Humphrey the hippo had been raised 'like a son' by farmer Marius Els since he was five months old. The devoted animal-lover, from South Africa, was so devoted to his unusual pet he even built him a huge lake on his farm so he could swim in his natural habitat.
Humphrey was rescued from a flood when he was just a baby. But when he became too big for the people who had taken him in, Maurice stepped in and gave him a home.