Milani, first known giraffe C-section survivor, joins Tanganyika herd

0Milani, the first giraffe calf known to survive a cesarean section, has joined the giraffe herd at Tanganyika Wildlife Park.WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — Milani, the first giraffe calf known to survive a cesarean section, has joined the giraffe herd at Tanganyika Wildlife Park.

She was officially introduced to the herd on Thursday after months of specialized care, including plasma administration, a controlled feeding regimen and assisted standing sessions.

"It went exactly like we planned," LynnLee Schmidt, chief operating officer, said in a news release. "Our youngest giraffe, Dee, met up with her. They smelled each other, they got the zoomies, and they ran around. There were a lot of tears. The herd has been great in accepting her in."

Milani was born prematurely after her mother, Virtue, underwent a terminal C-section due to an irreversible condition that caused her organs to shut down. She is the first calf known to survive a C-section among the three attempts that have ever been made.

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"Milani was born three to seven weeks premature, with underdeveloped lungs and none of the antibodies a calf normally receives from her mother's first milk," Schmidt said. "Her name means 'new birth' or 'new era,' and it also honors Mili, a giraffe at Dickerson Park Zoo in Missouri whose donated plasma helped build Milani's immune system in her first critical days."

Milani has made significant progress, standing at an estimated six feet tall and weighing over 200 pounds — now able to stand, walk, and breathe on her own.

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"Up until recently, even anesthetizing a full-grown giraffe was something most veterinarians didn't do," Schmidt said. "This is groundbreaking new science in the care of the species."