Our Animals - Exotic Animals - Hippo

A strict vegetarian, she eats only the best hay and straw, fresh carrots
and green salad , apples, celery, leeks , onions and garlic.
In short, everything that keeps one healthy and fit. Bad breath has never plagued our Poppäa

The water in Poppäa's pool is maintained at a temperature of 20° Celsius.

For our Lady hippo, "Poppäa" a wagon with a 20.000 liter swimming pool has been built.

In addition, our "fat lady" has a spacious enclosure exclusively for her use.

The gentle mouth of Poppäa is one of the reasons the Circus spends an enormous amount of money for feed.

A Hippo is not a horse When a hippo comes to the manege, the public always becomes enthusiastic largely because of the hippo's appearance: a waltzing body weighing tons, the amusing short legs and the tiny ears behind the large mouth. The degree of skill required for training such an animal is not readily apparent. Who would know that "river horses" in their natural habitat are to be found in herds, but display little social interaction. They are loners and possess therefore no innate social behavior. Social intercourse is the key to subordination and to complex animal training. Because their level of social interaction is highly developed, horses and elephants are more capable of learning amazing training complexities. The hippos in the manege do not perform sterling tricks, but it is a wonder that this basically dangerous animal is at all present. Dr. Klaus Zeeb http://www.zeeb-tierfilme.de/ Dr. Klaus Zeeb is veterinarian specializing in animal behavior at the Tierhygienische Institute of the University Freiburg in Breisgau Literature recommendations WIE MAN TIERE IM CIRCUS AUSBILDET Prof. Dr. Klaus Zeeb (2001) € 14,95, ISBN 3-7773-1937-6, 112 S. with 65 pictures, can be purchased through: Amazon.de or Buch24.de This book offers a highly interesting view of the training of circus animals. Professor Dr. Klaus Zeeb, a veterinarian who specializes in the study of animal behavior with over 40 years of circus experience has written a book for everyone involved in the training of animals. He describes the procedures of the basic training with the different types of circus animals and learning of special lessons, whereby he particularly supports an approach appropriate to behavior. The reader receives an introduction to the behavior of the animals and the the function mode of communication between humans and animal. For individual animal species, biological characteristics, education and training as well as circus exercises are described in detail.