Hippos ready for their closeup as Calgary Zoo goes online

Lobi gets his teeth brushed by Heather at the Calgary Zoo

Calgary — The Calgary Zoo might be temporarily closed, but thanks to digital technology, zoos around the world are trying to bring a smile to people's faces during a stressful moment for everyone. Thursday, that meant a a sneak peek inside the Savannah, the Calgary Zoo's hippo habitat.

That's where Lobi and his grandma Sparky live and play, in a 320,000 litre hippo pool stocked with tilapia.

The zoo broadcast from the hippo habitat Thursday, where viewers to its YouTube channel could watch Heather, who works in the hippo habitat, give Lobi a regular, old-fashioned rinse and spit tooth brushing.

"We do this daily," Heather said, on YouTube in the zoo's Daily Dose, "as he (Lobi) has gingivitis. It keeps it under control."

After consultation with the city, the zoo shut its doors to the public Monday, in response to the city declaring a state of emergency  because of the COVID-19 crisis.

"As a key cultural entity in our community, it is our responsibility to respond to the circumstances," said Calgary Zoo president and CEO Dr. Clement Lanthier. "This situation is unprecedented, and the safety, health and welfare of the animals in our care, our employees and our visitors is always our top priority. We hope that this closure is short in duration and look forward to welcoming everyone back to our zoo as soon as we can do so safely."

And while the pool is impressive -- when it was first built, it was the largest hippo pool in North America -- it turns out that hippos aren't particularly great swimmers, according to Lauren, who works in Visitor Engagement at the zoo.

"Despite the fact that they're semi-acquatic, hippos cannot actually swim," she said. "If you watch Lobi in the pool, he actually puts his feet down on the ground, then pushes up to be able to surface."

And as far as those tilipia that share the hippo pool with Lobi and Sparky, it turns out that it's not to provide the hippos with lunch, explained Lauren.

"They (hippos)  don't eat them (tilapia)," she said. "They're herbivores. But you know what tilapia eat? Hippo poo."