Baby hippo and the turtle
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The Baby hippo and the turtle
NAIROBI (AFP) - A baby hippopotamus that survived the Tsunami waves on the Kenyan coast has formed a strong bond with a giant male century-old tortoise in an animal facility in the port city of Mombassa , officials said.
The hippopotamus, nicknamed Owen and weighing about 300 kilogram(650pounds), was swept down Sabaki River into the Indian Ocean, then forced back to shore when tsunami waves struck the Kenyan coast on December 26, before wildlife rangers rescued him.
"It is incredible. A-less-than-a-year-old hippo has adopted a male tortoise, about a century old, and the tortoise seems to be very happy with being a 'mother'," ecologist Paula Kahumbu, who is in charge of Lafarge Park, told AFP.
"After it was swept away and lost its mother, the hippo was traumatized. It had to look for something to be a surrogate mother. Fortunately, it landed on the tortoise and established a strong bond. They swim, eat and sleep together," the ecologist added. "The hippo follows the tortoise exactly the way it followed its mother. If somebody approaches the tortoise, the hippo becomes aggressive, as if protecting its biological mother," Kahumbu added.
The hippo is a young baby, he was left at a very tender age and by nature, hippos are social animals that like to stay with their mothers for four years," he explained.
"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away."This is a real story that shows that our differences don't matter much when we need the comfort of another.
We could all learn a lesson from these two creatures of God,
"Look beyond the differences and find a way to walk the path together"
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It is the most endearing story isn't it! and so cute!
This brings tears to your eyes. It is so touching.You always come up with the greatest stories. thanks for sharing
The minute I saw this I knew you guys would just love it!
That is so beautiful. Annie, Janice is right, you do come up with the most wonderful stories. - "Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away." so very true...
I have never seen such a HUGE turtl, wonderful story!
He! he! ts, he is a big fellow, but at the Galapagos islands there are even bigger ones!
Amazing, who would ever have thought that this combination would work!
Strange bed fellows indeed Joep!
The old generation helping the new. And the new loving the old. We could learn heaps from this. Nice one Annie.
Yeah there are so cute, but can you imagine 6 months down the line!
The animal kingdom, savage by nature. Walt Disney has allot to answer for!
he! he! now you are talking!
This is fantastic Annalene, how great they adjust together. Cute story. :)
Who would ever have thought a hippo being friends with a tortoise! It shows you nothing is impossible!
That is the cutest thing ever...
Who'd a thunk it!
I totally agree this is the cutest out!
that was such a nice story so heart warming if you find anymore please send some my way
What a message for the human race!!!!!!
Any updates on these two?
i love this i also love hippos
Zoo keeper's blog http://www.lafargeecosystems.com/main/blog.php
www.owenandmzee.com
A wonderful story, Annalene. And your conclusion is so true! Thanks so much for sharing this and sorry I didn't find it much earlier.
Love and peace
Tony
AWWWWWWWWWWWWWW
this is extremely adorable,
we could all definitely learn something from these two beautiful creatures :)
I love this! Animals are precious souls, each one an individual, totally without predudice or preconceived notions. Lessions to teach us. Love has no boundaries.
I absolutely love this. I have a turtle named yertle and have had her for 20 years.
I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THIS STORY.I HAVE THIS IN MY ENGLISH READER .I HAVE A BABY TURTLE NAMED JAROM.
Where are they now. This is an old story & I was courious what is going on in their lives now. Is the Hippo still staying with the turtle?
Janice 4 years ago
How do you come up with these lovely articles. Keep up the great work!