Otter Follows Boy: San Diego Zoo Otter Makes A Friend

Animal mimicry takes many forms, but few are as cute as this.

An otter at the San Diego Zoo seems to have taken a liking to this little boy following him wherever he goes. He just can't seem to shake him.

It might just be the red shirt, or maybe he really wants to get out, but either way it seems he's found a friend. The sleek swimming of the little mammal is a sight to behold as well.

This is why we love zoos.

WATCH:

Comments

[capercaper]

11:20 AM on 05/31/2011

This otter is doing what otters love to do -- PLAY!

I've had them come up to my (non-motorized) dinghy and play around the boat and oars. Totally voluntary, in the wild.

[motoGpifupleez]

07:51 PM on 05/30/2011

Where were Flounder, Bluto, and The Stork?

[HekmagaJuximaxx]

06:15 PM on 05/30/2011

Through my extensive research on the subject, I have found that poster's reactions are dependent on their sense of guilt over owning a pet. This guilt can be assuaged by watching this clip by the Nature Conservancy Center for the Protections of The Widnerness and Its Indigenous Populations, and a NOVA clip about zoo animal experimentations in Belarus:
(hint: click BACK now!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQQGSsI87kA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dWno0p80r4

[Delmark Goldfarb]

03:58 PM on 05/30/2011

I think the otter wants to eat him.

[speedyfastcat]

03:02 PM on 05/30/2011

Half the time the kid is not even looking at the otter!

[Clareee]

02:50 PM on 05/30/2011

When was the otters fed last?

[Pippi-J]

02:28 PM on 05/30/2011

Even with my mixed opinions about zoos, this video is very cute. By having the experience of zoos, children who normally don't get the opportunity to interact with animals will hopefully use that experience in their future to do good for mother nature and the earth. Maybe this child will grow up to be the one to save the earth's oceans from polution and over fishing. Just trying to put a positive spin on the benefits of zoos :-)

[zelduh]

02:59 PM on 05/30/2011

I totally agree. I cannot stand zoos myself, as it totally breaks my heart that we imprison creatures and treat them as objects to look at. I remember, as a child, I watched a tiger walking back and forth in a cage too small for him to run or jump. So, the only exercise he could have was walking back and forth.

I cried really hard and my father tried to comfort me by telling me that the tiger would eat me if he could get out. (That did not work.)

That being said, I agree! That video is totally cute.

[LafAtChristianFairyTales]

04:19 PM on 05/30/2011

You need to get your information about wild animals from sources other than the Disney Channel. Try some legitimate literature from peer-reviewed journals of wildlife biology. Existence for most wild-born animals is short, miserable, bloody and tragic.

[mythmorph]

12:40 PM on 05/31/2011

Most zoos these days have large "natural" enclosures for their animals -- made to replicate the environments (including temperature, humidity, other indigenous birds and animals). Such mini-ecosystems include living trees and plants, streams, bathing pools, showers of "rain" if that's part of the animal's environment. In many cases there are no bars; the viewer walks through this stunning environment above the exhibit floor, or takes a quiet train ride through an outdoor exhibit. Zoos that keep tigers (for example) in cramped concrete boxes with bars are very few and far-between and should be closed down permanently. I certainly agree with you there.

IMHO though, sensitive, well-designed zoo presentations are a vital instrument in informing the public of the beauty, diversity, and in many cases -- plight -- of far too many animals at this time on Earth. Without experiencing not only the animals and birds in a naturalistic place, we lose touch with the sounds, smells, and atmosphere of myriad places we never will be able to visit, and come to deeply appreciate the diversity of the world. Treasure it, I should say.

And the animals and birds? They appear content to roam through their extensive spaces, where they can hide, snooze, screech, eat, run around, and pay no attention whatsoever to their human observers. Very impressive work. I'm tipping the hat particularly to the Bronx Zoo, by the way.

[MrsOrtiz]

02:24 PM on 05/30/2011

Oh to be that young!

[pcuvie]

01:56 PM on 05/30/2011

Zoos are prisons where the inmates have committed no crimes. This interaction is a product of the otter making the best of a bad situation.

[grimcity]

01:22 PM on 05/30/2011

The kid keeps losing!

[BonsaTree]

01:10 PM on 05/30/2011

Fish!? Really big Fish?

Cute!

[doctordoubt]

12:21 PM on 05/30/2011

Too big for my bathtub. Darn.

[ThomasVeil]

11:22 AM on 05/30/2011

...one hungry otter.

[RepChicksDoRock1]

10:38 AM on 05/30/2011

Best story on HP EVER!

[firewmn]

10:31 AM on 05/30/2011

I guess the "Otter" one just wanted to take it easy..lol

[capercaper]

11:21 AM on 05/31/2011

Groan :)