Episode 2 Animal Odd Couples

'We love to keep pets, forming close bonds with them

'and making them part of our lives.'

OK, that's it, I'm in love. That's it, it's official.

'But around the world, some people have sought out unusual, and even

'potentially dangerous relationships,

'with some very surprising animals.'

Every morning I'd get up and he would attack.

For a human to want to befriend a lion is one thing,

but it takes two to form a partnership.

If you get a bird to be your friend, you have a friend for life.

When she's in a good mood, it's a phenomenal feeling.

And recently science has begun to unearth why other animals

might be willing to form lasting bonds with us.

'I'm Liz Bonnin and I'm going on a worldwide journey of discovery...'

Whoa!

'..to uncover the reasons behind

'some of the most unexpected animal/human friendships.'

The dolphins are telling the fishermen how to fish.

'How a hippo could become part of a family.'

I'm feeding a hippo.

'Why a polar bear would let a man give it a hug.'

It's just a really special bond.

'And how a human could ever join

'a pack of hyenas without being harmed.'

There's probably a reason why

a lot of people don't work with these guys.

'I'm going to meet some of the most profound and extreme pairings'

to find out what lies at the heart

of these surprising human/animal relationships.

SHE TALKS QUIETLY

Millions of us have close bonds with animals

and, for most people, that means our pets,

like cats or dogs, like Ernie here.

Ain't that right?

But some people have made friends

with animals that you'd normally avoid.

So how have they done this?

I'm going to try and find out how these relationships have formed,

why they work, and what's in it for both the humans and the animals.

Go on!

-LAUGHING:

-Oh, I forgot he was tied!

I'm starting by tracking down three remarkable relationships

that seem to defy logic,

to try and discover how these bonds form.

And I'm beginning my extraordinary journey in Canada,

just outside Vancouver, near the small town of Abbotsford.

I've come here to meet Mark Dumas.

More than 16 million people have watched a clip of him

swimming with a rather unexpected female companion.

Her name is Agee, she's 18 years of age,

and she weighs around 60st or so.

Agee is a polar bear and Mark has been her guardian,

provider and playmate since she was 8 weeks old.

Mark is the only person in the world who has this kind of bond

with a fully grown polar bear.

And apparently, with anyone other than Mark or his wife Dawn,

Agee can get a bit cranky.

What do I need to know, Dawn?

She's jealous of other women.

-LIZ LAUGHS

-Seriously?

-Seriously.

When someone starts talking to me

and takes my attention away from her, she gets upset about it.

Dawn can take my attention as much as she wants

because Agee doesn't mind Dawn.

She's used to me talking all the time.

She's super protective of you, do you think?

Is that what this behaviour's about, or what?

I think she's just possessive.

Possessive! I need to see this with my own eyes.

'Getting close to a jealous and potentially dangerous polar bear

'is a little disconcerting, but Dawn tells me

'I'll be fine as long as I let Agee have all of Mark's attention.'

I give him a little bit of time to get through the gate.

She's already very curious, isn't she?

-Hi, honey.

-And then we stay about three feet away.

Um...

So the gate's open...?

The gate's open so we can travel.

Oh, right, so we're actually not behind a closed fence...

Yeah. Come on in!

-Are you sure?

-I'm positive. Come on in.

The things I do for a day job.

She's right behind you, Dawn.

Hi, honey, hi. That's her fence, she knows that's her fence.

Hi, sweetheart.

Just taking stock of what exactly is going on because I didn't realise

we weren't going to be behind a closed fence.

And I'm staring at a polar bear... who is smelling the air,

figuring out who we are.

And you are utterly confident that you can predict her behaviour?

Absolutely, we've known her since she was a baby, and we also

know they do not view electricity the way we do,

they don't logically think, "Oh, I can step over it or get under it,"

they view it as a wall.

LOW REPETITIVE RUMBLING

-Can you hear it?

-What's that?

Her noo-noo. If you're quiet, you can hear it.

LOW REPETITIVE RUMBLING

-Do you hear that low rumble?

-Yes. What is that?

That's her, it's almost like a purring noise for a cat

-but it's her...

-DAWN MIMICS THE NOISE

..that she makes because she's super content

and she's sucking on her tongue right now.

I thought it was an engine or something.

-That is actually coming from the polar bear!

-That is coming from her.

LOW RUMBLING CONTINUES

She's clearly really close to Mark.

How do you think Agee sees him?

Agee sees him as her mother and father together really,

and companion.

So this is all about Agee thinking of him as kin

since 8 weeks of age.

Right, which would be as long as she can remember.

-LOW RUMBLING CONTINUES

-Listen to that.

Is that your daddy, are you happy? Ahh, happy girl.

'Mark trains animals for the movie industry

'and 18 years ago he was asked to find a polar bear for a film.

'He'd heard about a cub that was being hand-reared

'by staff at a zoo as her mother was getting too old.'

Agee was the 11th baby born with this mother,

so this mother couldn't properly care for her.

So Mark took her on and trained her for the film,

but he didn't expect their relationship

to develop in the way it did.

It's my job and it's what I had to do

and as I'm doing it, I became very, very attached to her.

So tell me what you feel about your relationship with Agee?

