Owen and the Tortoise

‘Owen & Mzee’

December 26th, 2004 started off as a normal, quiet day.
My son Joshua and I were out for a morning walk along the beach.
In less than 12 hours the Tsunami had finally reached the coast of Africa from its point of origin in Banda Aceh.
Although we escaped the waves, a one year old hippopotamus 80 kilometers away was not as lucky.

Just before Christmas the unseasonably heavy rains near Malindi town washed a family of hippopotamuses down the Sabaki River and out to sea.

When the Tsunami hit Malindi, the sea turned angry, the sky clouded over and for a moment the hippos disappeared and were forgotten as all efforts went to rescuing the stranded fishermen.
The next day only one hippo could be seen.
It was the baby and he was stranded on the reef.

Hundreds of people came to watch the efforts to rescue the hippo. It took ropes, boats, nets and cars —though the hippo was tired he was still fast and slippery. It took a brave rugby tackle to finally capture him, and the cheering of the crowd could be heard over a kilometer away.

Lafarge Eco Systems agreed to provide a home for the baby hippo and I rushed to Malindi to collect him.

Tangled in fishing ropes, angry and tired, the hippo did not seem to appreciate our rescue at all.

As we left for Mombasa, the crowd unanimously agreed to name him ‘Owen’ in honor of the volunteer who tackled him to the ground.

- Exhausted, confused and extremely frightened, Owen immediately ran to the safety of a giant tortoise when we released him in Haller Park.
Mzee, our 130 year old tortoise, just happened to be nearby and he was very surprised by Owen’s odd behavior cowering behind him as a baby hippo does to its mother.

Mzee quickly came to terms with his new friend and even returned signs of affection.
The unusual relationship between this baby hippo and the ancient tortoise amazed people the world over and has featured in most countries on television and in news papers.

Owen and Mzee continue to spend their days together in the pond, feeding and patrolling.

Owen nudges Mzee to come for walks, and Mzee sometimes even follows Owen. Hundreds of people have witnessed this incredible spectacle first hand at Haller Park which is open every day to the public.

Owen will eventually be moved to a bigger pond in Haller Park were he can socialize with other hippos.

Dr. Paula Kahumbu
Chief Environmentalist, Haller Park
Mombasa, Kenya

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