Friday was a better day for Penny, the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s newest giraffe, who’s had a rough time since being born 11 days ago.

“She’s looking stronger,” Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s marketing director Jenny Koch said. “We’re hoping she can continue to improve.”

Penny gave her caretakers a reason to be optimistic when she finally started eating just after midnight Friday. Since then, she has bottle fed three times.

The concern began when Penny was found splayed in the stall she shared with her mother, Muziki, on Wednesday morning.

When an animal is splayed, their legs go out from under them in an unnatural way. The condition varies from being easily treatable to fatal, according to zoo officials.

The zoo’s decision Wednesday to name her earlier than planned, ending their online poll open to the public, appeared ominous. Partly a tradition and partly a superstition, the zoo usually chooses not to officially name newborn animals until they are 30 days old. Because her condition can be fatal and her caretakers grew close to her, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo said they broke from their tradition and gave the zoo’s 200th giraffe calf a name. At the time, the zoo staff was ready for the worst.

“It is possible splaying can be life-threatening,” Koch said.

Her future is still uncertain, but Friday was an encouraging day for Penny and zoo staff.

Another giraffe, Laikipia, still has a baby on the way, but has yet to show signs of labor, the zoo said.

Calves born at the same time to different mothers can have a bond stronger than giraffe siblings, said Amy Schilz, the zoo’s animal care manager.

“It’s kind of like people who go to kindergarten and high school together and stay in touch,” Schilz has said.