Monday, December 29, 2014

The Hippo Dies

Hippo lying in the street in Miaoli.

No time for posting tonight... Straits Times on the hippo:
A hippo in Taiwan died on Monday after suffering two accidents last week, once when it fell from a moving truck and again when its container was dropped as it was being returned to its pond.

The animal, named "A Ho" after the Chinese word for hippo Ho Ma, was found dead in its pond at a farm in central Taichung city.

Agriculture Minister Chen Bao-ji has slammed A Ho's owner, the head of a private ranch, for what he said was carelessness in transporting the animal and, while a post-mortem will be performed on the mammal to determine the exact cause of death, the government is considering prosecuting the hippo's owner.
All the terrible things happening in the world, and yet this hippo has broken my heart. News says prosecutors are going after 5 people. The zoo involved has a long history with the authorities, but as is so typical with so many things in Taiwan, somehow it just lurches on...
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5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Regarding A-Ho the Hippo, I am totally with you. What a lone life he had and what a sad, painful end.

I hope the owner receives severe punishment for his act, if not for anything, at least, to send a message to all irresponsible animal owners.

Anonymous said...

The way some Taiwanese keep their dogs on short leashes outside their shops for years on end always makes me angry.

Likewise small dogs/cats put into sidewalk cages all their lives with wire bottoms they can barely stand on I think is torture.

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Anonymous said...

Another link to add... a gift from the prc.gov

http://www.diaoyudao.org.cn/index.htm

STOP Ma said...

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Anonymous 10:15,

In Vancouver, a group called "Ocean Dog Rescue" AKA, "CERA" http://www.ceradogs.org/ allows people in the Vancouver area adopt or provide foster homes for Taiwanese dogs that are treated with such cruelty and abandonment.

We adopted such a dog ourselves. And I encourage others in the Vancouver to do the same. Even though they are trained by the organization, sometimes they need a family with a bit more care and attentiveness.

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Unknown said...

I feel for the hippo too. I think it hits me harder because I'm a bit overweight these days and know what it feels like to be lying there struggling for breath.