Offspring of April the Giraffe dies ‘unexpectedly’ at Texas zoo
Azizi the Giraffe, the calf of viral sensation April the Giraffe, has died, according to the East Texas Zoo and Gator Park.
Azizi was born in March 2019 to April the Giraffe, who had become a popular YouTube star as hundreds of thousands livestreamed her pregnancy and her eventual delivery of the male calf. Representatives from the zoo in Saline, Texas, shared the news of Azizi’s passing in a Facebook post Wednesday.
Azizi died of an “unexpected and unpreventable” condition at the East Texas Zoo and Gator Park, the zoo said. The giraffe had recently received treatment for a parasitic issue, according to the post.
“The East Texas Zoo and Gator Park is mourning the loss of a cherished member of our family, Azizi the Giraffe, who passed unexpectedly on Tuesday,” the statement read. “The veterinary prescribed regimen of treatments appeared to be working, and Azizi was showing signs of improvement. However, on Tuesday, Azizi was down, and passed during a veterinary examination.”
According to a post-mortem review, Azizi suffered from a twisted gut around his cranial mesenteric artery, which was ultimately the cause of his death.
PETA released a statement Thursday to New York news station 12 News about the calf’s death, condemning the Animal Adventure Park, where April the Giraffe and other giraffes are kept.
“How many giraffes have to suffer so that Animal Adventure Park gets some social media followers? Azizi wasn’t even 2 years old when he died of gastrointestinal disease, like so many other captive giraffes, and the roadside zoo is already trying to cash in on another giraffe’s pregnancy. PETA is calling on the park to stop its greedy breeding cycle and urging everyone who cares about wildlife to avoid exploitative roadside zoos like lives depend on it—because they do.”
Azizi was April’s fifth calf and her second since arriving at Animal Adventure Park in Harpursville, New York, in 2015. She is also the mother of Tajiri, who was born at the park in April 2017.
Animal Adventure Park has not released a statement.
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Stephanie has been telling stories her whole life. Her interest in the written word started with short stories and journal entries about run-ins with classroom bullies as a child and matured to writing for her high school newspaper over the years. She has written and edited for The Tennessean, Augusta Chronicle and American City & County.
