Tshiago, the baby giraffe, surrounded by some of the elders during a feeding session at the Pretoria Zoo. Picture: Oupa Mokoena/African News Agency(ANA)
Pretoria - Animals at the Pretoria Zoo are also getting ready to celebrate the day, among them a special giraffe spending his first Christmas with his parents and visitors.
Months ago, the zoo welcomed a new male southern giraffe calf named Tshiago.
Communications officer Angeliné Schwan said the giraffe had been rejected by its mother at birth, and after being a bit aggressive, he had to be isolated from both parents.
Tshiago has however developed a bond with his father, but is still kept isolated in his enclosure because baby giraffes are often a little reluctant to go in and sit freely with the parents.
“We are excited to be celebrating Christmas and festive season with the new animal, he enjoys the company of people and is not shy at all.
“He was scared to approach his parents at first and did not want to eat near them, but now we keep them in the same enclosure with just a barrier inside, so that the mother does not harm the baby,” she explained.
The new giraffe and alpacas were chosen by the zoo’s considerate conservation staff and curators to be spoiled and treated this year, with a Christmas meal.
Yesterday, carnivore curator Carol Thobela-Mabaso visited the new calf, said to be scared of loud sounds like lighting and helicopters.
“He is very playful and enjoys running around in his enclosure, but when we open his enclosure to let him out to the bigger area with his parents he stops, showing that he is not yet ready. We do believe he is getting there though,” Thobela-Mabaso said.
She said they were open to the public and were maintaining the rules and regulation. “Visits are often dependent on the weather, so if it is a rainy day we often don’t have visitors, but on sunny days we do have people that come in. Then we make sure the zoo is not packed so people are more than welcome to visit,” she said.
She added that the zoo was the perfect area for small families because it was outdoors, and with more than 5 000 mammals, birds, fish and amphibians to see, it was the perfect way to make the holidays interesting for those finding themselves in and around Pretoria at this time.
Pretoria News