A tame hyena in a bath? You're having a laugh... Couple hand-rear one of Africa's most feared predators



They're famous for being one of the most aggressive members of the animal kingdom but this is one hyena who's just up for having a laugh.

Adopted as a club, Odi now lives with his human 'family' and is more than happy to let his owners wash and play with him every day.



Zoo worker Marcell Tournier and his girlfriend San-Mare Pretorius were forced to raise the energetic hyena by hand at their home in South Africa when his mother rejected him only half an hour after he was born.

Having a great time: San-Mare Pretorious gives her pet hyena Odi a bath. The 20-month-old animal was raised by humans after being rejected by his mother

Wet and wonderful: Hyenas might have a gruesome and aggressive reputation, but as these pictures show, they can also be sweet and playful animals

Odi, who is now 20-months-old and fighting fit, is unsurprisingly proving to be more than a handful for the couple who run the Predator World Zoo near Sun City.

Commenting on his unusual pet, Mr Tournier said: 'He sleeps all day but at four in the afternoon he wakes up and when he's up he's really up.

'He keeps us busy right through the night.'

Full of energy and larger and more powerful than an adult alsatian, Odi loves the rough and tumble of wrestling with Marcell.

Happy family: Marcel Tournier (right) and his girlfriend San-Mare Pretorius live with Odi at their home near Sun City in South Africa

Cute youngster: Odi when he was just a few days old after he had been rejected by his mother

He's even a huge fan of being bathed in a tub outside the house by San-Mare.



With a reputation for laughter - it's no wonder that the hyena cracks a huge grin as he is hand washed in a steel drum.



Marcell said: 'We interact with him and he sits on our laps. He loves physical contact.

'Not all hyenas are good-natured but you get one in a million that is.'

With powerful muscles and huge teeth he could easily inflict serious damage to Marcell.

But the experienced animal handler makes sure Odi considers him to be the alpha male with San-Mare the dominant female of his group.

'We're part of his social structure,' explained Marcell. 'When I play with him I don't hurt him but I'm always the one doing the rougher playing to let him know who's boss.

'He's much tougher than me already, but he's also very sensitive and we have to be very sensitive with him.



'If he's scared of something he comes to me and I'm there to help him.'

The couple are now planning to find a female companion for Odi so that he can start to form bonds with other hyenas and live a more independent life.