Giraffes & Joy

Could you use a dose of joy today? Sometimes it can be hard to find. A few weeks ago, we found a big dose of joy by hanging out with some giraffes! This is how and why that happened. We recognize that it was a great privilege to take this trip. I hope it encourages you to think about what makes you happy, and to look for joy in unexpected places.

In 2022 our daughter Hannah had to endure multiple surgeries. Not only was that difficult, but she used up all her sick time — and two years’ worth of vacation besides. Hannah is the kind of person who is kind, always thinking of others. So when she was finally feeling better, Doug and I decided that she was due for some kindness herself, and a good dose of fun.

“We’ll take you somewhere, Your choice,” we told her. “As soon as you accrue some more vacation.”

A few days later Hannah approached us with great excitement — on TikTok she’d seen a place in Texas where you could hang out with giraffes! That’s what she wanted to do.

Zoo-Lover

Hannah has always loved zoo animals, especially giraffes. When she was stroller-age, I often took her to the Como Zoo in St. Paul, MN, even, and often, during the winter. Entrance was free, the animal houses were warm, and we were often the only humans there. While Hannah cavorted with orangutans, gorillas, and giraffes, I’d dole out animal crackers, grateful for the respite.

When our second daughter was born, a winter baby, I eventually worked up the courage (or perhaps desperation) to bring two small children to the zoo. I’ll never forget that first visit. When I unzipped my coat, revealing an infant in a chest sling, the gorilla came close to the glass, gesturing. I crouched on the other side, unbuttoned Clara from the sling, and laid her out on my lap. The gorilla cocked her head this way and that, examining. Then she looked me in the eye and tapped on the glass. I’m sure my chest puffed up with pride. Apparently we primates all feel this primal pull of progeny.

So I have only myself to blame that Hannah loves zoo animals. Fly to Texas to commune with giraffes? Well, why not? It would bring her joy. And the fact that none of us had ever been to Texas only made it more fun. We booked the trip for May of 2024 only to have to cancel when Hannah needed yet another surgery. Finally, in January of 2025, it was giraffe time.

Longneck Manor

Longneck Manor is in the Texas hill country, a few miles east of the historic town of Fredericksburg. We flew into San Antonio and spent a few days there, then drove north to Fredericksburg for a quick stop at the Museum of the Pacific War. 

At last it’s time to head to the main event. The last couple of miles of this trek are on a dirt road. Finally, and yet unexpectedly, we arrive at an ornate iron gate.

The cluster of buildings include the owner’s home, a Welcome Center, an enormous giraffe barn, and four beautiful villas. We are lucky to be the only ones occupying a villa for these two nights, which means we will have the animals to ourselves. (The advantage of traveling off-season!) 

Our villa is two master suites adjoined by a living area and kitchenette. There’s a back patio with seating which runs along the giraffe enclosure. We spot the resident rhinos in the far enclosure, their bulk recognizable even though I have never seen such a thing before. The giraffe yard is an open space that includes a small pond and lots of fake termite mounds. A couple artificial bare trees hold soccer-ball sized feeders.

Hannah turns to me and says, “I was afraid this place would be sad or even pathetic, but it’s not. It’s perfect!” Her eyes are shining.

At 3:30 we meet Heather, the director, for Happy Hour. She pours us glasses of Prosecco or Sparkling Cider and we toast the “Tower” of giraffes we are about to meet.

(1) Kafele, the tallest at 16 feet, a male (reputed to be a diva). 

(2) Betty White, the matriarch (did you know the Hollywood legend loved giraffes?). 

(3) Tana, Betty’s eldest daughter. 

(4) Kili Rose, Betty’s second daughter, by Kafele. 

(5) Indy, Betty’s third calf, a male, just 7 months old.

We walk onto a raised patio where our guide, Shelby, is waiting to meet us. The giraffes are strolling about in their stately way. One is already waiting, her long neck stretched toward us — we learn this is Betty White. 

As instructed, we hold out leaves of romaine lettuce. She plucks these from our hands with a long, powerful tongue with a speed that makes me laugh. We don’t touch her, but her purple tongue occasionally flicks our fingers, a rough and slightly gooey feeling. Her chin, when it grazes us, is stubby with whiskers. We can’t help but grin and giggle. I feel a bit shy to be so close to these gorgeous, elegant creatures.

