We’re back with another update on Bailey, our giraffe who is due to have a baby any day now! She is not showing signs that labor is imminent – despite the very round belly we show you in this video – so we thought we’d take the opportunity to tell you a bit more about the International Center for the Care and Conservation of Giraffe.
In August, CMZoo launched a first-of-its-kind giraffe training, knowledge-sharing and giraffe emergency response program, called the International Center for the Care and Conservation of Giraffe. Dr. Liza Dadone is the senior giraffe veterinarian at The Center and Amy Schilz is the senior animal behaviorist. Learn more here.
Dr. Liza and Amy still work closely with our herd, but CMZoo has dedicated the resources to allow these two long-time CMZoo giraffe experts to share what we know with others who care for giraffe around the world.
Don’t forget, you can guess when Bailey will have her calf at https://www.cmzoo.org/guess. The person who guesses the closest day, hour and minute will win a behind-the-scenes giraffe encounter with our herd!
Welcome to the indoor giraffe training stall, where Bailey’s keeper team is giving her a pedicure of gigantic proportions! While Bailey participates, Jason, CMZoo’s African Rift Valley animal care manager, gives an update on her pregnancy progress, and how you can join in the fun at home.
Of course, this paint is vet-approved and nontoxic, and we’re doing this so she’s easier for you to spot in the herd. Bailey is a great student, and she seems to enjoy training – both the interaction and all of the crackers she’s getting. It’s also helpful for her care team to have another chance to get up close and check out that belly to see if we can see any signs that she might be getting closer to giving birth. As of right now, there are no signs of imminent labor, but that could change at any time.
If you want to guess when Bailey will give birth – any time between now and Nov. 19 – go to cmzoo.org/guess and submit the day, hour and minute you think the calf will arrive. The closest guesser will win a giraffe encounter with our herd.
Keep up with Bailey overnight by tuning into her 24/7 birth stall camera at cmzoo.org/giraffecam or on CMZoo’s YouTube channel. Join the entire herd daily from 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. MT via our livestream cameras that overlook their main yard.
It’s time to check in on our mountain tapir, Cofan, as he lives out his golden years! In early 2021, Cofan underwent a life-saving surgery to remove his damaged left kidney. Since then, Cofan’s keepers have worked closely with him and given him extra love and scratches, which are his favorite rewards. Giving Cofan scratches puts him into a ‘tapir trance,’ allowing his care team to collect voluntary blood draws without any sedation. His post-surgery blood draw results have been encouraging and are a great way to keep tabs on his overall health.
Mountain tapir are very rare. Only six live in human care in the United States. Even though tapir look similar to anteaters or bears, they are actually closely related to rhinos and horses. Because tapir are so rare, but have the commonalities of horses, Cofan’s medical team refers to equine medicine and their own experience with tapir to give nearly 19-year-old Cofan the best care as he ages.
As Cofan gets older, enrichment is important for his health and quality of life in his golden years. Cofan loves eating lettuce, apples and fresh leaves from branches. Keepers will hang snacks from trees and bushes to encourage Cofan to problem solve and use his incredible nose. When he is not actively participating in enrichment, Cofan can often be found taking naps by his waterfall.
Mountain tapir, from the Andes Mountains in Colombia, Ecuador and northern Peru, are one of four species of tapir. Due to habitat loss, mountain tapir are endangered with approximately 2,500 left in the wild. CMZoo staff, thanks to support from Zoo members in our annual Member Conservation Vote, work diligently to save mountain tapir and their habitats south of the equator.
Easy-to-love Cofan helps his species by teaching us more about how to care for mountain tapir, and by inspiring countless visitors to learn about and protect wild tapir. You can visit Cofan living out his golden years across the road from Encounter Africa.
International African Penguin Awareness Day (IAPAD) is Sat., Oct. 8, and we have an exciting day of activities planned on the beaches of Water’s Edge: Africa to help raise awareness for African penguin conservation.
Although African penguin populations continue to struggle in the wild, strides have been made to save this endangered species, and you can help them simply by coming to the Zoo. One of the ways we support African penguins in the wild is by supporting our conservation partner, Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds (SANCCOB). SANCCOB rescues, rehabilitates, rears chicks, conducts important research, and educates the public. Join us on Sat., Oct. 8, starting at 9 a.m. to celebrate and learn more about SANCCOB and African penguins.
Check out some of the fun activities we have planned! — Attendees get a free wristband that matches the name band of a penguin in our flock. — Post a photo from the onsite photo station and win prizes! — 9:30 a.m. – penguin feeding and keeper talk — 9 to 10:45 a.m. – sign up for our rubber ducky race. — 11 a.m. – rubber ducky race, with prizes – including a penguin encounter! — 3:15 p.m. – penguin feeding and keeper talk – including recognition of winning game participants!
This event and all activities are included in the price of your daytime admission to CMZoo. Please note: advance tickets to the Zoo are required for members and the general public, and some days may sell out. Get tickets at cmzoo.org/visit.
