Internet sensation April the Giraffe has her mothering instincts on point as a surveillance video shows her kicking the vet at Animal Adventure Park in Harpursville, New York, to protect her newborn calf.
The video shows the vet standing on the side of April's pen while the 15-year-old giraffe gives him a swift kick in the nuts. As the vet slowly walks out of the pen, the mother giraffe bolts out another kick while her newborn calf stands closely at her side.
“Yesterday many of you noticed the 'giraffe cha-cha' where April was trying to step on the toes of our vet, and more or less she was telling him she was done with his advances. Later on that led to just a small little kick with the front leg but don’t worry, the vet was not struck, he was totally fine," Animal Adventure Park said.
According to Express, April's behavior is a sign of control and protection of whatever/whoever poses danger for her calf.
This is not the first time that April showed her kicking prowess. Back in March, the then-pregnant giraffe also tried to kick her vet, but actually missed.
After more than two months of waiting, April the giraffe gave birth on April 15 at 10 a.m. E.T. At least 1.2 million people were online to watch the much-awaited occurrence via Animal Adventure's Park Giraffe Cam on YouTube.
Upon birth, Animal Adventure Park confirmed that the calf weighs 129 pounds (58.5 kilograms) and stands 5 feet 9 inches tall (1.75 meters). This is April the giraffe's fourth baby and she has never given birth to a stillborn.
On April 20, Animal Adventure Park released a snap of April's calf together with an update of the calf's health.
"All is well and baby continues to gain! A small floor scale has been implemented to get a read on baby without separating mom and handling calf," the animal park wrote.
Animal Adventure Park also announced the top 10 most popular baby name suggestions for April the giraffe's calf. They are: Alyssa's Choice, Apollo, Geoffrey, Gio, Harpur, Noah, Ollie, Patch, Patches, and Unity.
To vote for your favorite name via this link. Animal Adventure Park will tentatively announce the winning name on May 1.