It's just a really special bond. I love her a lot.

I can't say she loves me. She really is bonded to me...

-She loves him. She loves him.

-There you go.

-There's no doubt.

We have a really wonderful relationship

and I would never change that for anything.

We knew when we got her

that it was a commitment we make for the rest of her life.

'Mark became a parental figure for Agee from a very early age.'

When she was two months old, she was barely walking.

And I became the... Middle of the night, wake up

cos she's yelling and I'd go down

and I fed her and spent time with her

and then she'd go back to sleep and then I'd go back to sleep,

and then I'd wake up again early in the morning,

do the same thing over again. So I spent a lot of time with her.

And do you think that was the key to having her bond with you?

Oh, absolutely, the more time you spend with them,

the closer their bond is.

What would you say, cos I've got to ask you,

does she not belong in the wild?

She couldn't be in the wild if she wanted to.

She was born in captivity. You can't take...

It's very difficult to take an animal in captivity

and then turn it loose in the wild. It doesn't seem to work very well.

Whatever you think of this situation,

Mark has an incredibly close bond with Agee,

and even though she is a fully-grown polar bear

with the strength to kill with one blow,

he has never felt in danger around her.

And it seems this has all been made possible

because he hand-reared her from a very young age.

To find out how this works,

I'm meeting Jason Goldman from the University of Southern California.

Certainly for a mammal like a bear,

you know, we're not necessarily born with

an expectation of what Mum is supposed to look like,

or what other members of our species are supposed to look like.

Or, even if we are, it's probably very easily over-ridden.

So if this young polar bear, for example, only had experience

with other humans, particularly with this one human,

then it stands to reason that they would develop this kind of relationship,

that it would look to this human as a parental figure.

But if you took a mature polar bear

who perhaps had never had any experience with humans,

then you'd probably get a different kind of pattern.

-Probably? I'd say definitely!

-Definitely!

So hand-rearing and training a dangerous animal

from a young age can result in a close bond

and it's likely Agee's temperament plays a part.

But occasionally this kind of connection can happen

entirely by accident.

To meet my next odd couple, I've travelled to South Africa

and a small farm near Hoedspruit

on the edge of the Kruger National Park.

Here at her home on the banks of the Blyde River,

Shirley Joubert is making tea for Jessica,

who she looks after like a daughter.

Shirley, what kind of tea are you making her?

I'm making her rooibos tea with lukewarm water and some brown sugar.

So why rooibos tea with sugar?

Rooibos tea is very healthy for her,

so she has 20 litres of this a day.

20 litres of the stuff every day! You're kept busy, aren't you?

Yes, yes, but it's like doing it for a baby, you know.

And in my eyes Jessica has never grown up.

Because she's 13, is that right?

She's 13, but she's still the baby girl.

Something tells me you love it, though.

Oh, it's my life!

The bond there is just so strong and I haven't got kids of my own,

so the bond between us is so strong.

Can I keep you company while you feed her the rooibos tea?

Yes.

-Let's go.

-Brilliant!

And you see, there's Jessica.

-Yeah. She's an absolute beauty, isn't she?

-She's adorable, eh?

She's rather good looking.

Look at her!

-So this is Jess.

-This is Jess.

'Yes, Jessica is a hippopotamus.

'Shirley and her husband Tonie took her in

'when she was separated from her mother as a newborn.'

SHIRLEY COOS IN AFRIKAANS

Aw, you're so thirsty, Jess.

She's 13 and she's drinking from a bottle!

Look at those teeth.

She definitely likes rooibos tea, eh?

-Oh, she loves it.

-That's it, do you want me to do it?

-Yes, please.

-Oh, good lord. OK, here you go.

Now, do I squeeze it or does she just go for it?

No, she just sucks on it.

Wow-weezers!

'The relationship that Tonie and Shirley have with Jessica is unique.

'This is the only place in the world

'I could ever get this close to a hippo.'

The hairs on her snout are ridiculous! Look at that!

Can you feel you're actually relaxing?

I've never experienced anything like this.

I'm just a little bit cautious, I guess.

'Hippos can be extremely dangerous

'and they kill more people than any other mammal in Africa.'

-She sucks on it afterwards.

-Yeah.

So tell me about how you came to have Jessica in the first place.

How did it happen?

Well, we found her in the year 2000 with the floods

-and she was washed away from her mother.

-Right.

And, well, she washed out just in front of our house.

So I ran down and I touched her.

How small was she?

She was premature and she still had on her umbilical cord.

Oh, good grief, so she literally had been born,

the floods happened and she got washed up. What happened then?

We took her into the house

and Tonie, with his game-ranging experience,

he actually knew the formula to make it like her mother's milk.

And that was the first thing that we actually gave to her.

So you didn't have a chance to reunite her with her mother,

obviously, she was washed up, you couldn't...?

No, no, she never was reunited with her mum.

'What probably makes this relationship work is

'a process called imprinting, where an animal

'forms a very strong bond with the first living thing it sees.

'As Jessica was washed away from her mother as soon as she was born,

'it's likely that Tonie and Shirley were the first things she saw.'

So do you think she has imprinted on you or on Tonie?

-I think that it's 50/50.

