Meet the Giraffes

Come and meet our three new arrivals.

For the past year, we have been planning and building one of the largest projects in the history of the Park. Giraffe have always been a species we have been keen to work with but keeping these animals comes with its unique set of challenges; a robust and large house, plenty of space outside and the ability to feed them a vast amount of leaves and vegetation every day. Our team set to work clearing and preparing the site in Autumn 2009 and little by little, the area began to take shape. Finally, in June 2010, we welcomed Century from Colchester Zoo – the first Giraffe to set foot in the beautiful Cotswold countryside. He was followed by Koife, also from Colchester and finally the small male group was completed with the arrival of Wallace from Blair Drummond Safari Park in Scotland. All three appear to be getting along famously and can at last be seen moving gracefully across their paddock.

Why all males? Many zoos breed giraffe and can house several females to each male in a herd. For this reason, it is essential that some zoos hold “spare” males which are not required for breeding. This is an important management tool for the coordinators of the giraffe breeding programme as it allows the more successful breeding zoos to continue without compromising the welfare of the animals. We are delighted with how our three boys have settled so far and they appear to be thriving on the wide selection of browse we are able to offer. There are further plans to erect a raised walkway into the house for spectacular eye level viewing of these amazing animals and also a spacious summer paddock.