Newborn giraffe dies at Safari West

A newborn giraffe that had been struggling for life at Safari West died Wednesday. He was only 12 days old.

Optimistic animal keepers at the African wild animal preserve near Santa Rosa were rooting for the little guy and were hoping to name him “Zeke,” which means victorious. But he lost the battle for survival.

Safari West spokeswoman Aphrodite Caserta said the baby was being monitored closely. But he somehow contracted an internal infection, a necropsy disclosed.

“As far as monitoring, he was showing strong and bright and alert up until this morning,” said Marie Barbera, the animal collection keeper. She added that the calf showed no external signs of sickness or distress.

He was born exceptionally small and frail and his mother, Zola, initially had trouble nursing him, although at the time he died he had a full belly. It was the first calf for the 4-year-old mother giraffe.

The baby was about 5 feet 7 inches tall and 120 pounds when he was born Aug. 21. The average newborn giraffe is at least 6 feet tall and 150 pounds, Caserta said.

The death of a baby giraffe is not common at Safari West, where only one calf a year joins the herd.

“It’s not the best day for Safari West. But there are so many lives here that we care about. And that’s what we do as keepers and caretakers,” Barbera said. “We have to just grin and bear it and get through it.”

The loss comes amid the celebration of a new baby Patas monkey at the park, born in August. By popular vote through an online poll, that baby was dubbed Gizmo earlier this week.

The baby giraffe was the grandson of Kalula, who was born in April 2004 at Safari West. Kalula also had a rough start but with a happier ending. While her mother died, with the help of her keepers and the other giraffes, she survived and is now a healthy 11-year-old. Her uplifting story was featured on Animal Planet.

Safari West has 12 giraffes representing two subspecies - Masai and reticulated. The new baby calf was reticulated. According to the Giraffe Conservation Foundation, there are far fewer reticulated giraffes living in the wild than Masai.

You can reach Staff Writer Meg McConahey at meg.mcconahey@pressdemocrat.com or 521-5204.