HARPURSVILLE, New York — April the giraffe is showing “major changes” on Tuesday as she inches closer to giving birth at the Animal Adventure Park in Harpursville, New York.
It’s been five days since hundreds of thousands of people began tuning in to the live stream, waiting for the baby calf to enter the world.
April is bigger and her belly has become “nice and tight,” Animal Adventure Park said in its latest Facebook update on Tuesday.
The calf, which was generally on the left side of the giraffe’s stomach, has shifted to proportionately take up her belly, the zoo said.
There have been “major changes” to the back end of April, an indication of how close she is to giving birth. She has a strong appetite, but opted out of eating hay for most of Monday afternoon, according to the zoo.
An exact date and time of when April will be giving birth is still not known, according to the zoo, which joked the vet had brought a “foolproof tool” — a Magic 8 ball — to determine the moment, but still got a “Cannot Predict Now” answer.
Animal Adventure Park is encouraging in those watching the birth to keep checking in.
This will be April’s fourth calf and the first for the father, Oliver.
Giraffes are pregnant for 15 months, according to Animal Adventure Park. The calf will weigh around 150 pounds and be approximately 6-feet-tall at birth.
Once the calf is born, the zoo will hold a contest to name it.
Animal Adventure Park started the stream on Thursday. Since then, hundreds of thousands of people have joined in daily to see the birth.
The stream was briefly taken down when animal rights activists flagged it as “sexually explicit,” according to the park.
The zoo has also launched a GoFundMe campaign to offset the annual care of the giraffes.