Shelby tells us that giraffe hides are very oily as protection from the sun, and that their tongues, which are 18-22 inches long, are purple as a form of sun protection. Shelby is bubbly and knowledgeable and obviously loves her job.

When the bucket of romaine is empty, we go down the walk to watch the “Giraffe Parade.” The five giraffes strut past us into the barn, as aloof, dignified, and precise as fashion models.

Supper & Breakfast

We drive back to Fredericksburg for supper at a German restaurant in the historic part of town. (I wish I could say that the food was excellent, but since I cannot, I will leave the restaurant unnamed.) After supper we stop at an H.E.B. to buy groceries for the next day, so we won’t have to leave Longneck Manor again. A San Antonio friend had extolled the virtues of H.E.B., a grocery store chain founded in San Antonio and we were curious to see it for ourselves. (The best way to experience a new place is to shop for groceries there — a common theme in my travel blog, Big Blue Adventures.) It turns out that H.E.B. is a huge place, similar to a Walmart.

We relax in our villa and get a good night’s sleep. At one point I wake up and watch the moon rise across our faux-African yard.

The next day is sunny, cold but quickly warming up. On the first morning of every stay, a picnic basket of breakfast items is delivered to each villa. The contents of our basket are more than adequate for this morning and the next. There’s some “Tall Tanzanian” coffee in the kitchen.

More Giraffes

We meet Shelby at 9:00 and head into the giraffe barn. Up some stairs there’s a catwalk where we’re level with the animals’ heads. It’s an altogether different viewpoint to be eye level with a giraffe.

Once again we offer romaine leaves, but also carrot, cucumber, and zucchini sticks. From this vantage point we can clearly see their large brown eyes rimmed with exotic eyelashes. No wonder Betty White loved giraffes. They are gorgeous! 

The youngest giraffe, Indy, is only 6 months old, and we are able to hand feed him kibble. Indy was 6 foot 1 inch tall at birth. He is very inquisitive about humans. We reach through the lower rungs to feed him. He licks the kibble from our flat hands, using his teeth to scrape up the bits, which is a very odd feeling.

Shelby reassures us that giraffes only have bottom teeth so there’s no fear of being bitten. Incidentally, giraffes have the same number of teeth as humans, 32, although all on the bottom.

We also learn about their ossicones, the bumps that resemble horns. These are made of hardened cartilage that fuses with the skull and are covered in skin. Females have three ossicones, males have five. On females, ossicones are decorative, but males use theirs as weapons, swinging their heavy heads at rivals. They aim for the center of their opponent’s chest (at the base of that long neck) where the heart and other vital organs are located. Since a giraffe head weighs some 600 pounds, it’s basically a wrecking ball.

Good to remember that these elegant animals, which eat from our hands, can also be deadly.

Arts & Crafts with Giraffes

When the buckets are empty it’s time for arts & crafts. Two of us will make a keepsake painting with Betty White. Shelby shows us a contraption with a paintbrush on one end, and a ball, which functions as a target for the giraffe’s nose, on the other. One of us will hold the contraption and the other will hold the canvas. When Betty noses the ball, that will push the loaded brush against the canvas. In this way we’ll create art together.

Hannah opts to hold the contraption which means I will hold the canvas. Doug is cameraman. Hannah chooses two colors — blue and yellow — and Shelby loads the paintbrush with one color at a time. When she offers the contraption to Betty, the giraffe knows exactly what she’s doing and is happy to do it. Every time she noses the ball she gets a carrot stick from Shelby. 

I am not as skilled as Betty. Since all three of us keep moving it’s tricky to line up the paintbrush and the canvas. I find myself laughing at my own ineptitude. When the canvas is covered with splotches of color we proclaim it complete. Modern art, a la reticulated giraffe.

Justin the Rhino

We go outside to visit Justin, the rhino. He is busily chomping on a favorite food, alfalfa, which we have just learned is both nutritious and expensive. The big guy is on the other side of a metal railing with his head protruding through an opening while he chows down.

Because rhinos have poor eyesight, we are coached to approach Justin from the side so he can track our movements. Then we put our backs to the metal fence and sidestep toward the rhino. Once in place we’re allowed to touch any part of his body. He enjoys being petted and sometimes leans in to the touch. 

