One of the giraffes at Taipei Zoo, Niu Niu (妞妞), died on Tuesday of birth-related complications, zoo officials said yesterday, adding that its fetus did not survive.
Zoo officials said caretakers discovered Niu Niu’s fetus in an abnormal position on Tuesday night. Veterinarians determined that one of its hind legs had pierced Niu Niu’s perineum through the womb.
Veterinarians attempted to save Niu Niu with a caesarian section, but the giraffe suffered respiratory distress and was pronounced dead at 9pm, the zoo said.
Photo courtesy of Taipei Zoo
The five-yea-old Niu Niu had been expecting her first calf.
According to the zoo, caretakers first realized that Niu Niu was pregnant on Aug. 16, when they observed clear discharges and that she often raised her tail.
On Tuesday, caretakers realized the giraffe was in trouble when they saw a moving protrusion on its hindquarters.
Zoo officials said that medical texts and prior experience suggested it is risky to give giraffes anesthesia due to their long neck, and the zoo dispatched almost 30 workers and veterinarians for the caesarian procedure.
Niu Niu was nervous and moved in her braces, and manifested respiratory distress after anesthesia, officials said.
An autopsy assisted conducted by faculty members and students of National Taiwan University’s veterinary department yesterday morning found that the fetus was in an abnormal position, and its hind leg tore a 16cm lesion through Niu Niu’s womb, zoo officials said.
Niu Niu was born at the zoo on Aug. 7, 2010. The fetus it carried was a female and showed no defects at the time of death.
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