Have you heard the lovely story about Harry the Hippo? It’s enough to make you weep with joy - or at least want to adorn yourself with gorgeous sterling silver jewellery laden with animal charms.

 

Once upon a time a gorgeously grey little pygmy hippo was born in South Africa but at just 11 pounds and with a mother who was finding it difficult to let him feed, the kind people at Cango Wildlife Ranch decided that they would hand-rear him. They looked down at the stunning silver one and caught an air of nobility about him so he was named Harry, after our very own Prince Harry.

 

He is now fed with diluted milk every three hours and given baths to keep his skin moist because pygmy hippos are semi-aquatic in the wild. Harry is a very important little charge and Annie Haak Designs hopes that he lives happily ever after as his species is critically endangered, with fewer than 3000 remaining in the wild as a result of deforestation of their natural habitat.

 

Here are a few words from the princely hippo’s carer, Toni Inggs:

 

"Harry was born on the 22nd of March on a Thursday morning, unfortunately his mother would not let him get any milk from her and the first 36 hours of the life is the most crucial point, as at this stage they need all the colostrums from the mother that they can get,"

 

"After a few hours of leaving him with his mother we decided to pull him as it was better for him and a better chance of a success rate.

 

"He is very strong, very healthy and everything is going very well."

 

While Annie Haak Designs doesn’t currently have any jewellery featuring hippos, we’re sure you’ll agree that Harry himself is a true Prince Charming and would be the perfect inspiration for a gorgeous silver charm to boot (see a video here).

 

In the mean time, if you’re looking for add a touch of the wild to your fashion accessories or you’d like to embrace the African trend that’s making so many waves in the fashion world right now, how about a treating yourself to a piece of Annie Haak sterling silver jewellery featuring our fabulous elephant charm.

 

Choose from a dainty Anna Bella Silver Elephant Charm Bracelet, a chunky and funky Jasmine Sterling Silver Elephant Bracelet, an adorable Itsy Bitsy Silver Elephant Charm Necklace or a pair of our super-fun Sterling Silver Elephant Earrings.