Can Giraffes Have C-Sections? April Giving Birth On Live Cam Hasn’t Happened And Surgery Could Be Deadly

It’s been more than two weeks since Animal Adventure Park started their live cam of April the pregnant giraffe, who was supposedly near giving birth to a calf, but disappointed viewers have yet to see her go into labor. While the upstate New York zoo continued to post positive updates, could it be possible that April needs a caesarian section to give birth to her baby?

If she did come to that point, it would be worst case scenario. There have only been two giraffe C-sections in recorded history, The Wellingtonian reported in 2012. The first was in 2007—and it was a success. The second was performed in 2012. The calf was already dead that the time of the surgery, but the mother survived.

READ: Is Giraffe Giving Birth On Live Stream?

One of the reasons giraffe C-sections are so dangerous is because putting the animals under anesthesia is dangerous. They are large animals and can hurt themselves when they fall down and wake up. “This is because when they wake up they're still a bit wobbly and their instinct is to stand up,” Dr. Lisa Argilla, the manager of veterinary science at Wellington Zoo in New Zealand, told The Wellingtonian in 2012.

The handlers are also in danger when the giraffe, who weights up to 2,000 pounds, wakes up. “…That's a very dangerous period for both the giraffe and the handlers because obviously they are hanging on to a one-ton animal that can just chuck them off at any time,” the doctor said.

READ: How Much Money Will The Park Make Off Giraffe Birth?

As for April, Animal Adventure Park never mentioned the chance of their giraffe having a C-section. Even though she showed more activity than usual Wednesday night, there were no signs of active labor the following morning. “What a long evening! Many of you were up with us around 1:30 am EDT and the following hours and witnessed some very interesting behavior that had us on edge,” the zoo posted to their official Facebook page Thursday. “Though, this morning, all has seemed to settle. We will continue to watch and monitor throughout the day.”

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