Hypertensive giraffe
Sophie the giraffe is a frequent visitor at the Zulu Nyala game lodge. Accustomed to humans and a celebrity in his own right (he was in a French film named 'le Farm', helpfully translated by Peace as 'the farm'), he now stars in photos snapped by lodge visitors.
Peace found Sophie in the bush when the giraffe was just a few days old. The rangers saw a dead giraffe on their game drives, completing the 'circle of life' so to speak, circling vultures overhead. A few days later, Peace again drove by the dead giraffe, but noticed movement. On closer inspection, he found a very young baby giraffe, lying weakly by it's dead mother, with the vultures taking a few tentative pecks. Peace went and picked up the baby, took him home and hand fed the giraffe.
Sophie's Zulu name means 'settle down' because he was very frisky in his pen and Peace had to say 'settle down, settle down!' The French film crew gave him the name Sophie after the giraffe toy that all of the babies play with (including many of my friend's babies!).
Sophie is obviously in love with Peace and treated him to a tongue bath one day as we all sat in the ranger vehicle. When not stalking our guide - and really, to see a full grown giraffe stalking is pretty crazy - Sophie walks around the pool, sits in front of guest rooms, and drinks water from the fountain outside reception. A number of times, mom and I have walked from one place to another and been startled by the giraffe nearby. What you briefly dismissed as trees in your peripheral vision starts to move, or you realize the lump in the garden has a head up in the trees.
It was interesting to learn that giraffes really can't put their heads down on the ground for too long and sleep for just 1-2 minutes at a time. They get very hypertensive when flat; you can imagine the amount of pressure it requires to pump blood to the head when upright and how that must all shift with position changes. There is a network of large veins in the tops of the head to act as a cushion when the giraffe does bend down to drink water, but it has its limits.
Peace found Sophie in the bush when the giraffe was just a few days old. The rangers saw a dead giraffe on their game drives, completing the 'circle of life' so to speak, circling vultures overhead. A few days later, Peace again drove by the dead giraffe, but noticed movement. On closer inspection, he found a very young baby giraffe, lying weakly by it's dead mother, with the vultures taking a few tentative pecks. Peace went and picked up the baby, took him home and hand fed the giraffe.
Sophie's Zulu name means 'settle down' because he was very frisky in his pen and Peace had to say 'settle down, settle down!' The French film crew gave him the name Sophie after the giraffe toy that all of the babies play with (including many of my friend's babies!).
Sophie is obviously in love with Peace and treated him to a tongue bath one day as we all sat in the ranger vehicle. When not stalking our guide - and really, to see a full grown giraffe stalking is pretty crazy - Sophie walks around the pool, sits in front of guest rooms, and drinks water from the fountain outside reception. A number of times, mom and I have walked from one place to another and been startled by the giraffe nearby. What you briefly dismissed as trees in your peripheral vision starts to move, or you realize the lump in the garden has a head up in the trees.
It was interesting to learn that giraffes really can't put their heads down on the ground for too long and sleep for just 1-2 minutes at a time. They get very hypertensive when flat; you can imagine the amount of pressure it requires to pump blood to the head when upright and how that must all shift with position changes. There is a network of large veins in the tops of the head to act as a cushion when the giraffe does bend down to drink water, but it has its limits.
posted by Imle at 5:39 AM
<< Home