-Right.

-Definitely. She sees us as her parents.

-Yeah.

Your bond is stronger than I expected it to be.

You know, I don't see Jessica as a hippo,

I've actually got a psychological problem with that.

Ahh, you're so in love with her, is it?

I can't see her as that.

I mean, when I want to hug her, I just hug her.

Wherever I go, she'll be following me

and wherever she goes, I'll be following her.

Jessica also regularly wanders off back into the wild.

She's not in captivity at all.

If Jessica wanted to leave, she could be in Mozambique now.

But she always comes home and she always comes back.

Sometimes she sleeps on the porch with the dog.

And Tonie and Shirley will even give her a massage.

But at dinner time, she pops into the kitchen to eat with the family.

SHIRLEY SPEAKS AFRIKAANS

Oh, good grief, this is unbelievable.

-LIZ GASPS

-Wow!

'On the menu tonight, it's green beans.'

So you've got the knack, huh?

LIZ SPEAKS AFRIKAANS

Ahh!

-I'm feeding a hippo... Uh!

-There you are.

This is hilarious.

LIZ SPEAKS AFRIKAANS

Hi, hon. Oh, my gosh, she's so pretty.

TONIE SPEAKS AFRIKAANS

She wants to go out now.

'When she's finished eating, she goes on her way.

'Tonie, an ex-game ranger, has enough experience

'to know not to try and stop her.'

You read the signs, didn't you, Tonie?

You were like, "Right, she wants to go out,

-"there's no keeping her in."

-Yes.

Cos at the end of the day, you do see her as a wild animal still?

I see Jessica as a wild animal, I don't keep her in.

I do whatever she wants to do.

Can we be out with her here? Or do we let her be?

Er, not at the moment, let her just sort her thing out there.

Although Jessica is happy to let me feed her from behind the counter,

she's still capable of charging if I get too close.

She lives a normal hippo life but she has a life with us as well.

She goes to them, they come to her.

She lives a normal life.

So she still goes out with the wild hippos further down the river?

That's correct, and upstream as well.

So do you think this beauty is going to be able to

mate with wild male hippos and have a calf of her own?

Do you think that's possible?

I don't think it's possible, Jessica WILL mate.

-You know it's possible!

-It WILL happen.

Within two years, Jessica will have a calf of her own

and I will contact you and invite you to come down again

and you'll see her with a little calf here.

-You'd better.

-I'm confident of that.

-I need to see this young lady with a calf.

-JESSICA SNORTS

-I think she agrees!

Jess!

It seems that Jessica imprinted on Tonie and Shirley

when she appeared on their river bank just after she was born

and that's why she's still so attached to them,

even as a 13-year-old adult hippo.

Our next story is of a human/animal bond that seems to be

something completely different, as they were both fully grown

when they met in Los Angeles, California.

'I've come here to meet Dominic Erhler.

'Three years ago he was befriended by a goose named Maria.'

Hello.

LIZ CHUCKLES

Did you get a good night's sleep? OK.

'Maria always seems pleased to see him...'

How are you? You going to take a walk?

They're going to have a little moment by themselves.

Ba-ba-ba. Want to meet my friends?

Hi.

'..but is a little less enamoured of strangers.'

-Hello.

-Maria's going to check you out.

That's fine, you can check me out all you like.

The secret is just to stand there until Maria gets a sense of you.

What a cutie. The crew need checking out too, you know.

Kaa-kaa. Come on.

She definitely listens to you, doesn't she?

'Maria didn't always live here in the zoo.

'Up until two years ago, Maria's home was a park in central LA

'where Dominic used to go for his regular morning walk.'

So how did you first meet?

I'm walking around Echo Park lake, I'm just about finished

and coming in to leave

and one of the park employees by the office

taps me on the shoulder and says, "Hey, Dominic,

"you know you're being stalked when you're walking around the lake?"

And I said, "Like, what are you talking about?"

cos this is a big city park,

there's gangs and stuff hanging around.

So he points to this goose about 50 feet away

and he just says, "Her name's Maria."

He laughed, he thought it was funny, but I looked at Maria

and Maria was just glaring at me, just glaring at me,

and I just waved and said, "Hi, Maria. How you doing, Maria?"

And I thought it was kind of cute. I left.

I came back the next morning and Maria came right to me,

right in front of me

and just looked up so innocently and I just fell in love just like that.

You were my friend and within a matter of just a few days from her

circling around me as I go, she took the lead position,

so Maria would always walk in front, leading the way.

The pair quickly became inseparable.

When you fall in love with a goose,

you've got to be aware of what you're getting involved with.

Their loyalty is phenomenal. Remember they bond for life.

So I basically feel like I have a certain sense of responsibility.

For the local residents, they became something of a celebrity couple.

'One time we had 100 people marching behind us

'as we were walking around the lake'

and we're singing Maria songs and it became such a festive thing,

it was really remarkable.

Maria was like the Michael Jackson of the goose world.

In 2011, the park authorities decided to drain Echo Park lake,

part of a two-year renovation programme.

For her safety and survival, Maria was moved to the zoo...

..where staff soon discovered that she may have been misnamed.

