Woman gives birth at zoo

A baby girl numbers among Rosamond Gifford Zoo's list of zoo-borns.

By Britt Olson MSN Living Editor Dec 11, 2012 5:21PM

A zoo baby’s birth usually causes a small, local frenzy. Those furry faces and clumsy, untested limbs effortlessly attract the media’s lens and the public’s affection.

Last Friday Rosamond Gifford Zoo in Syracuse, N.Y., hosted the birth of a species more exotic to menageries. On Dec. 7, at 11 a.m., a 21-year-old woman delivered a baby girl near the zoo’s bear exhibit.

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Zoo employees were quick to assist in the labor. They radioed for backup and assembled blankets. According to Rosamond Gifford Zoo Director Ted Fox, Liz Schmidt and Sarah Kohler, both first responders, were the first to arrive at the delivery. Schmidt attended the mother throughout the birth and checked the newborn’s vital signs.

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"When Liz Schmidt and Sarah Kohler arrived on the scene she was in full labor. Within minutes she had given birth to the baby," Fox said.

A member of the woman’s family called Onondaga County EMTs. The woman was rushed to the hospital following the delivery.

"It's pretty unusual to get a call about a woman in labor. It's happened several times throughout the years," said Fox. "But it has been pretty early on. We thought that would be the case Friday."

The exciting morning increased Rosamond Gifford's tally of zoo-born babies.

Fox said that the mother and infant were released from the hospital Monday.

Photo: Gary Walts/The Post-Standard/Landov

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46Comments

Best

Dec 11, 2012 7:54PM

Happy Birthday to you, you were born in a zoo. You smell like a monkey and you look like one too!

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Camaro Mom

Dec 11, 2012 7:19PM

I don't think a zoo would be the worst place to have a baby. Aside from prenatal doctors and other who deliver human babies, a zoo is probably the next best place to have a baby. They are usually prepared for animal emergancies and most, if not all, have had animals give birth and therefore should have people on hand who know what to do and how to best help. Congrats to mom and baby.