Gidget the giraffe, mother of 12 and matriarch of the Dickerson Park Zoo, died yesterday. She was euthanized because of physical ailments related to her advanced age.
Gidget lived an exceptionally long life and spent about half of it pregnant. She would have been 31 on Aug. 31. A pregnancy for a giraffe lasts 15 months.
She was the second oldest giraffe living, according to data kept by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, which accredits zoos.
Just so you know, I called the association to try to find out the name, age and location of the oldest giraffe in an accredited facility. I did not hear back by the time this story was published.
Since giraffes live longer in zoos than they do in the wild, what this means is that Gidget might have been the second-oldest giraffe in the nation.
She leaves behind two daughters (Emma and Caley) and a granddaughter (Ajali) at Dickerson Park Zoo, and progeny in zoos throughout the nation.
Giraffes typically live to their late teens or to about 20, says Tracy Campbell, who oversaw the care of Gidget as well as the other giraffes at the Dickerson Park Zoo. Campbell's responsibilities include caring for other species, as well.
Gidget had suffered from arthritis for years, Campbell says, and was at the point where she had slowed considerably.
“It's how they are moving, how much they are moving around,” he tells me. “They walk constantly looking for food. But she was standing in one spot for several hours a day. It wasn't fair to her.”
12th and final offspring came in 2014
Gidget was born in 1992 at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. She was moved to the Dickerson Park Zoo in 1993.
Captive animals are often moved for preservation and breeding purposes under the guidance of the Species Survival Plan, which was created in 1981. It is a population management and conservation program for selected species of wildlife. The goal is to maintain captive populations that are both genetically diverse and stable.
Gidget had 12 live births, which means she spent much of her life pregnant. Many of the births were reported in the Springfield News-Leader.
I asked Campbell if 12 births are a lot for a giraffe.
Yes, he says. Gidget had that many calves because she had great genetics, was healthy and lived a long time.
Her 12th and final offspring arrived in 2014. The father, for the fifth time, was the zoo's breeding male giraffe, Peperuka.
Prior to Peperuka, the breeding giraffe at Dickerson Park Zoo was Stretch, who died in December of 2010.
An autopsy was done on Gidget's body Tuesday. The giraffe had arthritis in the hips and legs, Campbell says. Tissue samples were taken and sent to a laboratory to check for diseases, like cancer.
For years, Campbell says, Gidget was fed separately from the other giraffes.
“She has been on pain medication,” he says.
I ask him what happens to Gidget's body.
Many of the animals are buried on property owned by zoo, he says.
Do they have markers?
“Possibly.”
This is Pokin Around column No. 118.
