A study in greens

One of the two Hippopotami at the Calgary Zoo.

Added on 23 August 2012: it was a sad day for many people yesterday, when 47-year-old Foggy, one of the Hippopotami at the Calgary Zoo, had to be euthanized.

"Foggy, the 47-year-old hippopotamus at the Calgary Zoo who got his name from his foghorn-like bellow, was euthanized today by zoo officials because of the animal’s declining health.

The hippo, which came to the zoo in 1965 after being born at the Houston Zoo, had been in deteriorating health for several years because of its advanced age, zoo officials said in a news release.

“Sadly, the time had come when there was nothing more we could do to mitigate his many age-related ailments and we felt that his quality of life was simply not acceptable anymore,” said Jamie Dorgan, area curator.

The hippo fathered seven offspring during its life with three different mates, including three with its enclosure mate Sparky. Foggy was the oldest animal at the zoo."

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