COLUMBUS – Just days after losing her newborn calf, Columbus Zoo and Aquarium officials say a female Masai giraffe died Saturday.
Six-year-old Cami died four days after undergoing an emergency Cesarean section during the difficult birth of a calf who did not survive, zoo spokeswoman Elizabeth Zimmerman said.
was monitored around the clock by the zoo’s animal care experts but collapsed at approximately 1:00 a.m. Saturday and was unable to rise, Zimmerman said.
The veterinary provided fluids but Zimmerman says Cami passed a short time later.
Initial bloodwork suggested acute kidney failure but Zimmerman says a full necropsy will be conducted with pathology results expected in approximately six weeks.
Cesarean sections in giraffes are extremely rare and typically conducted as a last resort during a difficult delivery due to the high risks involved in putting giraffes under anesthesia and successful recovery. There are only three documented reports of a giraffe dam surviving a Cesarean section, none of which occurred in North America, Zimmerman said.