We did a little Valentine's thing on one of the local TV channels

or something, it was a perfect relationship,

an unusual relationship, a man and a goose, Dominic and Maria.

And I think like a week or two after that, the head vet here

calls me up and humorously says,

"Hey, Dominic, you've got a problem," and I said, "What's that?"

He says, "Well, your girlfriend's a boy."

'So Maria became Mario.'

Oh, Mario!

-Is he showing off?

-He's showing off.

'But the bond is as strong as ever.'

You visit him every day, is that right?

Every day. It's part of my daily schedule.

I love coming up here and hearing him, you know.

It's nice to have an animal wag its tail and go ka-ka-ka, it's great.

That's the great thing about animals,

they want to be our friends. Right, Mario?

But why did Mario want to be Dominic's friend?

Geese are well known for being a species that imprints.

In fact, they were the first animals scientists studied

when they were trying to understand the phenomenon.

But Dominic definitely wasn't

the first thing Mario saw when he hatched.

Dominic suspects that Mario was a domestic goose that had been

abandoned at the lake, and so was looking for a new companion.

And he found me.

And he determined I'm always safe to be with.

When he's with me, he feels safe.

He knows I'm one of him.

Jason believes that even though Mario didn't imprint on Dominic,

those crucial few hours for the goose

after it hatched were significant.

Imprinting has what's called a sensitive period,

so many hours, 13-16 hours or so after birth,

and then it gets locked in.

So that sort of representation

of what Mum is supposed to look like doesn't change.

So you imprint and that's your representation for the rest of your life.

For the rest of your life, you know what Mum looks like.

OK, but Mario met Dominic when it was already an adult goose,

so what does that suggest?

So it's possible... If this is a case of imprinting, it's possible

that Mario imprinted onto someone who looked a lot like Dominic

when he was very young

and Dominic may have certain facial characteristics,

or colour of his hair, or the shape of his facial hair, whatever,

something that Mario recognises as familiar.

Mario has found in Dominic a companion he can rely on.

And like all geese, he's protective of what he's got.

His little nips are getting a little stronger every time!

That's OK. When he attacks someone,

it's not so much that he's trying to attack them to defend me,

but really he's trying to keep me. In other words, I'm his property.

-Ow!

-So if you would see his behaviour,

he was basically showing all the other geese,

"Keep your distance, this is mine."

Any goose that would get near, there'd be feathers flying.

That's where he would show the most aggressiveness.

Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!

We're never going to find out exactly what happened

in the early stages of Mario's life,

but my money's on the fact that

he probably did imprint on an elderly gentlemen

that looks suspiciously like Dominic over there.

It just goes to show how strong an influence

your early life experiences will have

on how you behave as an adult.

So the early life of an animal plays a huge role

in how it might bond with us.

That first human it sees or lives with

will impact on how it behaves in later life.

But in the next stage of my journey, I'm going to meet three people

who have managed to form lasting relationships with

the most unpredictable animals by becoming part of the pack.

Here at this privately-owned wildlife park

in South Africa, the staff are using a unique method

to try and inspire the public to care more about animals.

Or Lazmi has managed to integrate herself

with not one, but four lions.

She's known these animals since they were cubs

and she's so confident they'll be well behaved, that at this park

they'll even allow people into the enclosure with them.

(This is bonkers.)

'It's a controversial set-up, even though

'there's always other members of her team keeping watch.'

Hi.

'But I'm intrigued to know how this relationship works

'and what she does to keep her lions in check.'

I've got to say, I never thought I'd get this close

to male lions in my life...

Do I say hello or do I just stand here?

I can't see his eyes...

Nah, you can say hello, he's being good.

-Do I let him smell my hand or...?

-Yes.

'The fact that she needs to see their eyes

'points to just how unpredictable these animals can be.'

I like feeling your breath on my hand, that's nice.

You can touch him now, that's fine.

Hi, Joseph. So three males.

-And one female.

-One female over there.

-You know them very well, I take it...from this behaviour!

-Yeah.

What does he want to do with his paw there, to kind of hold on to my arm?

He's looking to play. He's a bit too big for that, though.

You want to play? Yeah, you're a little bit bigger than me, dude.

These lions are just 17 months old,

but they are big enough to do some serious damage if they choose to.

Obviously, if I was in here without you...?

That would be a totally different story.

That's why it is important to us to remember they are wild animals

so their instincts can stay there.

When they are younger, we take them on walks around the park and...

CLATTERING OVERHEAD

That's Judith.

We have a very strong bond with this group.

How is it possible that you can have such a close relationship

with essentially wild animals?

We respect them as wild animals to start off with,

I think that's one of the key points.

We don't train them, we don't do anything like that,

so we basically need to earn their trust and respect.

They've known me as a constant dominant figure in their lives

since they were babies

and that's why I'm able to go so up close to them now.

So you're mentioning a dominant figure,

-which means that hierarchy is at play here?

-Of course.

-Understanding how these animals normally behave in the wild?

-Yes.

So where are you in the pecking order

and how do you establish that with lions, albeit in captivity?

I think it's just because we've been there since they were babies

and I've always been the grown-up,

so I'm stronger in their eyes, I think.

And obviously they needed to have a figure that will put them

back in place and they are put back in place when they misbehave.

