Waiting For April? Watch A Giraffe Have A Baby [VIDEO]

Everyone is waiting for April the giraffe to give birth. The April the giraffe story has been extensively covered–everything from why the birth is important to a text alert system to parody videos of the pregnancy.

On the one hand, April the giraffe is good publicity for zoos and animal conservation efforts. Since her livestream went viral, more people are interested in animals, especially giraffes, and what we can do to help these rare and amazing creatures. The popularity of April the giraffe and the public’s anticipation of the birth of her calf proves that people still care about animals and science. It goes without saying that some people watching the livestream will be inspired to learn more about animals and the environment and engage themselves in efforts to protect and preserve our amazing planet.

On the other hand, waiting for April the giraffe to give birth is taking a long time. Her due date was sometime in February and people are still tuning in to the stream. They want to see the baby born, but that baby is certainly taking its time. Lots of people aren’t above sarcastic, ridiculous or possibly true but sad comments about wanting and waiting to see April’s baby born.

One viewer on the Animal Adventure Park’s Facebook page said they had been watching April’s livestream for over a week straight.

“I’m malnourished and dehydrated … my dog is turning fat because I just can’t stop watching and he’s being neglected. I know April’s bowel habits, I know how many spots she has, I know her routine. Please April for my own sanity have this baby soon.”

Maybe you’re tired of waiting and just want to see the birth of a baby giraffe. If so, check out the video above. You can see a baby giraffe being born. And unlike April, this is a wild giraffe.

Even if you still plan on tuning in to April’s stream whenever you have free time, you might want to take five minutes out of your day and watch the video anyway. From having seen a giraffe give birth, you will be better at noticing the signs of when a giraffe is in labor. You will be more likely to recognize the signs when April is ready to have her baby.

Here are some things you might notice about the birth and some facts about giraffes:

Notice the mother’s squatting motion when her water breaks.

Giraffes don’t lie down, but give birth standing up. Still, the splayed stance early on in the video is a hint that something is coming out.

Giraffes come out hoof first.

You’ll see the legs of the calf exiting the birth canal long before the baby is finally pushed out. The baby’s legs hang out for most of the labor.

The mother appears unphased.

Giraffes hide their labor so they don’t show any weakness to predators. They don’t want to show that they are having a baby, so they don’t cry out or react much to having a baby. This is why it’s so hard to tell if April is contracting or not. Small signs are all we have to look for.

The birth can take a long time.

The video skips ahead to relevant parts so you can see the birth in under five minutes. Even after it’s apparent that April is having her calf, it might take a while before the baby is born. She could be in labor for up to two hours.

Finally, baby comes out all at once.

You see the giraffe being born at 3:05. The mother pushes through the final stretch. The baby is here!

Hopefully April has her baby soon!

[Featured Image by Humpata/iStock]