Caretakers at Animal Adventure Park in New York are reporting that viral sensation April the giraffe has given birth to a boy.
Early Saturday morning, the zoo sent out an alert through text and on social media, informing viewers that she was in labor.
“It’s happening,” said a keeper in a live clip, who appeared to be driving to the zoo. “Don’t stop watching. Cancel your plans. It’s time to have a baby!”
The mom pushed for less than two hours before the little one made its debut, and it took about another hour for the infant to stand and take its first steps. Here's a video of the exact moment the baby was born.
By Saturday afternoon, the zoo updated viewers with a new post and picture, confirming that “all is well.”
The name of the calf is still unknown. However, the zoo is enlisting the help of its supporters with a baby-naming contest.
This is the fourth baby for April, who is 15, and the first one for Oliver, who is 5.
Millions of people around the world have been tuning into the much-anticipated live birth, which first started making headlines in February after YouTube briefly took the zoo's livestream down after animal activists complained the video violated policies against "nudity and sexual content."
But after the zoo urged commenters to voice their frustrations — and thousands did — YouTube restored the stream within an hour.
On the morning of the delivery, more than 1.2 million people watched to help welcome April’s bundle of joy into the world.
Continue to keep an eye on the live cam of April the giraffe and her new baby calf below:
Visit aprilthegiraffe.com or Animal Adventure Park's Facebook page for updates.
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