How do you learn how to do that? How did you...?

Just from interacting with them.

Over time, you learn their behaviour,

you learn to read their looks and mood swings

and their different personalities.

And then, as a human, you need to understand those

in order not to get a swipe taken out of you?

-He got me...

-Did he, what happened?

-..not too long ago.

It was a really hot day and he picked up on me feeling weaker

and he grabbed me for a second,

nothing serious but I have a nice little scratch.

-And a few minutes later, I fainted.

-Whoa!

So he was obviously able to pick up on it before it happened.

So I should not be feeling a little bit weak right now

-or a little bit scared.

-Preferably not.

-I need to let them know I'm not feeling threatened...

-Of course.

-..because instinctively then they could react on that?

-Yes.

Jeepers, I wish I'd been told that before,

but hopefully I'm good to go.

After you telling me that anecdote about you feeling weak,

I'm feeling a little bit more, "Oh! So..."

He knows what he's allowed and not allowed to do.

And he's definitely trying now.

He's not lying down now cos he's tired.

He's trying to get closer to you.

No, I'm aware of this. I'm aware of this. Try to just breathe.

THEY LAUGH

What do you get out of this relationship,

out of being so close with these lions?

I just feel privileged, every single day you don't get used to it.

Big ones or small ones, it's just an animal you need to appreciate

and we definitely do.

Or has clearly grown attached to these lions,

but if things go according to plan,

she won't have this relationship with them for ever.

The staff at the park are planning a very ambitious

and untested project, to do something that most people

would consider impossible.

They want to release these hand-reared lions into the wild

when they're older.

I was under the impression that if any individuals are for release,

that you must have absolutely no contact with them.

That's what we're hoping to prove wrong because you have right now

in South Africa, more lions in captivity then in the wild,

so if we can take the animals from this situation and prove that you

can turn them wild again, then we can be saving quite a few of them.

We believe it's possible and we believe our intimate

knowledge of these ones will help us achieve that goal.

And hopefully they'll be our first ambassadors.

They're amazing animals, they really are.

They're perfect.

By behaving in a dominant manner, Or has found a way to sit

amongst lions, but as we're only just beginning to understand

these unpredictable animals, I'd rather not repeat my experience

any time soon.

The next person I'm meeting has had to find even more unusual

methods to make sure his companion knows who's boss.

This odd couple live in the heart of Texas, near the town of Quinlan.

And they consist of a tonne of buffalo named Wildthing...

..and his owner, a retired rodeo cowboy called RC Bridges.

Ten years ago, RC lost his sight in one eye,

forcing him to give up running his buffalo ranch.

He sold his herd but decided to keep one of the calves,

whose mother had struggled to suckle him.

And it wasn't long before the young calf's behaviour

led to RC calling him Wildthing.

Are you seriously...?

Luckily, RC knows how to calm Wildthing down.

Do you ever get a little bit nervous going in with him?

-Not at all.

-No? You're totally used to it now?

I don't think he'd hurt me, if he does hurt me, it'd be an accident.

Really, you're that sure of your relationship with him.

I'm positive.

How on earth is it possible for you to even be in here with this

huge animal?

Lots of training. Lot of hours.

-If I was to come in with you what would happen?

-He'd attack you.

Oh, good lord. What do I do with my hands right now?

Just don't put them in here.

That's a good rule. He likes to be brushed?

Oh, he loves brushing

and the rougher you get, the better he likes it.

Now, RC, it is a domesticated buffalo.

-You'll never domesticate a buffalo.

-Really?

No, they're a wild animal.

This one is probably a little more dangerous for you than a wild one,

-because he would probably go out of his way to get you.

-Why?

On my property.

Now, if we're on somebody else's property,

he probably won't bother you.

Buffalo live in large herds and will aggressively defend themselves

and members of their group when threatened.

But they also battle within the herd for status, with a strict

hierarchy at play and only the top males getting a chance to mate.

As RC found out, this jostling for position starts

when they are very young.

When he was a baby, every morning, I'd get up and he would attack me.

So I told my wife, I've tried all my cattle tricks,

I've tried all my horse tricks and nothing's working.

I said I'm going to get up in the morning,

I don't care how much he kicks me and how much he horns me,

I'm going to act like nothing's happening.

I was bruised up from the one end to the other,

but by the end of the day, and it took me the whole day, by the

end of the day, he was bored, then he wanted to get everybody but me.

OK, so it was almost sort of like, eventually

he just gave up on beating you around the place, but also you know

they do live in very strict linear hierarchies, so does that mean he

eventually saw you as the dominant male and that's why he gave up?

Oh, I'm the dominant male, yeah.

How do you establish dominance over buffalo? How do you maintain that?

Er, by not having fear, you can't have any fear in you.

I don't have a choice about being the dominant one.

If I'm not the dominant one, I'm in trouble.

So, you've established dominance so we know that in herds,

linear hierarchies...

Don't do that, you understand me?

Go ahead.

He scared the bejeezus out of me just now.

Maintaining dominance over a calf was hard enough, but now that

Wildthing weighs over a tonne, RC wouldn't survive a beating,

so he's had to find new ways to remind Wildthing who's the boss.

