For breakfast cereal this morning it was lucerne (technically not a cereal but a legume) because it’s World Giraffe Day on 21 June and Mzungu, Shaba and Mkali from the National Zoo and Aquarium turned up for a media call.

Despite the rain, Shaba ventured out from his eight-metre-high shelter to face the press and to give my hand a slobber as he (and his 53cm-long prehensile blue tongue) engulfed fresh lettuce leaves.

His graceful four-metre stature (he can see up to 2km away) is something to behold, which is why World Giraffe Day is important because these creatures face a “silent extinction”.

Phoebe Ritchie, Hoofstock team leader, said that giraffes didn’t attract much media attention about their conservation compared to other animals.

“People generally don’t know that the numbers of giraffes are slowly dwindling,” Phoebe said, while hand-feeding tasty pellets to Shaba.

“In the past 30 years or so their numbers have decreased by about 30 per cent and people just don’t know about it. It’s due to habitat loss, habitat fragmentation and poaching.”

So this weekend, the National Zoo and Aquarium is raising awareness about the threats African giraffes face in the wild and also raising funds to help with their conservation.

On Sunday, there’s a special giraffe-keeper talk and public feeding, with a donation of $10 per person going to the Giraffe Conservation Fund. There’s also a colouring-in competition for kids to win a giraffe encounter.

Shaba’s partner, Mzungu (affectionately called “Zungi”), and his two-and-a-half-year-old daughter, Mkali, are living proof of the zoo’s successful breeding program (the pair have had five calves to date).

The National Zoo and Aquarium has five giraffes in total (Skye, Shaba, Mzungu, Khamisi, and Mkali) but they don’t all live together because of personality clashes.

“We aren’t able to keep Khamisi with his family because he is a male and Shaba [his dad] will fight him, even though Khamisi is his son,” Phoebe said. “Which is normal, that’s perfectly natural for them.”

So Khamisi shares a habitat with the aptly-named Skye, a female giraffe that’s currently taking contraception – not just because safe sex is important kids – but because there are no plans to breed the pair at the moment.

Fun fact: Skye’s contraception is the same injection that humans get.

It’s also interesting that giraffes are often referred to as “gentle giants”, because their lanky legs can kick in all directions – no-one’s safe no matter where you stand.

World Giraffe Day is on Sunday 21 June and the National Zoo and Aquarium will hold a special talk and public feeding, with a $10 donation going to the Giraffe Conservation Fund. Info: nationalzoo.com.au