Photos: Little Owen, an orphaned baby hippo, snuggles up to his new "Mom", a giant 120-year old tortoise called Mzee

Weakened and suffering from severe dehydration, it looked like poor Owen’s short life would soon come to a sticky end, but just then, his luck began to change as he was rescued by rangers who took him to a nearby wildlife sanctuary in Mombasa.

After a well needed meal, Owen began to feel a little better, and decided to explore his new enclosure in search of a friend.

"When we released Owen into the enclosure, he lumbered towards a giant 120-year old tortoise, called Mzee, (which means “Old Man” in Swahili). Mzee’s shell is a dark gray color similar to grown up hippos," explained the park's rehabilitation expert, Sabine Baer, to reporters.

The tortoise initially hissed at Owen, warning him to stay away, but the little guy wasn’t going to let a bit of grouchiness from the old-timer get in the way of a potentially beautiful friendship. And eventually, his persistence paid off.

According to park officials, the unlikely pair have become inseparable, with the two friends now eating and sleeping next to each other. "The tortoise behaves like a mother to the little orphan, and Owen follows Mzee around everywhere he goes and licks his face", park officials told reporters.

Ms. Baer believes the baby hippo yearns for a family. "Owen has no way of knowing that the Aldabran tortoise is a male," she said. "He would not follow his father in the wild, so I think he is just desperate for a mother figure."

However, Owen's relationship with Mzee may end soon. The sanctuary plans to place Owen with Cleo, a lonely female hippo who lives in a nearby enclosure, once he gets a little bigger.

But for now, as night time falls over the majestic beauty of the African plains, and the two pals snuggle up next to each other, looking up the night sky, they are each comforted by the fact, that for now at least, somebody loves them.

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