If Wildthing's out here tearing up the gate

and trying to get through it,

he can't get out most of the time.

I can go over there and open it with one hand. I unlock it,

and he thinks I'm really strong.

Because he might have been there an hour or two trying to get through

that gate but I go over there and I just do it like there's nothing

to it, and he really believes, he'll look at me and he'll go, wow!

I can grab him by the horns and he thinks I got him.

You know I don't have him but he thinks I have him.

Oh, good lord.

This is where I'm dominant right here,

they don't like their horns messed with.

It is amazing that you can achieve that and even touch him

the way that you just did, without him retaliating.

I can't help but think that every time he rams the gate,

it's like you are hogging too much of my time with RC, back off.

He has a lot of love.

I would never have thought this type of animal could feel love,

but he feels love.

He's a spectacular animal, there's no question.

And like if he's in the house and he needs to go to the bathroom,

he'll go to the door.

-If he's in the what?!

-If he's in the house.

He goes into your house?!

Yeah, if he's in the house and needs to go to the bathroom,

he won't use the bathroom in the house.

I need to see this.

-Go for it, open the gate.

-If you have to, shut the door.

This is definitely the most stupid thing I've ever done. Ever.

This is insane.

He's definitely coming in the house!

Oh, my gosh.

Oh, my gosh. Mind yourself.

That is hilarious.

He could still reach up to me and sniff me, you know.

Oh! I'm a little bit scared.

Wow! He's got really beautiful eyes.

I can't get over how gentle he is with everything, RC.

Well, that's what amazes me about him, because I didn't teach him

to be gentle, he just happens to be real gentle in the house

and very aggressive and very mean on the outside of the house.

Does this all boil down to territory?

The paddock is his territory and he knows that you,

this is your territory, and you're the dominant male

so he needs to be respectful of that?

-Is that how it works with buffalo?

-I think that's what it is.

I think when he's in the house

he knows this is my area and he needs to respect my area.

CLATTERING OUTSIDE

I heard something get knocked over, you see,

so the minute he went outside again, he was trashing the place!

Can I follow you, or is that too dangerous?

You can follow me as long as I can be between you.

-Are you sure?

-Mm-hm.

You never taught him

to be potty-trained, for want of a better expression?

I have no clue how you would potty train a buffalo!

But, see, you got to realise

he knows that everything I do is for him.

I'd never do anything that's against him.

It's always for his protection or for his happiness.

He's an exceptional buffalo.

Then he's going to come in here and eat with me. Come on.

OK, he's following him with the food.

Oh, you got to have a look at this.

I never would have thought that I would see such a huge,

powerful, unpredictable animal

behave so gingerly in a home.

All the ornaments around, he sniffs gently.

He's literally tiptoeing around RC's home.

It's just completely surreal to watch.

RC manages to maintain

a bizarre appearance of domestic bliss with Wildthing.

Spending time watching TV.

Mowing the lawn.

And even going for a swim with him.

And because Wildthing thinks RC is the dominant male

in his little herd,

it certainly looks like he'll always tread softly around him.

Strong leadership can enable you

to maintain a close bond with some unpredictable animals.

But I've come to South Africa to meet a man who's worked his way

into an incredibly sophisticated animal hierarchy

by doing it the animal's way.

I want to find out what he's learnt about animal behaviour from

his close interactions with some of the most intimidating animals yet.

Hyenas.

Renowned for their brutal, scavenging ways,

hyenas can weigh twice as much as an adult wolf.

So I'm quite relieved to have a cage between me

and this clan of spotted hyenas.

There's a whole load of stuff going on right here. Jeepers!

Wow!

HYENA GROWLS LOUDLY

Hi!

Oh! You know what?

It is easy to see how hyenas can be a little bit unnerving.

I mean, they're built for power

with their strange top-heavy postures,

and when you think about their high-pitched screeches and laughs

and the way they scavenge aggressively,

they can seem quite sly and cunning,

but actually, all of these traits

point to a highly intelligent animal.

SHE LAUGHS

And that's why what Kevin Richardson does is all the more surprising.

Kevin has worked with large predators

for most of his adult life,

but a few years ago, he set up his own private reserve

so that he could fully integrate himself into this clan of hyenas.

He did this to study their behaviour

and change people's perceptions of what is a much feared animal.

The hyenas live in a large enclosure,

but they're far from tame.

These animals have a very complex and fluid social structure,

all governed by dominance

and how each one finds its place in the pecking order.

If Kevin isn't careful, there's always an individual

that'll try and get one over on him.

How on earth did this come about,

this relationship that you clearly have with these hyenas?

My career actually started with hyenas quite a long time ago.

You know, they became my passion, and pretty much, yeah,

I wanted to know everything about them.

Let's just let them get over their whole thing.

Is this important for you to keep an eye on this?

Yes, very important, cos they are dominating this individual.

They're trying to get him away.

And he's... His posture is submissive there?

Yeah, he's submissive, which is good. He's fine.

I didn't notice anything different and immediately you're chatting away

and you stop. OK, something has changed.

-Did you learn from your mistakes?

-I've learnt the hard way.

-Did you?

-Yes. With hyenas, it's always the hard way.

