Preloading

Jessica Is a House-Trained Hippopotamus

Aired on 05/15/2009 | CC
Dogs and cats aren't the only animals people fall in love with.

In South Africa, most hippopotamuses lurk in the murky water, collectively killing more humans than lions, rhinos and crocodiles. Then there's Jessica.

Jessica eats, sleeps and swims with her "people parents," Tonie and Shirley Joubert. In 2000, Jessica was a newborn who washed ashore, separated from her mother by floodwaters. She was too weak to stand. Tonie, a retired game rancher, nursed her back to health. The bond they formed was extraordinary.

Tonie and Shirley treat Jessica like royalty. Here, in this vintage Oprah Show clip, the couple explain the routine their homebody hippo follows every day.

Original airdate: May 15, 2009

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