Akeno the greater one-horned rhino calf from Chester Zoo is just a barrel of energy. He runs around with those cute little wiggly ears headbutting his mom every so often. When mom decided to lie down, Akeno bumps into her leg, then walks around her and jumps on her back! While on top of her he gives her little nudges, one after another. When that is not working he gets off her back and nudges her in the butt and runs off. After a few more nudges in his mother’s face and another runaround, his mom finally gets up again.
Who could think that such large and dangerous animals could be so adorable? Isn’t this the cutest spectacle you have seen in zoos?
Also known as the greater one-horned rhinoceros and great Indian rhinoceros, the baby was born at the Chester Zoo, Cheshire England at around 6 pm on the 3rd of May 2018. It is a male and they named him Akeno, meaning “beautiful sunrise”. Asha, his 11-year-old mom, had a 16-month pregnancy and only a 20-minute labor. The dad, Beni, is separated from these two, presumably for safety reasons.
When on the topic of rhinos, take a look at this baby who did not have such a great start in life, but due to the love and care of animal protection teams got a new chance in life. This adorable newborn rhino rescued after being abandoned by its mother.
A baby rhino abandoned as a newborn due to a case of mistaken identity was saved by a local rescue team. The rhino, now one-month-old, lives with the team at Aquila Rescue Centre, who have developed an 18-month plan to reintroduce him into the wild. Looking after the young calf is a full-time occupation, with the baby needing to be fed every two hours. He has also be assigned a mentor to teach him how to graze, something his mother would have done.
On New Year’s Eve 2015, the staff at the Aquila Rescue Center in Cape Town, South Africa, received a call about an injured rhino calf in the wilderness. The team discovered the baby rhino close to midnight, slumped in the dirt. According to Divan Grobler, a member of the conservationist team, his mother probably mistook her baby with another newborn in the vicinity and left her own by mistake.
The team spent the entire night with the baby, trying to locate its mother and reunite them, but had no luck. Ten hours had passed without luck and the calf was getting hungry. The team brought the baby rhino back to the center and tried again the next day, only for the mother to reject him once more.
Now one month old, the baby rhino lives with the team at Aquila Rescue Centre. They have developed an 18-month plan to reintroduce their newest protegee back in the wild, where he belongs. Until then, he needs to be fed every two hours and can consume 15-20% of his body weight in the formula. Not to mention the exercise!
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