I'm snarklyboojum at ao3, too. Here you'll find stuff I think is interesting...or whatever fandoms have taken over my brain recently, you know how it is.
Btw if you want an example of actually cute and appropriate handling of a baby hippo in an accredited zoo with trained keepers, there鈥檚 always Fiona the Hippo at Cincinnati Zoo!
She was born premature and had to be hand raised initially
Fiona felt very safe with her keepers and she would regularly snuggle with them and snooze on their laps. They had to monitor her 24/7 and take feedings in shifts - and it was very uncertain whether she would even survive!
While you might say that it鈥檚 hypocritical to support free contact in one situation and not another, this is a situation where free contact was very much okay. They had to support Fiona like this as she was regularly needing medical intervention and needed to be constantly monitored around the clock.
What鈥檚 the difference between Fiona and Moo Deng鈥檚 situation? Agency and respect. Fiona was never harassed for views or forced into situations she didn鈥檛 want to be in.
The content they made with her was showing the process of hand raising a premature baby hippo. Even when they picked her up to put her in her pool she was never madly thrashing to get away.
The goal was always to transition her to be completely hands off and be with her mother Bibi. And her habitat is species appropriate with deep water for swimming in.
She was able to be reintroduced to her mother and grow up engaging in appropriate social behaviours in an enriching and species appropriate habitat.
Hopper is actually not always mean, only most of the time :) The scarecrow got the brunt of her attitude here.
The Swordfish and Hopper Heraldic pins are still here for a week! They鈥檝e found almost 400 homes by now, which I am so grateful for. Here鈥檚 the link if you鈥檇 like to grab the pair too: