Hippos are one of the world's most impressive animals. With their innocent-looking faces and gaping wide mouths, there's a reason that people love to see them on safaris.
However, it turns out that not every animal that looks like a hippo is quite what it appears to be. Case in point, "skinny pigs" otherwise known as hairless guinea pigs, which look exactly like miniature hippos.
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Skinny pigs were created as a result of cross-breeding done in 1978, and they are naturally completely hairless apart from whiskers on their muzzles, feet, and legs.
Per Diply, they were created when a hairless guinea pig was bred with one of their hairless lab strains and boom, the world was given skinny pigs.
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But while these guinea pigs are adorable, they do have some difficulties as a breed, and they reportedly suffer from poor eyesight, which means they can seriously injure themselves by accident if they are left on a high surface like a bed or tabletop because they won't be able to judge the distance to the ground.
Skinny Pig Care also reports that they need a lot of Vitamin C in their diets because they don't create their own, so these definitely aren't an appropriate starter pet if you like the look of them.
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Skinny pigs are also prey animals. This means that it can take them a while to trust people because let's face it, we are so much bigger than they are and they don't want to put themselves in danger!
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So if you're looking to get your skinny pig fix, the best thing to do is follow the hashtag on Instagram and maybe visit some at an animal sanctuary so that you can meet a tiny hippo in an environment where you know it'll be receiving the best of care.