staff of experts and veterinarians.
The baby girl has yet to be named and children on winter holidays from school who visited the zoo were given the chance to offer up their suggestions to name the lanky newborn who has been spending time with her 11-year-old mother, Jacky, who was also born at the zoo.
The playful youngster's father, Buddy, is a six-year-old male giraffe from a Chilean zoo.
Jacky carried her offspring as she strengthened and grew to her impressive size for 15 months before finally giving birth.
"A giraffe was born which at the time of the birth weighed 85 kilograms (187 pounds and 6.24 ounces) and was 1.92 meters (6 foot 5.6 inches) tall. (The birth) was monitored by video camera and staff were monitoring it for 24 hours; following the pregnancy and the delivery and the start of nursing. And thanks to all this work, today we can say that the (mother) giraffe and her baby are doing excellent," zoo veterinarian, Miguel Rivolta said.
Giraffes give birth standing up so the little one was welcomed to the world when she fell about 1.5 meters (5 feet) to the ground.
Rivolta said the giraffe was strengthening and feeding on her mother's milk as she grows and explores her new world.
"For a month or a month and a half they eat only their mother's milk and little by little start to ingest some solids from the mother's diet. So slowly it starts to transition from a strictly milk diet to one of solids and this takes about six months," Rivolta added.
Grown giraffes feed on leaves, buds, and twigs growing on trees and bushes.
The animals' extraordinary height - which makes them the tallest mammal on earth - allow them to reach the tops of some of the highest trees which are out of reach of most other plant feeding animals.
Giraffes are native to the eastern and southern African savannahs and grasslands where adults can live for 25 to 30 years and can grow to more than 6 metres (20 feet) tall and weigh in at an impressive 1,300 kilograms (2,800 pounds). - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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