Category: Asian elephant
Wednesday, October 10, 2018
After an almost two-year pregnancy, the Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden is happy to announce the addition of a female calf to its Asian elephant herd. Kairavi, Sanskrit for moonlight, was born Tuesday, October 9, at 11:28 p.m., inside the OKC Zoo’s elephant habitat at Sanctuary Asia. Both mother, Asha, and newborn, Kairavi (Kai), are in good health and are now viewable to guests. Kai’s arrival brings the total number of Asian elephants at the Zoo to seven.
Veterinary...
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at Wednesday, October 10, 2018
Monday, January 1, 2018
Sanctuary Asia , opening soon at the Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden, will create a vast, multipurpose environment where endangered animals from the Asian continent can thrive while receiving world-class zoological animal care. Prior to the opening, we will periodically preview a new species or feature coming to the habitat. First up: the cassowary!
Native to New Guinea and parts of northeastern Australia, cassowaries are large, flightless birds related to emus and ostriches that can...
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at Monday, January 1, 2018
Monday, December 18, 2017
Compared to animals in the wild, those in human care tend to live significantly longer lives, sometimes doubling life expectancy. This presents unique healthcare challenges to Zoo veterinary staff and requires medical innovations to ensure quality of life is maintained for senior animals.
Dr. Jennifer D’Agostino, director of veterinary services, shared some of the innovative technologies and treatments being implemented at the OKC Zoo to make sure animals live long, happy, healthy...
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at Monday, December 18, 2017
Wednesday, July 19, 2017
The Oklahoma City Zoo & Botanical Garden is celebrating National Zookeeper Week – taking place from July 16 through July 22. Our staff of zookeepers are hardworking, passionate and driven individuals who spend each day caring for the animals in their various departments! This week, we are highlighting six zookeepers; ranging from elephant to carnivore caretakers. Next up is Debbie Baston! Debbie cares for the Zoo's herd of Asian elephants!
How long have you...
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at Wednesday, July 19, 2017
Monday, December 26, 2016
Breeding and reproduction are important, natural behaviors and normal aspects of the lifecycle for all animals. At the Oklahoma City Zoo, we support the natural breeding behavior of our Asian elephant herd, as it promotes the physical health of the animals and a quality well-being. This quality of life for elephants is best experienced in a natural social structure involving a mixed herd of several different generations.
At the Zoo, the elephants engage in natural breeding behavior. The...
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at Monday, December 26, 2016
Sunday, November 27, 2016
Bamboo, the Asian elephant, is the oldest of our herd at 49 years old. That’s pretty good considering the median lifespan of an Asian elephant is 47 years! Bamboo is the grandma of our herd and with that comes some extra care and considerations. All of the elephants begin their day with a bath in which the keepers check their entire body from trunk to tail, and Bamboo is no exception. This is the time where she gets to spend one-on-one time with her keepers...
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at Sunday, November 27, 2016
Friday, November 11, 2016
Achara, the Oklahoma City Zoo’s nearly two-year-old baby elephant, is not only extremely playful but also incredibly curious. Today, November 11, that sense of curiosity turned to mischief when she, to her zookeepers’ surprise, safely squeezed her 2,070-pound body through an 18-inch-wide steel cable perimeter and grazed on the other side of the fence. A Zoo team member saw her and immediately notified the elephant team. A few minutes later she squeezed back through to be with her...
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at Friday, November 11, 2016