Helpful Hippo Behaviors

Wicket’s keepers are currently working on training her to demonstrate numerous behaviors that Kasai and Zambezi currently illustrate. These behaviors are instilled into our hippos to help manage their care and welfare.

• Stationing is when the hippo faces the keepers and holds their chin up on the top rail of the exhibit. This allows the keepers to get a good look at her skin and medicate some dry/cracked spots if necessary using a spray bottle.

• Target training is where the keepers place a tennis ball on the end of a pole and have the animal touch it with their nose when they hold it out. This is helpful when they are working with more than one animal in the stall at the same time; one can be "led" away from the other so training is less confusing for them.

• The open mouth command is important, so keepers can look inside the hippo’s mouth, check for cracks in their teeth, check for sores, and alleviate tusk problems in case they need to address them. We also brush the hippo’s teeth daily and get any debris out from between their teeth. Oral care is important in hippos so opening their mouth for keepers to perform daily hygiene is a necessity.

•  A to B training is a good way to see how the hippos are moving. We can ask them to come to "point A" (where the keeper is), when they do we reward them, and then we ask them to go to a designated "point B" (across the yard or pool) and back again.