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Cheyenne Mountain Zoo Announces Giraffe Is Not Pregnant

By Danielle Chavira

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (CBS4) - The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo announced it is ending months of anticipation surrounding the pregnancy of one of their giraffes. Zoo officials said Monday, tests seem to have "led us down the wrong path."

In February, the zoo announced two of their giraffes, Laikipia and Muziki, were pregnant. The first to give birth would mark the 200th giraffe calf at the zoo.

Giraffe Muziki (Cheyenne Mountain Zoo)
Giraffe Muziki (Cheyenne Mountain Zoo)

Muziki ended up giving birth to Penny in June. Penny was later put down in July after weeks of dealing with and fighting health issues.

giraffe penny 6.17
(credit: Cheyenne Mountain Zoo)

Eyes turned to Laikipia to deliver the next giraffe calf. Zoo keepers had test results showing she was pregnant and expected her to deliver sometime by the summer, but they, and much of Colorado, waited day in and day out with no sign of urgency from Laikipia.

Giraffe Laikipia (Cheyenne Mountain Zoo) 2
Giraffe Laikipia (Cheyenne Mountain Zoo)

Zoo staff later performed additional ultrasound and pregnancy tests to make sure Laikipia was actually pregnant.

On Monday, the staff announced they are shutting down the birth cam, which they say was meant to be temporary. They say the other live cameras showing the herd in the outdoor area are still available for giraffe lovers.

Welcome to our final #201Tuesdays! As we have shared previously, Laikipia and her test results have stumped us. Although several blood, fecal and ultrasound tests throughout the year have given us some evidence of a pregnancy, she is now well outside of a typical gestation window. We now believe the test results led us down the wrong path. Because of this, we are shutting down our birth cam, which was always meant to be temporary. The great news is that both of our outdoor cams will remain on, as always, so you can catch up with your favorite giraffe anytime they're outside! Visit cmzoo.org/giraffecam or search for us on YouTube. We also want to announce that we have a winner to our guessing game! You were asked to register your guess on whether Laikipia was pregnant or not, with the determination date being yesterday. Since we still do not have a baby, a random winner was chosen from the "not pregnant" guesses. CONGRATULATIONS to Kaitlyn Williams of Highlands Ranch, CO! You are the winner of a behind-the-scenes tour with our giraffe herd. We'll reach out with instructions on how to book your tour. Lastly, we would like to thank everyone who has followed the entire journey of our giraffe birth cam - from when it went public back in April 2018, through today. We have all experienced the excitement of the #Raceto200, the beauty of a live birth, the sorrow of a tragic loss, and even the confusion provided by Laikipia - and we've experienced it all TOGETHER! We appreciate everyone's support and kindness and love!

Posted by Cheyenne Mountain Zoo on Tuesday, October 23, 2018

The zoo thanked all those who joined the roller coaster ride over the last several months:

"We would like to thank everyone who has followed the entire journey of our giraffe birth cam - from when it went public back in April 2018, through today. We have all experienced the excitement of the #Raceto200, the beauty of a live birth, the sorrow of a tragic loss, and even the confusion provided by Laikipia - and we've experienced it all TOGETHER!"

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