Cameron Park Zoo staff prepares to welcome baby orangutan

Mei, an orangutan at Cameron Park Zoo in Waco, Texas, will soon give birth to a baby, and the zoo staff has been working diligently throughout the 35-week pregnancy to prepare for the arrival of the young ape.

Emily, one of the Cameron Park zookeepers, calls into "The Jeff Fisher Show" and explains that in addition to holding a baby show for Mei, the staff has provided the orange-haired mother-to-be with a stuffed orangutan to practice nurturing. Emily reports that Mei has "the strength of five pro football players" despite weighing in at only 120 pounds, so all the mothering training has to be done from outside the enclosure.

Mei's Target registry is still active under the name "Mei Orangutan," if any charitably-minded listeners would like to buy a gift for her enclosure.

Emily cautions that despite their human-like qualities, zoo workers must exercise caution in interacting with Mei and her fellow apes.

"We treat them just as a wild animal that happens to live in Texas," Emily explains. "And so, like, with a bath situation, we don't bathe them, we don't — we do water play, so we'll run a hose on the ground, and they can play in it. Or we'll make them a bubble bath and put that in there, and they can go in if they choose to."

To see more from Jeffy, visit his channel on TheBlaze and listen live to “The Jeff Fisher Show” Saturdays 9am–12pm on TheBlaze Radio Network.