This past weekend the internet found itself in a frenzy after an unusual roamer was spotted exploring the Cape Town community of Grassy Park.
In a video that trended on almost every social media platform, a full-grown male hippopotamus was the topic on everyone’s lips after a viral video showed it walking through the small suburb on Saturday morning.
A short clip shows the large mammal almost happily enjoying the peaceful and quiet of his surroundings after taking a leap of faith of leaving his natural environment (the water) to explore the lifestyle of his human counterparts.
During his spree, he is seen peaking over a few of the resident’s fences and tasting some of the grass he sighted along the way.
Taking to the comment section of the trending video hundreds of users found themselves in laughter.
“Hippo Insurance selling door to door now,” commented one user.
Another jokingly asked: “Now who is playing Jumanji in Grassy Park.”
Meanwhile, others questioned how the Hippo found itself outside of its natural habitat.
View this post on Instagram
In a recent statement, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) confirmed managed to lure the hippo back to where it belongs.
In a public statement shared on their social media pages, they stated:
“SAPS Grassy Park notified us of a Hippopotamus on the loose in the early morning hours. Inspector Trevor Rodney from the Cape of Good Hope SPCA Wildlife Department was on scene.
“The Hippopotamus escaped through the fence of Rondevlei Nature Reserve. Quemic Rangers were on the scene within minutes, about 1 a.m, and the hippo was herded back into the reserve in Perth Road using their vehicles.”
Cape Town is a city well familiar with having animals making bizarre appearances outside of their natural environments and this brave hippo was certainly not the first.
In 2019 a lion cub was discovered in Athlone after being transported from Thabazimbi and sold for R50 000. In addition to this, in 2022 a seal was spotted on the highway in Athlone before SPCA could catch him and return him to the ocean after a check-up.
WATCH THIS:
