Chiropractor adjusts giraffe’s neck: ‘He absolutely loved it’

ARDMORE, Okla. (CNN) – A chiropractor in Oklahoma had a special patient with a lot of neck to adjust.

Not only does Dr. Joren Whitley work on humans, but he treats animals, too.

That’s why he was called in to relieve a jaw problem on Gerry the giraffe, who was having an issue with chewing.

Gerry’s owner, a private rancher, said the animal’s jaw was not moving to the left but he did not seem to be in any pain.

Whitley, who has adjusted other animals, said working with a giraffe was a dream come true.

“Being able to work on a giraffe is a chiropractor’s dream. I mean it’s the largest neck in the world,” Whitley said.

Whitley sees human patients but has also treated dogs, chickens bats, and even a sedated lion in South Africa.

Skeptics say chiropractic has no basis in science, that there’s no proof it works on humans or animals.

But Gerry’s owner told The Washington Post the giraffe’s chewing improved after his adjustment by Whitley.

The doctor said the giraffe seemed pleased, too.

“He absolutely loved it. I mean he was rubbing all over me. He was licking all over me,” Whitley said.

In Oklahoma, it is legal to own a giraffe. Gerry’s owner purchased him five years ago from a Texas wildlife safari park when Gerry was 2 months old after his mother had rejected him, she told The Washington Post.

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