A female giraffe unexpectedly gave birth to its baby calf in front of visitors earlier this month at the Virginia Zoo in the United States, which surprised all of them.
A post was shared by the zoo's official Facebook handle on September 9 along with the video of baby and the mother giraffe. According to the post, Imara, the mother giraffe gave birth to its ninth calf on that day.
The calf was able to stand up soon after birth. In order to examine its health and ascertain the sex, zoo keepers were instructed to plan a neonatal examination while keeping a close eye on both the mother and the baby giraffe, the post further said.
The video further shows the mother giraffe approaching the infant and smelling its head.
Since being shared, the post received thousands of likes and hundreds of shares. Numerous users congratulated Imara and the zoo.
"Congratulations. We just had a male giraffe born at Blank Park Zoo in Des Moines this past week. He was her first born. They're keeping a close watch on him, since he is her first," wrote a first user.
A second user said, "Wow! I remember when her first baby, Willow, was born. Now on number 9! Congratulations, Imara!"
According to a recent post shared by the zoo two days ago, the calf has been identified as a female and has been named 'Tisa'. The zoo keepers chose the serendipitous name, which means nine in Swahili, and represents her birthday (9/9) and the number of calves in which her mother, Imara, has given birth (9!).
"A special digital Zoodoption package for $9.99 is available to celebrate her arrival until September 30th. Those who purchase the digital Zoodoption special will be entered to win a "Sneak Peak" behind-the-scenes giraffe tour that features a meet and greet with the adopted animal and personal Q&A with the giraffe's Keeper," the Facebook post further said.
