Disney’s Animal Kingdom new porcupette has a name, and the story behind it

Remember a couple of weeks ago when Disney announced the birth of a baby porcupine and a new word entered our vocabulary – porcupette, which is what a baby porcupine is called.

Well, now Disney has named the porcupette – Shelley – and is providing the back story to the name.

Shelley, born to mother Peri, is named after Disney Veterinary Operations Manager Shelley, who played an important role in the baby’s birth, according to Disney.

Shelley trained the baby’s mom, Peri, to participate in ultrasounds, which were needed for prenatal care.

In doing this, Shelley created a special bond with Peri and is also created that bond with baby Shelley, who is growing fast. Baby Shelley now weighs over 2 pounds, which is more than triple her birth weight.

Now, if you are wondering how the gender of a porcupette is determined, it is a slightly sticky situation. Prehensile-tailed porcupines have internal sex organs, so to determine the baby’s gender, a DNA test is used on the quills to determine the baby’s gender.