 I suspect most of you have heard this story and seen the pictures already, but it’s such a heart-warming one I wanted to post it for those who haven’t. Here’s the story: A baby hippo rescued after floods in Kenya caused by the tsunami in the Indian Ocean has befriended a 100-year-old tortoise in a zoo. The one-year-old hippo calf, who keepers have called Owen, was found alone and dehydrated by wildlife rangers near the ocean. He was put in a wildlife enclosure near Mombassa, and soon became pals with the tortoise, who is a similar colour. Park officials say they sleep and eat together, and have become inseparable. Pauline Kimoti, from the park, said: “Since Owen arrived on 27 December the tortoise behaves like a mother to it. The hippo follows the tortoise around and licks his face.” The tortoise is called Mzee, which is Swahili for old man. The park plans to place Owen with Cleo, a lonely female hippo, when he gets bigger. |
I read the story in the UK press. It totally bypassed my sardonic resistance to soft-centred animal tales. Thanks for posting it, Dave (*choke*)
This story has me grinning from ear to ear. I caught it a while ago and have the photos on my desktop. A wonderful “Fox and the Hound” kind of story.
With all the horrors and injustices in this world, the fact someone thought to save this hippo at such a time gives us hope that human nature is not all bad. We could do worse than to learn a few lessons from our not-so-distant relatives and neighbours.What a constrast to our racist past and present.