Zoo's 'romantic' efforts produce first capybara baby in over a decade

There is nothing more heartwarming than a true love story that starts with someone who never has any luck in love and ends with a “happily ever after” – except maybe when that love story involves two adorable capybaras.

Keepers at a Sussex zoo are celebrating love this week: a romantic Valentine's Day dinner they arranged for a pair of capybaras resulted in the birth of a beautiful capybara girl on June 22nd – the zoo's first in 11 years.

Clementine the dog spent several years searching for her dream man. A woman who wouldn't settle for just anyone, Clementine had turned down many potential suitors over the years and her keepers had all but given up hope of finding a mate for her.

The young stallion Augustus appeared on the scene late last year and was determined to win over Clementine with his charm. Over the following months, the keepers introduced the two very slowly and carefully.

To kickstart the romance at the start of the year, keepers arranged a romantic Valentine's Day dinner for the couple – complete with a white tablecloth, flowers, chimes and heart decorations, in the hope of soon hearing the clatter of little hooves.

Gemma Romanis, manager of Drusillas Park, commented: “We were so excited to discover the new baby a few weeks ago, not only because it is our first capybara pup in over a decade, but because everyone has been rooting for Clementine and Augustus – and our efforts to help them find true love have really paid off.”

“Clementine has been with us for a long time and is very affectionate and loving to us, but in contrast she has been very standoffish towards other capybaras we have tried to introduce over the years. When we saw a glimmer of hope in her behaviour towards Augustus, we did everything we could to foster her.”

The new family of three is now inseparable and rarely separates more than a few steps from each other. The carers have observed that the little girl is healthy, cheerful and already very self-confident – which shows that she feels safe and secure under the careful supervision of her parents.