CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. — Whether they voted to name her Hammie Mae or Poppy, most visitors CBS 6 spoke with at the Metro Richmond Zoo agreed the new baby pygmy hippo born just a few weeks ago is adorable.
The little rotund hippo has quickly become the main attraction at the zoo since being allowed to be viewed by the public on Tuesday. Lead Zookeeper Jan Lopez noted that the baby hippo is already gaining a significant fan base.
"A lot of people are always saying she's really cute, and she's funny and she's really round," said Lopez. "It's unbelievable the amount of fans this little hippo is already getting."
Lopez says he's happy with the attention the naming poll is bringing to the endangered species.
"Not a lot of people know that there's about 2,000 to 3,000 individuals left in the wild," he said. "There's just very few of them left so the more we can help them out and help with conservation hopefully in the future here we can help increase the number of population in the wild of the pygmy hippos."
The naming contest ends Saturday, and votes cast in person at the zoo counting double. The official name of the baby pygmy hippo will be announced on Monday.
CBS 6 is committed to sharing community voices on this important topic. Email your thoughts to the CBS 6 Newsroom.
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