They react, they bite you, and then they ask questions later.

Let's put it into perspective for you.

I've been working with large carnivores for 15 years.

I've been hospitalised five times by hyena, and none by lion.

I got bitten very badly about six weeks ago.

The one hyena thought it was a good opportunity to try and jostle

for status in this clan, so he went for me in a very aggressive way.

Bit me on my arm and my leg and that triggered the rest of the clan

to want to participate in the whole thing.

There's probably a reason why

a lot of people around the world don't work with these guys!

HE LAUGHS

I wanted to ask you about where they see you in their clan.

Are you a hyena in their eyes?

Their behaviour with me as treating me as an individual

in their clan, is exactly how they treat one another.

And that's why I get my fair share of bites,

because they don't hold back.

So why on earth would you want to do this

when you are aware that it can be dangerous?

What I feel is, the risk has actually been mitigated

over the years by knowing the individuals

and by no means do I just say, "Hey, I'm the Hyena Whisperer,

"I can go in with any hyena group and do what I do with these guys."

This is a relationship that's been developing

with some individuals over 14 years.

-Uh-huh.

-Where you going? No, you're not going there.

Don't leave him yet. Stay for the cameras!

See, now, that's just ridiculous.

Look at that teddy bear.

I mean, come on, it's like you are behaving with him

like he's a dog, you know?

Well, once all the energy dissipates,

and once they're OK with you guys, and they've smelt you out,

they see that you're not a threat and they've calmed down,

these animals are just...

It's incredible what you can do with them. This guy...

He desperately wants his chin scratched, I can see that.

Kevin has worked very hard to earn the hyenas' trust

and it allows him to play with them in a way

I never thought was possible.

But even this time spent playing together

gives him a chance to learn about their social structure,

and how he can maintain his position within it.

OK, so all this kind of thing that I'm doing here

is asserting my dominance.

It does look like play,

but he's also feeling that I'm not submitting to something HE does.

I'm actually playing with him in a dominant way.

So, I'm doing things to him that he wouldn't normally allow

other individuals do to him who he was more dominant of.

So, it is interesting.

I'm using affection,

cos he's coming to me for love, and a tickle, and a chin scratch,

and all of the above, but...

I'm dominating him.

And I'm not hitting him.

I don't have to. It's a bit of a psychological game.

What do you get out of it, then?

Why were you driven to do this with these hyenas?

Well, I'll tell you what,

this is enriching for me, as it is for them.

I mean, the fact that I'm tickling this hyena on his chin,

-and I'm using him as a resting post...

-It's bonkers, Kevin!

Yeah, it's awesome.

And don't get me wrong, I still get a kick out of seeing my buddies,

however, the other thing that I really hope it does,

is it shows people a different side of them,

and hopefully people watching a programme like this

would go away and say, "You know what?

"I never knew hyenas were like that. I actually like them.

"They're actually very similar to my dog, in a way."

It's fascinating watching you interacting with

these kinds of animals that, as you said,

do have such a creepy reputation, a fearsome reputation,

and they are absolutely docile with you, and so affectionate,

and they don't seem to mind at all. It's quite surreal to watch that.

Yeah, come, boy! He's fine.

You just let me know when at any point something like this is

just... I cannot believe I'm that close to a hyena.

No, that's fine, he's completely fine.

I know you're a captive hyena, but this is ridiculous.

It's thrilling for me. I can't believe I am so close to one.

And they are so gentle.

Hello, can I touch noses with you?

Hello.

Ah, come on.

-You're seeing the good side.

-Oh, I really am.

I don't want to be lulled into a false sense of security,

but you are just adorable right now.

Kevin has an extraordinary relationship with these hyenas.

By combining his knowledge of each individual and their position

in the hierarchy, and with his ability to assert his dominance

where needed, it seems that Kevin has truly become one of the gang.

And in doing so, he's proving that hyenas are not as intimidating

as many people would have you believe.

There is definitely another side to these animals.

They are incredibly gentle.

I get a real feeling of affection from this particular one,

who is liking a good back of the ear scratch right now,

but they are also quite timid, they are quite shy.

Some of them, when they approach the cage,

their eyes are really wide and they approach very cautiously.

But, every now and then, they will bear their canines again.

I guess that's another instinctual behaviour to remind me,

"Hey, I'm quite fearsome, too, you know. I'm quite tough."

But they are fantastic animals,

and you really get a sense of their individual personalities.

This is just thrilling.

It really is.

The nature of the human/animal couples I've met so far

is complex, but the people involved are attempting to fulfil

a very human instinct to care for others, find companions,

and better understand the world around us.

But to find out what we can learn from looking

at all these odd couples, I'm speaking to Professor Hal Herzog,

who has studied human/animal relationships

for more than two decades.

What do you think we can learn about cross species

relationships in all their shapes and sizes?

I think what they tell us is the commonality that we have

with other species, that, at a deep level,

animals have the same sorts of abilities to form relationships,

to form attachments, to play,

and they have the same abilities that we have.

The bottom line for me is this...

I think, in our relationships with other species,

what we see is a reflection of human nature -

in some ways, its purest form.

And the best of human nature and the worst of human nature.

