Stuffed Hippo

No plush wildlife collection would ever be complete without a stuffed hippo or two sitting amongst the other array of plush toys that have been carefully amassed over time. Stuffed hippos are perfect for snuggles and hugs and can easily replace the iconic teddy bear as a child's number one soft toy.

After elephants and white rhinos, hippos are the third largest land mammal their skin alone can weigh as much as half a ton. There are two species of hippo, which can be found in different parts of Africa. The largest of the two, lives in East Africa, just south of the Sahara. The other, smaller species of hippo, called the pygmy hippopotamus, lives in limited and restricted ranges of West Africa; it is a solitary forest dweller, shy by nature and quite rare.

Despite their enormous size, hippos are very agile and at night, are known to go up and down steep banks to eat grass. They typically will go in and out of the water, spending upwards of five hours just grazing. In an effort to find food and continually eat, they are known to travel one to two miles (or sometimes as much as five) to satisfy their appetites. Given they live a fairly sedentary life, their output of energy is not very significant, which makes them just a modest eater.

Two thirds of a hippos day is spent submerged in the water. The only body part visible when they are in the water are their eyes, ears, and nostrils. When completely submerging themselves, their ears and nostrils conveniently close with the use of muscular valves that become activated as soon as they contact the water. Hippos can stay underwater for up to five minutes but if they choose, they can mange it for upwards of 30 minutes. Young hippos, on the other hand, can only manage about half a minute under the water. Contrary to what many people think, hippos are unable to float when viewing them on the surface, they are actually standing in shallow water. Their preference is shoulder-deep or slow moving rivers and when in deeper water, they use porpoise-like leaps to move along the bottom. When on land, hippos can run at speeds of up to 27 miles per hour and to prevent sunburn and dry skin, an oily red secretion is produced that function as a skin protector.

Much like the real thing, stuffed hippos are produced as large, plush toys. But, like all stuffed animals, they can be purchased in a variety of sizes they can be as large or as small as you choose. But, if you really want your stuffed hippo to at all resemble the size of the wild animal, choosing a stuffed hippo that is as big as it can get, is really the best option.