Staff members at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo in Syracuse, New York might be used to dealing with animals giving birth, but over the weekend, a few employees had to help a 21-year-old woman deliver a baby after she went into unexpected labor in front of an animal exhibit!
On Friday, Zoo Education Coordinator Liz Schmidt was going about her day when a shocking call came over her radio: a woman was in labor on the path in front of the bear exhibit! Schmidt headed over expecting to find that the mom-to-be simply needed a wheelchair before going to the hospital…so imagine her surprise when she realized the baby was already on its way!
Luckily, Schmidt, as a first responder, had taken all types of first aid courses and was able to deliver the baby with help from a medical dispatcher on the phone. Members of the woman's party and zoo staff provided articles of clothing to keep the mother and daughter warm. Meanwhile, another zoo employee helped ensure the woman some privacy by pointing zoo guests to other exhibits and helping direct the ambulance crew to the scene.
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Both Mom and baby were soon taken to the hospital for further examination. The zoo reportedly plans a baby gift to the family. I hope it's a lifetime membership to the place! Hey, they deserve it after that!
Seriously though, what a crazy story! Can you imagine giving birth in the middle of a crowded zoo? That poor mom was probably terrified. Also, I don't know how in the world they managed to stay calm, but I have to give major credit to Schmidt and the rest of the staff for handling the situation as best as they possibly could. That certainly wasn't an ordinary day at work! In fact, I'm pretty sure that if I had been in their position, I would have had a major panic attack and started screaming like a lunatic.
I'm just glad that mom and baby are being taken care of. One thing's for sure—this is going to be one heck of a story to tell that child once he grows up!
Image via ell brown/Flickr
