January 31, 2023 - Mom Inola gave birth to her baby pygmy hippo in the Zagreb Zoo just two months ago. The citizens chose the name for the new member of the crew through social networks.
As 24Sata writes, the little pygmy hippo, born two months ago in the Zagreb Zoo, has now been given a name. More than three thousand citizens were involved in selecting her name through social networks, and twelve volunteers chose the four best suggestions: Gloria, Pepa, LuLu, and Lotta.
The citizens voted for Lotta.
Zagreb Zoo Facebook
The little barrel
"Her name suits her perfectly! We are honoured that we participated in choosing her name. Lotta was really tiny when she was born, and now we nicknamed her our sweet little barrel! While we watched over her mom Inola in the last weeks of her pregnancy, we ensured that the birth didn't start in the pool. We were also worried about whether Inola would have a mother's instinct and whether the little one would be able to breastfeed. We are happy that everything went well. Now we enjoy watching the mother and the little one have a nice time hanging out and playing", said student Ana Cindrić, who has been at the Zagreb Zoo since last year.
Ana added that as a veterinary student at the Veterinary Faculty of the University of Zagreb, this was a valuable experience for her.
"Thank you to the volunteers for their selfless work! They spent hours and hours with the family of pygmy hippos. They notified us promptly of any change in the hippo's behaviour, thanks to which we could more calmly await Lotta's arrival. The little one is now growing and developing beautifully under their watchful eye. That's why we are glad they participated in selecting her name - said Damir Skok, director of the Zagreb Zoo.
Zagreb Zoo Facebook
This wonderful family of pygmy hippos is housed in the Rainy Africa pavilion. Lotta is constantly near mom Inola, and dad Otto is temporarily separated from the female part of the family by a special fence.
Otto is 28 years old, Inola is seven, and they both came to Zagreb from Germany.
Although Inola is a first-time mother, she takes excellent care of Lotta. She feeds her milk, and Lotta likes to try other things, from lamb's lettuce to hay. She is very playful and loves to frolic in the pool.
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