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April's 'Giraffe Cam' finally goes dark after nearly two months

Posted at 11:58 PM, Apr 20, 2017
and last updated 2017-04-21 17:01:15-04

The Animal Adventure Park took down its popular "Giraffe Cam" was down on Friday, nearly a week after April the giraffe gave birth to a healthy baby boy. 

The zoo said earlier this week the number of emails the Animal Adventure Park received from viewers were causing its servers to be bogged down, and interfere with operations. The Animal Adventure Park had previously said that it would take the stream down five days after April's birth. 

On Saturday, thousands tuned in to watch 15-year-old April give birth to her fourth calf. The male calf has yet to be named.

The YouTube stream, which has been running almost continuously since February, has been viewed by millions of animal lovers. Even nearly a week after April gave birth, the stream continued to have more than 30,000 viewers at any one time.

Related: Here's how to help name April's calf

On Monday, April injured her leg, which caused the Animal Adventure Park to be flooded with emails.

"April had a small twist of her leg today which has her favoring it. This is not unheard of in such long legged animals. Dr Tim was on site and all is well," the Animal Adventure Park said. "We appreciate concern but the bogging down of email servers and other platforms is the exact reason the giraffe cam will need be pulled."

The zoo said it appreciates the concerns of viewers, but it has affected operations.

Photos: Baby giraffes around the world

"It is interfering with normal park operations and preparation for opening; at a period when our resource of time is limited and cannot be hindered," the Animal Adventure Park said.