Baby Hippo at Swiss Zoo Won't Become Tiger Food (Farasi)

Dallas Morning News ^ | Saturday, March 14, 2009

[nickcarraway]

Farasi the baby hippo won't be euthanized and fed to the big cats after all.

The Basel Zoo said media reports that Farasi will be euthanized and put in the nearby tiger cage because of a lack of space are misleading. Yes, animals are euthanized from time to time, the zoo said, but that is unlikely to be an option in the case of Farasi, who was born in November and has become one of the zoo's star attractions.

[nickcarraway]

Farasi, with mother Helvetia, is a star, even beating tennis idol Roger Federer to become 2008's "Swiss of the Year.'

Swiss Zoo Has One Too Many Hippos, So Little Farasi May Have to Go

That Could Mean Euthanizing the Baby, But This Chubby Fellow Has a Legion of Fans
Wall Street Journal

Farasi, a hippopotamus calf born Nov. 6, is 220 pounds of chunky, doe-eyed star power. The Basel Zoo's biggest attraction, he is so popular he was named "Swiss of the Year" for 2008, beating out tennis star Roger Federer.

But this zoo is not big enough for two male hippos, even if they are father and son. And in Europe, a homeless hippo is a dead hippo.

American zoos believe in birth control or sexual abstinence for their animal populations. But Europe's 4,000 zoos take a more continental approach to reproductive rights: Animals should be free to do what comes naturally. The result is a surplus of offspring. And if zookeepers can't find a home for the babies, zoos typically kill them. Some carcasses are used for research. Meatier cuts -- and Farasi surely qualifies -- are thrown to the lions.

That harsh reality has shocked the famously peace-loving Swiss. Amid the joy of Farasi's birth, zoo spokeswoman Tanja Dietrich said he'd be put up for adoption. Or else? Zoo policy, she said, is to "put down excess animals and feed them to carnivores."

Switzerland's popular commuter tabloids pounced like caged cats, with headlines like "Little Farasi is going to die!" and "Help! Who will rescue me?"

Andrea Dindo, a 21-year-old hotel receptionist from Zurich, read the stories and cried. She started a club to save Farasi, whose name means "horse" in Swahili. Her Save Farasi group on Facebook has 15,000 members.

[Joiseydude]

Like the baby hippo was EVER gonna become tiger food.

Sympathy play for donations.

[The Spirit Of Allegiance]

Planned Hippohood has a kinder, gentler approach:

[Snickering Hound]

Or you could feed the tigers a chubby Rino offspring...

[bmwcyle]

I second that.

[Joiseydude]

If I was a tiger, I'd eat that.

And than again, even if I wasn't a tiger I'd still might eat it.

[dynachrome]

Good one!