Dog Sweetly Watches Over Abandoned Baby Giraffe

Sep 30, 2020

Animals are known for becoming friends even in the strangest of circumstances. In the Rhino Orphanage in South African, caretakers managed to see an amazing pair become inseparable. A worker found an abandoned, newborn giraffe wandering alone and took him back to the orphanage to be cared for. The dog at the orphanage, Hunter, bonded with the newcomer instantly. Sadly, that bond has now been broken since one of the animals has passed away.

It all started when a farmer came across a baby giraffe that had obviously been orphaned and was roaming around abandoned, the Daily Mail reports. When the farmer took him to the animal orphanage for care, workers were stunned when the center’s watchdog, Hunter, instantly bonded with the abandoned giraffe.

Workers at the animal center named the giraffe “Jazz” and tried to provide him with the care he needed; however, it simply wasn’t given soon enough.

Sadly, the friendship developed between Jazz and Hunter was not able to be long-lasting. The baby giraffe was suffering from physical problems and, as the week passed, he became weaker and weaker. By Friday, Jazz had passed away with Hunter sitting by his side.

Hunter had spent the entire duration of Jazz’s stay at the animal center right beside the baby giraffe. When Jazz passed away, Hunter continued to sit in the empty room where his friend had been located, mourning the dead baby.

In its post, the orphanage paid tribute to Hunter's loyalty: 'He stayed till the end and said his goodbyes. Such a good boy.'

While the workers at the orphanage had expected that the giraffe wouldn’t make it, they were still heartbroken. The orphanage founder, Arrie van Deventer, explained that Jazz had probably been abandoned by his mother due to his health problems.

Despite the fact that it had seemed like a hopeless battle from the start, Arrie said that they just had to try to help the little giraffe. Sadly, their best efforts weren’t enough to help this poor baby pull through.

The orphanage had been housing Jazz since he was discovered several weeks ago. He was thought to be a newborn when he was found by a farmer and the giraffe was suffering from dehydration.

Although this story has a sad ending, we are so glad that Jazz had the opportunity to experience love from the orphanage workers and his best-friend Hunter. Hunter had acted like a surrogate mother, sleeping alongside the little animal and walking beside him when he wandered outdoors.

We know that Hunter will continue to miss his friend but hope that he can move forward and find other animals to help there at the center.

Have you ever heard of animals forming such an unlikely bond? Tell us about it in the comment section below!