Veterinarian hand-milks pygmy hippopotamus to save newborn calf

A veterinarian at Givskud Zoo in Denmark hand-milked a pygmy hippopotamus to save its underweight newborn, the zoo announced in a statement on Thursday.

The calf, a male born on March 19, weighed just 4.3 kilograms at birth—well below the survival threshold of five kilograms, according to the zoo. Experience from other facilities shows that nearly all calves under this weight die shortly after birth.

When the calf failed to nurse, veterinarian Stefanie Ebbesen stepped in, manually milking the mother, Tanga, and supplementing with colostrum from a local farmer’s cow. The effort kept the calf alive until it learned to nurse on its own.

“It was an enormous relief when the calf finally started nursing,” Ebbesen said. “It has been incredibly exciting and nerve-wracking. The calf is steadily gaining weight, thriving, and now weighs three times its birth weight. It follows Tanga everywhere and bathes several times a day.”

The pygmy hippopotamus is an endangered species, and Givskud Zoo participates in a European breeding program to support its survival. The zoo also funds research in Ivory Coast, employing two local researchers, Hermann and Innocent, who study the elusive animals. Their work includes fitting GPS collars to track pygmy hippopotamus behavior.

The zoo has not yet named the calf but is considering naming it after one of the Ivorian researchers. The calf remains in good health under the care of zoo staff.