A baby giraffe that was abandoned in the wild has died. The South African animal orphanage that saved him announced his death on Friday. His friend Hunter the dog stayed by his side until he passed away.
Jazz the giraffe collapsed after a brain hemorrhage, The Rhino Orphanage said in a Facebook post. “The last two days before we lost him, Jazz started looking unstable on his legs and very dull, almost like he wasn’t registering everything. He suddenly collapsed, and we could see blood starting to pool back into his eyes.”
Resident watchdog Hunter seemed to realize something was wrong and didn’t leave the baby giraffe’s side, the orphanage said.
People had expected this to happen, assuming that the mother giraffe had abandoned the baby for a reason, Arrie van Deventer, the orphanage’s founder, told The Associated Press.
A mother knows
“So we finally know that Jazz didn’t have a bad giraffe mother that left him, she just knew,” the orphanage’s statement said. “As proven to us so many times before, nature’s mother’s know. But we still have to try every single time no matter how hard it is.”
The baby giraffe had arrived a few weeks ago, just days after birth. A farmer found him in the wild, weak and dehydrated, and called the center for help.
Hunter and Jazz bonded immediately, caretaker Janie Van Heerden said. In its farewell to the giraffe, the orphanage said: “You have taught us so much in the last three weeks and we will remember you fondly.”
The giraffe was buried close to the orphanage, van Deventer said.
Source: Associated Press