His ears are long and smooth, and twitch at our conversation. We take turns petting Justin. Not surprisingly, his hide feels tough and leathery. The exposed parts bristle with hair but on his underside he’s smooth. At his joints, the hide folds over. Shelby urges us to feel the ridges at the top of his legs. We can sink almost the whole length of our fingers into that crevice. A unique experience.

We run our hands along his cheeks and onto his horns. The two horns are smooth, but also deeply ridged and gouged in places, and come to a formidable point. We talk about the horns and how the rhinos use them, but also the devastation they have brought the species.

There are three rhinos living at Longneck Manor, all male, all six years old. The other two are brothers, Fred and Barney. At six they’re in their “bachelor” years and Shelby explains the process the staff will use to mate them with appropriate females. There’s a huge focus on genetic diversity, of course.

Arts & Crafts with Rhinos

After petting Justin from the front, and then along each side, it’s again time for arts & crafts. Shelby applies paint directly to Justin’s hide, the colors again chosen by Hannah, blue and yellow. Then Hannah applies the canvas straight onto Justin’s hide and presses. When she pulls the canvas away, the paint is deeply textured. Not so much modern art this time. More impressionist. Think Van Gogh interprets the Ukrainian flag.

Bruno the Sloth

By now it’s 11:00 and we stop in to visit the resident sloth.

If you’re wondering why a place that specializes in African hoofed animals is also home to a sloth, you get gold stars for knowing the Animal Kingdom. As they sing on Sesame Street, one of these things doesn’t belong here. Shelby explains that when Rick Barongi, Longneck’s owner, was asked to help find this sloth a home, he readily agreed to convert his garage into temporary housing. They’re in the process of building a more permanent home.

Sloths need a very warm and humid environment. They don’t eat much, which is balanced by the fact that they don’t move much. They sleep 16 to 20 hours a day and move  v e r y   s l o w l y.

Bruno’s current home is a metal cage which is criss-crossed with branches. The branches are attached to the metal rods with carabiners. Each day the staff rearranges them in a novel configuration. When we arrive, Bruno is sound asleep in his blue bucket. Shelby offers some food, but he seems to be deeply asleep. 

Shelby suggests we return at 3:00 and try again. Bruno might be awake then.

We return to our room and spend the afternoon watching giraffes stroll by. The squat shapes of rhinos in the distance constantly move, as grazing animals do. This sight may be as close as we ever come to experiencing an African game preserve.

When we return to Bruno at 3:00, he is ready to eat. He slowly pulls himself out of his bucket and attaches himself to the branch hanging above, suspended by all fours. Sloths have long curved nails that are part of their skeleton, and function as hooks. It doesn’t take any energy for the sloth to hang by them, which is good, since they spend most of their long lives hanging like that, upside down. Forty years upside down.

Shelby uses a clicker to alert Bruno that food is coming and we feed him veggies, piece by piece. It’s humorous to see his little face upside down, his mouth open. When he’s done with the veggies, he moves hand over hand along his branch, and drops his front arms so he’s hanging upside down above a plastic tray where Shelby has piled some dirt, which he licks up.

One of the random facts about sloths that amuses me is about grooming. Shelby says that the texture of a sloth’s fur (which we cannot touch) is like a wire-haired terrier. But because they are rarely on the ground, and don’t get dirty, sloths never groom themselves. I’m a word person. One of the connotations of the word slothful is to be un-groomed. So it tickles me that a lack of grooming is not just a connotation of the word slothful, but also a denotation. It is literally true.

Shelby stresses how solitary sloths are, living alone for their entire lives. I ask how sloths manage to reproduce. Shelby says, “When the female is in estrus she climbs to the tip-top of her tree and screams bloody murder. That’s the only time that sloths move fast. The first one who gets there wins.” Apparently, after they do the deed the sloths never see each other again.

But when Shelby mentions that baby sloths spend their first year attached to their mother’s chest I say, “Just hold on a minute. You can’t tell me that sloths are solitary! They spend a year attached to their baby? A year?” 

On this second day we enjoy another Happy Hour and another Giraffe Parade. Then we spend a quiet evening in the villa and enjoying the grounds.

Goodbye to the Giraffes

The next morning we feed the giraffes one last time. I call my mom on FaceTime so she can enjoy the giraffes with us. It’s hard to say goodbye.