x
Breaking News
More () »

Watch Live: ‘Major Changes’ as April the Giraffe Gets Closer to Giving Birth at New York Zoo

Harpursville, NY — April the giraffe is showing “major changes” on Tuesday as she inches closer to giving birth at the Animal Adventure Park in Harpursvil...
april-giraffe

Harpursville, NY — April the giraffe is showing “major changes” on Tuesday as she inches closer to giving birth at the Animal Adventure Park in Harpursville, New York, reports KTLA.

It’s been five days since hundreds of thousands of people began tuning in to the live stream, waiting for the baby calf to enter the world, according to KPIX in New York City.

Newswatch 16’s Peggy Lee visited the expectant mom last Friday.

April is bigger and her belly has become “nice and tight,” Animal Adventure Park said in its latest Facebook update on Tuesday.

“April had a good night and is as large as ever. Keepers have documented an evening of her sides. The calf was generally carried on her left side, but all has become proportionate. Activity remains normal, behavior normal. Yard time will be granted this morning once temperatures rise to a safe level.

The vet has brought in a fool proof tool to predict the exact date and time of the birth – however – it too will not predict those very highly demanded, by millions of people, specifics…”Cannot Predict Now” (humor keeps us going)

Enjoy your day, check in often! Though we may not have had a calf yesterday, that just means we are closer today!”

The calf, which was generally on the left side of the giraffe’s stomach, has shifted to proportionately take up her belly, the zoo said.

There have been “major changes” to the back end of April, an indication of how close she is to giving birth. She has a strong appetite, but opted out of eating hay for most of Monday afternoon, according to the zoo.

An exact date and time of when April will be giving birth is still not known, according to the zoo, which joked the vet had brought a “foolproof tool” — a Magic 8 ball — to determine the moment, but still got a “Cannot Predict Now” answer.

Animal Adventure Park is encouraging in those watching the birth to keep checking in.

This will be April’s fourth calf and the first for the father, Oliver.

Giraffes are pregnant for 15 months, according to Animal Adventure Park. The calf will weigh around 150 pounds and be approximately 6-feet-tall at birth.

Once the calf is born, the zoo will hold a contest to name it.

Animal Adventure Park started the stream on Thursday. Since then, hundreds of thousands of people have joined in daily to see the birth.

More than 81,000 people follow the YouTube channel as of Tuesday morning.

The stream, however, was briefly taken down when animal rights activists flagged it as “sexually explicit,” according to the park.

The zoo has also launched a GoFundMe campaign to offset the annual care of the giraffes.

Before You Leave, Check This Out