That, to me, is the thing that is really fascinating

about this whole area of study.

There is one last partnership I want to investigate,

because, for me, it truly reflects the best

of what the human/animal bond can be like.

Not only do both sides benefit,

but here, wild animals have chosen to instigate a relationship with us.

I've travelled all the way to the south of Brazil,

and the coastal town of Laguna,

to see it for myself.

Here in this inlet on the Atlantic coast,

the locals have formed a relationship, over many generations,

with one specific group of wild dolphins.

'The dolphins help the fishermen catch their fish.

'In fact, the fishermen in this bay don't even throw their nets

'unless the dolphins are present.'

It just looks so odd. A whole bunch of men,

standing in their waders, doing absolutely nothing,

just standing there.

There's a dolphin.

SHE GASPS

So, there's two dolphins there, definitely surfacing,

but they are just standing there doing nothing, still.

This is extremely peculiar.

-LAUGHING:

-What is going on?!

It makes me think that something's going to happen over here.

Oh!

Woosh!

That's amazing!

OK, OK, I'm beginning to get what's going on.

For one month of the year, schools of mullet migrate up the coast.

The dolphins herd the schools into the shoreline,

exactly where the fishermen are.

Then, at the right moment, the dolphins make a signal -

usually a distinctive dive -

and the fishermen throw their nets to catch the fish beneath.

It's absolutely clear that the dolphins are calling

the shots here, these lads are doing absolutely nothing,

they just stand there with their nets,

and it's only when the dolphin makes a very clear signal,

that they deploy them.

So, the dolphins are telling the fishermen how to fish.

That's novel.

And completely crazy. I've never seen anything like this.

This is the most intricate type of interaction

between two completely different species I have ever seen,

and it's just wonderful to watch, because the fishermen

are absolutely focused on getting their cue from a dolphin.

FISHERMEN CHEER

And they have fun while they're at it, don't they?

There's a fabulous energy on this beach.

They really enjoy working with the dolphin.

-Go!

-SHE GIGGLES

With the help of the dolphins, these fishermen are extremely successful.

Just a few miles down the coast, the same mullet schools migrate,

but because no dolphins help the fishermen there,

they hardly catch any fish.

Here, the dolphins have developed a relationship

over generations that has resulted in a thriving local industry.

I meet up with local scientist Fabio Daura Jorge from the

University of Santa Catarina to find out exactly what's going on.

-This is such a surreal scene.

-Yes.

There's a real energy to this, isn't there?

There's a dolphin.

That's Caroba.

Caroba. Is he a well known individual?

Yes, the most famous dolphin we have here.

Fabio, watching this from the shore, it is absolutely mind-boggling.

-Yeah, it's fascinating.

-What exactly is going on here?

Yeah, actually, the dolphin are bringing the mullets

-close to the fishermen, so...

-Is that what he's doing now?

Exactly, he's in the middle of the channel

and, probably, the mullet is here.

And when then the dolphin makes a specific signal,

the fishermen know that it's the right moment to throw the nets.

The fishermen are benefitting...

why on earth are the dolphins doing this?

We suspect that, when the fishermen throw the nets in the water,

he's also pushing the mullet to the dolphins.

Much easier for the dolphins to get the mullet.

When the net's descending, some mullet are inevitably escaping,

-and that's the bounty that the dolphin can enjoy.

-Exactly.

So, it's a mutual, symbiotic relationship going on,

but dictated by the dolphin, right?

-I mean, they call the shots?

-Exactly, exactly.

Yeah, come on, I want a go. I mean, how hard could it really be?

It's a bit slippy.

Put in your teeth.

-In my mouth?

-Yeah.

-What?

Dolphin!

Oh, I'm scared.

Go, go, go!

LAUGHTER

CHEERING

Thank you, thank you!

Autographs later.

I can't believe they cheered at that. That was utter rubbish.

-It was great. Good job.

-Did I catch a mullet?

There is something so incredibly special going on here.

I mean, we've known for a long time that dolphins are intelligent,

and we have so many accounts of dolphin/human interactions

of all sorts, but this...

This dolphin/human interaction is very real and it's very genuine,

and it's incredibly complex on both sides.

There's a whole series of intricate behavioural cues going on,

and these are wild dolphins.

They've chosen to come here and form a relationship with these fishermen.

That's mind-blowing.

I've been on a remarkable journey in these two programmes

and I've encountered relationships between different species

that have truly amazed me.

Many of them have been formed as a result of powerful, natural

instincts that seem to endure no matter what the circumstances.

Or they've come about through a growing understanding

some people have of the animal kingdom.

And what's clear is that animals relate to one another - and to us -

in a far more complex way than was previously thought possible.

But it's also been an extraordinary reminder of how compelled

we humans are to have animals in our lives.

I think the reason why we are so fascinated by other animals

could be down to the fact that,

in all these unfamiliar shapes and sizes,

in all these different species, we recognise familiar traits

and behaviours, and I think that's what feeds our fascination

and compels us to want to know more.

So, if we are lucky enough to share

a mutualistic bond with another species...

So, two animals that took billions of years to evolve,

finding a common ground,

respectful of each other, even communicating with each other...

Well, that's pretty remarkable, isn't it?

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