Suzie the Masai Giraffe

World Giraffe Day at Safari West

Posted in: Goings on, News

Tags: giraffe, Masai giraffe

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Remembering Suzie

Just a few days ago Safari West said goodbye to one of our oldest residents. Suzie, a beautiful and petite giraffe passed away at the ripe age of 23. Suzie Q, as we loved to call her, was born at the Los Angeles Zoo in December of 1992. In 1994 she arrived at Safari West as a sprightly two-year-old. Suzie was a Masai giraffe, a sub-species know for their leaf-shaped spots and generally dark color. Masai giraffes are the most common kind of giraffe found in Africa but are very unusual in captivity. Guests lucky enough to meet Suzie face-to-face were always surprised by her gorgeous coloration and calm demeanor. As an animal who’d been walking the hills of Safari West almost since we opened, she was very at ease with the trucks and the excited people within. While we miss Suzie fiercely and mourn her passing, we take some measure of happiness from what she leaves behind. Suzie was a proud mother giraffe many times over and Safari West is home to several of her descendants, including two of her great-grandchildren, youngster Ringo, and one of our newest babies, Dubs. We love you, Suzie.

World Giraffe Day

The passing of Suzie happens to coincide with the annual celebration of World Giraffe Day. In her honor and to help secure the future of her species, Safari West is pleased to announce this year’s World Giraffe Day event. This year, we are celebrating it in two ways. Those of you with reservations to join us on Father’s Day (June 19th) will be able to explore the many exhibits, displays, and activities for kids taking place on our main lawn in between chowing down at our “Beers and Bratwurst” event and taking a ride on our Nairobi minibus trek. For those of you unable to come to that sold-out event, we’ll be holding an additional event on World Giraffe Day which lands only a few days later on June 21st.

World Giraffe Day is an annual event designed to bring attention to the plight of these most graceful mammals. Wild giraffe populations are plummeting and organizations like the Giraffe Conservation Foundation are working hard to help this ailing species. The theme for 2016’s World Giraffe Day event is “Putting people at the center of giraffe conservation”. The goal this year is to help wild giraffe populations at risk but also to illuminate the needs of people who live side-by-side with these magnificent animals. As the Giraffe Conservation Fund points out, we need unique approaches to conserve animals living in close proximity to humans.

While we all love seeing these amazing animals in the wild, sharing your living space with wild animals on a daily basis is not always fun – even though giraffe are some of the more pleasant co-habitants when compared to elephant and lion.

On World Giraffe Day we’ll hold a special presentation in the Elephant Room after dinner service. The presentation will focus on the majesty of giraffes and their struggles in an increasingly human dominated world.

For more information on World Giraffe Day or to donate to the work it finances, please visit www.worldgiraffeday.org. Thanks, and we’ll see you there!