Mole Alert: A Happy New Home
09/30/2009
Happy Home Sweet Home
He's safe and happy in Milwaukee! Happy the Hippo, that is.
Happy, the National Zoo’s 5,000-pound Nile hippopotamus, has been preparing to relocate ever since the Zoo decided to renovate its Asian Elephant exhibit--which would crowd out Happy when it reopens in 2011, designed specifically for elephants only.
Happy’s been at the zoo since his birth in January 1981, and would’ve been perfectly, well, happy, staying put. Nile hippos’ lifespans can be 45 years in the wild, and longer in a zoo environment. But a better life beckoned. The Milwaukee County Zoo wanted to welcome Happy as part of a cooperative breeding program among zoos. And there, Happy would be a star, not sharing celebrity status with the elephants.
A Truly Hip Ride
So a deluxe travel crate for Happy was constructed--it’s not like he could ride in a standard big-dog crate or even a horse trailer. Imagine the looks he’d get on I-95--no doubt from jealous Shetland ponies. No, Happy went for the customized ride. Steel framed, lumber lined and built by the National Zoo’s staff, a labor of love for those who know Happy so well. Happy also began training to go into the crate and learned to stay there calmly--just the way you’re supposed to prepare your cat or dog to take a long car ride by getting used to the carrier. Luckily, Happy was a good student, unlike many impatient pets!
All the prep paid off, as Happy said "Happy Trails" to his zoo-mates in Washington, and headed for the Midwest around 9:30 a.m. on Sept. 28, at the tail end of the Monday rush hour. His five-ton crate--17 feet long!--was lifted by crane onto a flatbed truck, and he was ready to roll on his 800 mile journey. Happy’s entourage included two keepers and a veterinarian traveling behind in their own car. No word on whether the car sported an "I Brake For Hippos!" bumper sticker. And of course, Happy can’t confirm if he was counting license plates, or simply wondering, Are We There Yet?
Happy reached Milwaukee around 3 a.m.on Sept. 29, and will stay in quarantine a few weeks before he greets visitors to the zoo. AND he will greet some other friends as well: Happy, that lucky guy, will be paired with two female hippos, Patti and Puddles, who’ve no doubt been preening in excitement over his arrival. The zoo hopes sparks will fly, and maybe we’ll hear of a baby Happy sometime in the future.
So we can’t be sad for Happy, even if a visit to the National Zoo just won’t be the same without him.
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