The Riverbanks Zoo welcomed a new arrival last month.
A baby male giraffe, whose name will be chosen through an online auction, was born February 13 at the zoo in Columbia.
The three-week old giraffe is already 6-feet tall and 143 pounds, but he looks small compared to his parents who stand 18-feet tall as adults.
Keeper Andrea Mueller says the little guy has already grown five inches and gained 30 pounds since birth.
She says the baby will reach a height of 10-feet in about a year and will become full-grown in five to eight years.
This is the third giraffe born at the zoo in the past year and it’s the 18th giraffe birth since the zoo opened in 1974.
“People are having a lot of success with breading giraffes in captivity. So our success is really exciting, but it’s no uncommon,” said Mueller.
Keepers say the baby is only allowed in the public exhibit on days when the temperature approaches 60 degrees.
“With the two babies that we have currently and then the third one, you can see a big size difference,” said Mueller.
“I think that’s really intriguing to people, because they do grow up pretty quickly. So when you see a newborn out there it’s really exciting for everybody.”
Zoo officials say with warm weather in the forecast this weekend, visitors should have plenty of opportunity to see the new arrival.
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