Blanca, our 3-month-old Rocky Mountain goat, is growing up fast! She recently weighed in at 53 pounds. Her mom, Lena, weighs 126 pounds, and her dad, Albert, weighs 358 pounds, so we’re curious who Blanca will take after as she continues to grow. Speaking of growing, check out her little horns!
Blanca is growing in confidence, too. She approaches Yazhi and Twinkie, our two older female Rocky Mountain goats in the herd, and even eats food right out of her keepers’ hands. Blanca is still nursing sporadically in addition to eating solid foods. Rocky Mountain goats typically stop nursing around four months, so we expect she’ll transition to eating completely solid foods in the near future.
Have you seen Blanca in person yet? Visit her and the rest of the Rocky Mountain goats across from the Sky Ride on the rocky cliffs, next time you’re at CMZoo!
School is in session for Plato, one of our pink-backed pelicans! Plato participates in training sessions that allow his keepers to care for him. Consistent training for Plato’s wings and feet is especially important as it helps his keepers check in on his health and well-being. Plato is very interested in watching his keepers and is very patient. With Plato’s sweet, confident, and goofy personality, he is a good student and fun to train.
Cheyenne Mountain Zoo keepers were greeted by a brand-new baby Red River hog in the early hours of Fri., Aug. 12. They had suspicions a baby was on the way, and their suspicions were confirmed when they found Red River hog mom, Zena, resting peacefully with her baby, who appears to be in good health.
“We are over the moon with excitement for this little one,” said Lauren Phillippi, lead keeper in African Rift Valley. “Red River hog babies are some of the cutest in the whole animal kingdom with their little stripes, tiny statures and energetic behaviors.”
The little hoglet is about the size of its mom’s snout. Red River hoglets are often described as having a watermelon pattern when they’re born. Just like adult Red River hogs, hoglets have he signature bright orange coats, but the babies also have brown and white stripes that run the length of their bodies, along with little brown and white spots all over. Those stripes and spots usually fade in around six months, but act as important camouflage in the meantime.
Eight-year-old Zena’s keepers say she has embraced her hoglet with all of the key behaviors they want to see from a second-time mom. The baby is nursing regularly, Zena nuzzles and cleans the baby, and the baby gets ‘zoomies’ in the comfort of their indoor den. Red River hoglets are sometimes described as looking like wind-up toys, because they get bursts of energy that send them running circles around their mothers. The baby’s sex has not been identified and likely won’t be for another few weeks. In keeping with CMZoo tradition, the baby likely won’t be named for at least 30 days.
This is Zena’s second hoglet, after Pinto, who was born at CMZoo in April 2021. Zena came to CMZoo on a breeding recommendation with Huey, CMZoo’s 15-year-old male Red River hog. Huey has been a great father to Pinto, and four others. Red River hog fathers, unlike many species, are active in raising their young. For now, Zena and baby will get time to bond alone, while Huey and Pinto spend time together in their indoor and outdoor spaces.
Follow CMZoo’s social media channels for updates on when Zena and the hoglet will make their public debut.
About Cheyenne Mountain Zoo
Cheyenne Mountain Zoological Society was founded in 1926. Today, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, America’s mountain Zoo, offers comprehensive education programs, exciting conservation efforts and ruly fantastic animal experiences. In 2022, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo was voted #3 Best Zoo in North America and CMZoo’s Rocky Mountain Wild was named #2 Best Zoo Exhibit in North America by USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards. It is Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s goal to help guests fall in love with animals and nature, and take action to protect them. Since 2008, CMZoo’s Quarters for Conservation program has raised $4 million dedicated to frontline conservation efforts around the world. Of the 239 zoos and aquariums accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is one of just a few operating without tax support. Cheyenne Mountain Zoo depends on admissions, membership dues, special event attendance and donations for funding.
Our ring-tailed lemur twins, Elo and Anja, celebrated their first birthday on July 11, and their older half-brother, Maky, turned one on April 26. Step onto Lemur Island with us to see how the young prosimians’ personalities have developed in the lemur conspiracy (what a group of lemurs is called) and get up-close for a voluntary injection training session with their care team.
We can hardly believe Omo will turn one year old on July 20! It’s been a year of adorable ear wiggles, plops and boops with this boy, and it’s been our joy to share him with you. Hear our Water’s Edge: Africa keepers’ favorite ‘Omo-ments’ over the past year.
To celebrate Omo’s first birthday, our partners at Children’s Hospital Colorado, are throwing him a party, and you’re invited. Join us in Water’s Edge on Wed., July 20 from 10 a.m. to noon to make Omo a birthday card, learn about hippos at a special keeper talk at 11 a.m. and then watch Omo and his mom, Zambezi, enjoy a special birthday cake at 11:30 a.m. Advance daytime admission e-tickets are required to attend.
The adorably fluffy Rocky Mountain Goat kid born on May 4 has a name! Meet Blanca, named after Blanca Peak – one of Colorado’s tallest mountains. Blanca is growing in leaps and bounds! The young female goat is incredibly independent and energetic. Wait until you see her version of zoomies! She now weighs nearly 30 pounds, has met the full five-member herd of Rocky Mountain goats at CMZoo, and is even learning to take food from keepers.
