Zoo Atlanta Giraffe Completes Innovative Arthritis Therapy

ATLANTA — Zoo Atlanta on Thursday morning celebrated the successful completion of arthritis treatment for Abu, the oldest giraffe in the herd.

The 16-year-old, a senior in giraffe years, underwent stem cell therapy and had a pair of special therapeutic shoes removed from his hoofs.

Abu was fitted with the special shoes in May, and they were successfully removed on Wednesday with the help of Zoo Hoofstock Trim Program and a team of anesthesiologists from University of Georgia School of Veterinary Medicine, Zoo officials said.

The teams also administered stem cell therapy — using some of Abu’s stem cells harvested earlier — in an innovative procedure for treating osteoarthritis in certain species.

“The hope is that the therapeutic shoes, which have also been used in horses and cows and are not intended to be worn for extended periods, helped to stabilize Abu’s joints to better manage discomfort associated with his arthritis,” a Zoo Atlanta spokesperson said. “The Zoo Atlanta team plans to continue to manage his condition with analgesic medications, therapeutic laser therapy, pulsed electromagnetic field therapy, and regular hoof trimming, which Abu has been trained to participate in voluntarily.”