International Center for the Care & Conservation of Giraffe

What is the International Center for the Care and Conservation of Giraffe?

Cheyenne Mountain Zoo has a long history of caring for a large herd of prolific, interactive giraffe that participate in daily guest feedings, weekly hoof care, and a wide variety of trained husbandry and medical procedures. The herd has seen over 200 giraffe calf births, and the team who cares for them is passionate about learning more, teaching more, and building a network to advance the care of these beautiful creatures. The International Center for the Care and Conservation of Giraffe is a concentrated effort by CMZoo to consolidate resources and expand educational programs in order to improve and enrich the lives of giraffe in human care throughout the world.

Giraffe & Okapi Conference

SAVE THE DATE

January 20-24, 2025
Where: The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens,
Palm Desert/Indian Wells, California
Registration and hotel information coming soon!

Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s International Center for the Care and Conservation of Giraffe is partnering with The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens to bring you an exciting, informative giraffe conference that is focused on improving welfare for our long-necked friends, bot in-situ and ex-situ. We will be putting out a call for abstracts this summer, and are looking forward to the giraffe community working together to present on progressive topics. This will be an exciting time to network and align with people from a variety of backgrounds, including field partners, AZA facilities, ZAA facilities and private owners. We’re reaching toward new heights, so mark your calendars – we hope to see you there!

Learn More

World Giraffe Day - June 21!

Join us in celebrating giraffes on the longest day of the year, Friday, June 21, 2024! We will have lots of fun activities at CMZoo from 9 a.m. – 2 p.m., and we hope to see you for our 10 a.m. Giraffe Parade, wearing your giraffe-best. Meet our herd and their keepers in African Rift Valley throughout the giraffe plaza, boardwalk, and barn. Make sure to check out our live-streaming Giraffe Cams, too! Advance tickets required.

Our Goals

Improve the quality of veterinary care available for giraffe in human care and leverage that information for field conservation.
Continue to advance behavioral husbandry practices to improve giraffe welfare.
Establish Emergency Response Teams worldwide to respond to giraffe health emergencies and field conservation needs.

CMZoo-Hosted Workshops

Consulting Options

VIRTUAL CONSULTING

90-Minute Webinars:

ABCs and Shaping Behavior by Approximations
Causes of Giraffe Lameness
Creating a Lifestyle of R+
The Dynamic Reinforcement Strategy: How to Train for Long Duration, Uncomfortable Procedures
Giraffe Pregnancy Planning and Neonate Care
How ~~Giraffe~~ We Learn
Putting the Science to Work: Foundation Behaviors for Hoof Care Training
Team Building and Communication
Tells and Tall Tails: Reading and Responding to Giraffe Behavior
Treatments for Giraffe Lameness
Two Sides of the Same Coin: Giraffe Preventative Care & Emergency Medicine

We partner with Dr. Susan G. Friedman and the Behavior Works consulting team to provide a variety of online and in-person services that can be tailored to meet your facility’s needs, from webinars to personalized problem-solving sessions.

Love giraffe as much as we do?

Get involved! Your support of the International Center for the Care and Conservation of Giraffe will help us care for giraffe across the country and around the world.

To make a donation, please contact Kelley Parker, Director of Development, at
719-424-7810 | [email protected]

Our Team

With over 25 years of combined experience, our specialized staff are looking forward to working with you.

DIANA MILLER
Giraffe Specialist

Diana graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh with a bachelor’s in biology, Shortly after graduating, she moved to Colorado and began working at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo and found her true life’s passion, caring for the Zoo’s large giraffe herd. Over more than ten years as a giraffe keeper, she has worked alongside many zoo teams, through CMZoo’s giraffe workshops, to improve the welfare of giraffe across the globe. Now, as a dedicated member of the International Center for the Care and Conservation of Giraffe, she will be able to share her firsthand knowledge of training and caring for giraffe with others. She has a passion for teaching, with strong focuses on conservation, positive reinforcement training, hoof care, and guest engagement that inspires a love for giraffe care and conservation.

Diana has participated in giraffe conservation in South Africa, contributed to studies that benefit giraffe in human care and in the wild. In her role at the International Center for the Care and Conservation of Giraffe, she primarily focuses on conservation initiatives surrounding giraffe in their wild habitats. She believes that building strong relationships within the giraffe community will help to further the impact of current and future conservation projects. She looks forward to continuing to build bridges and gather information within the community to help improve giraffe welfare, both in human care and in the wild, through cross-organizational World Giraffe Day activities, Giraffe SAFE initiatives, and assisting with training and hoof care programs.