June 22, 2007 – On Wednesday, June 20, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s staff were firsthand participants in the circle of life as the birth of a giraffe was followed shortly by the euthanizing of the giraffe herd’s famed bull.

The birth, from mother Uhura, took place at 3:30 p.m. in the Zoo’s African Rift Valley giraffe building. The Zoo’s giraffe keepers observed that the young female giraffe stood up a little more than an hour after birth, looked to be in excellent health and vigorously nursed off her mother within the hour. The female calf received a thorough neo-natal exam late Thursday afternoon.

The neo-natal examination, which is done 24 hours after the birth, includes a physical exam to look for any birth defects, determine gender, weigh the calf, check vital signs, sterilize the umbilicus and provide a tetanus vaccination. The exam also included micro-chipping the young giraffe and taking blood samples. These blood samples are essential as they are the prime indicator that the newborn giraffe has received colostrum, essential antibodies from its mother’s milk. These antibodies are needed to build the baby giraffe’s immune system.

The newborn weighed in at 179 pounds while standing at an impressive 6’2’’ tall. The new calf is the ninth offspring for 17-year-old mother Uhura (u-HER-uh) and the thirty-fifth sired by the Zoo’s giraffe bull, Laikipia (la-KEEP-e-uh).

As the happiness of the new giraffe birth was filtering among Zoo staff, the solemn knowledge was also faced by staff that the calf’s father, Laikipia, was to be euthanized within hours. Ironically, the euthanization had been scheduled for Wednesday evening after animal department supervisors, the Zoo’s general curator and the Zoo’s veterinary staff conferred on the failing health of the bull. Plagued by degenerative joint disease, aggravated by poor conformation of his front feet leading to abnormal hoof growth, mobility had become very restricted for Laikipia.

With each step he took came the obvious discomfort of his condition. Laikipia became unresponsive to pain medication and, with his quality of life compromised, the decision was made to humanely euthanize him. Zoo staff followed a detailed procedure which included providing a large sand bed to make his passing as comfortable and stress-free as possible. Laikipia died in the African Rift Valley giraffe yard he had called home since his move from the Zoo’s old giraffe building in 2003.

Male giraffe Laikipia was wild born in Kenya in 1981. He was acquired by Cheyenne Mountain Zoo and came to his mountain home on December 22, 1982. During his nearly 25 years at the Zoo, Laikipia sired 35 calves, including the calf born to Uhura on Wednesday afternoon. Laikipia’s thirty-sixth sired calf is due to be born within a few weeks by 26-year-old Becky.

Laikipia, named after Africa’s 1,900-foot-high Laikipia Escarpment found in the Rift Valley, was the iconic leader of the Zoo’s reticulated giraffe herd. Known to Zoo visitors for his size and stature, Laikipia commanded attention and respect. Children visiting him were astounded by his size; from his long and muscular body to his large and formidable head. Giraffe and Elephant Manager Jason Bredahl, noted, “He was the king. He had the best life. He had his females, his crackers from Zoo guests and the occasional browse of leafy branches. Those were his favorite things. When you think of Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, you think of Laikipia.”

“In a sense, the Zoo died Wednesday, and was reborn with Laikipia’s calf,” said Zoo President and CEO Bob Chastain. “He was an icon for the Zoo. I met with Zoo staff Thursday morning and shared a story about commitment. In the Zoo world, we must be committed from beginning to end, from birth to death; our animals deserve that from us. Wednesday night we saw Laikipia through to the very end. We went the extra mile to make Laikipia’s end great and fitting, and it was.”

Zoo visitors are encouraged to celebrate Laikipia’s life with personal remembrances on-line at cmzoo.org, in a letter, or personally at the Zoo with staff.

Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is home to the world’s most prolific captive giraffe herd. With the latest birth on Wednesday, the Zoo has recorded 186 giraffe births since 1954, when the gentle giants were introduced to the Zoo’s animal collection.
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