Adorable Baby Hippo Learns To Swim Just Hours After Birth [Video]

This baby hippo is just a few hours old, yet still able to swim – with some assistance.

According to ABC News, the hippo is receiving a valuable life lesson in this 150,000 gallon pool in the San Diego Zoo. Zoo ambassador Rick Schwartz briefly explained what’s going on to ABC.

“What you’re seeing is mom teaching the baby how to surface for air. A baby can hold its breath roughly 40 seconds to a minute. Although this may look like they’re playing, it’s an important life lesson on how you surface and how you take a breath.”

AZ Central reports that the baby hippo was born at about 6:30 a.m. on Monday to an experienced mother named Funani. Hippo calves, like the one above, typically weigh about 50 pounds and nurse for around eight months.

Zoo officials still don’t have a name for the baby hippo, nor have they determined its sex. Schwartz explained the mother and child are still getting acquainted, but once they have a chance they’ll figure it out.

“We don’t force it. We wait for the relationship for mom and baby to be established and make sure everything’s going well there. If we see mom out on the beach or away from baby, we’ll take a look then.”

Fox 5 reports that Funani has given birth 11 times in her life, seven times in the San Diego Zoo. For now, the father is being held in a separate tank, giving the mother and her baby time alone in the big tank.

Another video reported by the Inquisitr shows a rare baby pygmy hippo that was born in a zoo in the U.K. Like with the new addition to the San Diego Zoo, that baby hippo is also incredibly adorable.

[Image Credit: Youtube/San Diego Zoo]