Fiona the adorable hippo of Cincinnati Zoo just celebrated her third birthday.
“Happy 3rd Birthday to the Greatest Hippo in the World! It’s been 3 magical years since fabulous Fiona came into all of our lives and changed us forever!” the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden wrote on Instagram.
Adorable videos of the birthday celebrant were shared online.
The zoo’s most famous hippo woke up to find a mouth-watering cake sent by her boyfriend Timothy.
With the help of staff, Timothy posted a heartwarming birthday message on Facebook.
“As you turn 3, I want to say that with each passing year you become more and more beautiful, charming and sweet,” Timothy wrote.
“I mean, heck the moment I first laid eyes on you, I already thought you were the most beautiful hippo I had ever seen and yet somehow, some way, you just keep knocking me off my feet…and that ain’t easy…I have four and a low center of gravity!”
Timothy also arranged for country music star Aaron Watson to sing a birthday song! What a sweet boyfriend!
Watson said in a video shared on Facebook: “He loves you so much. He’s sending all his love all the way from San Antonio up to Cincinnati. He wishes he was with you now.”
The beloved hippo was born weighing only 29 pounds. According to the zoo, she’s the smallest hippo to survive.
The staff also had another surprise for the birthday girl: a bubble bath! “She also had her first bubble bath,” they wrote with a video showing Fiona submerging herself in water.
Wendy Rice, the zoo’s head keeper, said to WLWT: “It’s a big day, especially if you look back at where she was when we started. At that point, we were taking it hour-by-hour, day-by-day – just grateful for every bit of time we had with her.
“Back then, it was difficult to imagine where she’d be three years down the road, if she’d even be here. But she’s here and she’s thriving. She continues to dazzle and amaze people around the world.”
Fiona now weighs 1,300 pounds. She and her hippo friends shared the delicious fruit cake.
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Replaced!