April The Giraffe Live Birth Becomes Aww-Inspiring Video: See Son Emerge And Enter Baby Name Contest

April the giraffe gave birth on the YouTube live stream cam over the weekend, with more than a million viewers watching her baby emerge into the world. Now, a video of April giving birth is inspiring even more awe (along with “awwws”) at the sight of her and baby daddy Oliver’s son dropping to the ground and taking his first wobbly steps. The 129-pound baby giraffe doesn’t have a name yet, and fans have enthusiastically been participating in the ongoing contest to name April’s offspring.

Although human babies don’t emerge hooves-first or drop from a distance of six feet to the ground, April the giraffe’s infant did get weighed and measured just like his human counterparts. The baby is already taller than Tom Cruise, reported CNET.

April’s team at Animal Adventure Park, where she and her beau Oliver along with their new son reside, revealed that the calf is five foot, nine inches tall (175 centimeters) from the bottom of his hoof to the top of his head. With a weight of 129 pounds (58 kilograms), the young giraffe and April are doing well, said the giraffes’ keepers.

“Baby checks out just perfect!” said Animal Adventure Park.

“Nursing strongly…April has recovered perfectly and is eating everything in sight!”

Turning to Facebook, Animal Adventure Park owner Jordan Patch shared his insights on the miracle of April’s birth.

“What I found astonishing was the meaning and purpose behind every move April made during delivery. This was evident when calf’s face and head emerged from her body, but baby was not yet delivered,” shared Patch.

Viewers of the YouTube live steam cam watched along with April’s owner as the giraffe mommy “meticulously and gracefully cleaned out” her baby’s nose and mouth to take off mucus that might cause problems, with her long tongue making it a thorough cleaning process, said Jordan.

“At that moment, my faith in ‘design by nature’ was completely reinforced.”

Fans watching the giraffe on the Animal Adventure Park channel made history, with YouTube revealing that April’s live cam received more than 232 million live views and 7.6 billion minutes of live watch time since February, coming in second only to League of Legends eSports, reported the Chicago Tribune.

The baby rose to his feet just an hour after he was born on Saturday. Within three hours, viewers watched April’s son galloping with enthusiasm around his giraffe mom.

For those disappointed that they missed seeing April’s live birth, Animal Adventure Park turned it into a video. The video shows the giraffe’s entire labor process, and the park noted that the giraffe’s actual birth began at about 3:10:00 for those who want to skip ahead.

Those who want to help April and Oliver by naming their baby giraffe can enter the contest set up by their owner at Animal Adventure Park, reported Fox 2 News.

“For about 10 days, you can vote on any name or names you choose for April’s new calf.”

Those who want to come up with a unique spelling of a name for the baby giraffe aren’t limited, according to the rules. Votes are unlimited as well and cost $1 each for a minimum of five votes per person.

“You even get to decide your own spelling. Come back and vote as many times as you’d like,” encouraged the park.

April (with help from her Twitter team) tweeted out an invitation to join the name game.

Help us name April's calf! #itsaboy #AprilTheGiraffe https://t.co/WlSdjVeCKT pic.twitter.com/nHVz5rjxnY

— April The Giraffe (@AprilTheGiraffe) April 16, 2017

The giraffe baby name contest is divided into two phases, according to the website. When the first phase is over, Animal Adventure Park will announce the top 10 names for April’s baby. Participants can then return and vote on which name is best for the little giraffe.

The second phase of the contest will last approximately five days, with the winning giraffe name announced at the end. Funds raised are divided among three causes.

Animal Adventure Park will use some of the funds to contribute to the Giraffe Conservation Foundation. Part of the money raised will go to Ava’s Little Heroes. That event honors the park owner’s daughter, who has a rare form of epilepsy. The rest of the money will help to improve the park itself and advance education efforts.

[Featured Image by Buddhika Weerasinghe/Getty Images]