W NEWS
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RARE GIRAFFE CALF IS
BORN AT CHESTER ZOO
A BICYCLE MADE FOR TWO
A Cheshire woman and her friend from County
Durham are aiming to cycle the length of Britain this
summer – on a bicycle made for two.
CCTV cameras at Chester Zoo have captured the
beautiful moment a rare Rothschild’s giraffe calf is born
– including its first adorable wobbly steps.
The five-foot-tall youngster, which is yet to be sexed or named, arrived
at 15:20 on Monday (April 3) to eight-year-old mum Orla. Zookeepers
say that Orla delivered her youngster smoothly following a four-hour
labour; bringing an end to her 15-month pregnancy.
Sarah Roffe, giraffe team manager, said: “Orla went into labour at
around noon and, for a little while, we could just see two spindly
legs poking out. She’s an experienced mum and a few hours later she
delivered the calf safely onto soft straw as the rest of the herd, including
her other young Kidepo and Millie, looked on. Although it might be
quite a drop, and they may fall to the ground with a bit of a thud, it’s
how giraffe calves arrive into the world and it stimulates them into
taking their first breaths. That whole process, from a calf being born to
it taking its very first steps, is an incredibly special thing to see. Those
long legs take a little bit of getting used to but the new calf is doing ever
so well, as is mum. She’s an excellent parent and is doing a fantastic
job of nursing her new arrival. The world may be waiting for April the
giraffe to have her calf over in America, but Orla has beaten her to it!”
The calf is the second Rothschild’s giraffe to be born at the zoo in the
space of just four months, following the arrival of male Murchison on
Boxing Day. Conservationists at the zoo hope that both arrivals will
help to throw a spotlight on the plight of the endangered species and
the different threats it faces in the wild. Rothschild’s giraffes are one of
the world’s rarest mammals and recent estimates suggest that less than
1,600 remain.
Debbie Edge from Oakmere, Cheshire who also works as part of
the Edge Family in the famous Wirral butchers ‘Edge & Son’, and
Suzy Cramb, of Wolsingham, County Durham will undertake the
tandem ride from Land’s End to John O’ Groats, raising funds for
two charities, the Teenage Cancer Trust and the Ellen Mac Arthur
Cancer Trust.
Suzy’s son was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma, a rare type of
bone cancer in 2014. For most of that year he spent 5 days every
week in hospital whilst undergoing some of the most aggressive
chemotherapy and debilitating operations. Without both of these
charities, Suzy is sure that he would not have survived as he has. It is
thanks to them that he is as well as could be and currently enjoying
university to the full.
Suzy, a mum-of-three who runs her own physiotherapy practice,
explained how they first noticed what later turned out to be cancer.
“He showed me a swelling on his leg but said it happened playing
football and was nothing to worry about,” she said. “It played on my
mind especially when the next day I was on a course for work about
adolescent injuries. That same week we took him for an MRI scan
to investigate further.”
Suzy and Debbie will be setting off from Land’s End on Wednesday
7 June before arriving at John O’ Groats on Monday 19 June. The
pair are inviting any cycling friends to join them in fundraising
on the various legs of their challenge. To get involved, search for
‘Tandem LEJOG’ on Facebook and Twitter: @tandemlejog
Anyone wishing to show their support and donate can look for
‘Debbie Edge’ or ‘Suzy Cramb’ on Virgin Money Giving:
http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/team/tandemlejog
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