Elephant and dog are best friends

Bubbles and Bella live together at the Myrtle Beach Safari where they spend their days playing and splashing in the pool.

 

MOTHER NATURE NETWORK
By LAURA MOSS September 18, 2013, 11:08 a.m. CLICK HERE TO VIEW ARTICLE ON MOTHER NATURE NETWORK

Bubbles and Bella are the very best of friends, and neither seems to care about their difference in size — or species.

The unlikely pair lives together at the Myrtle Beach Safari in South Carolina and can often be seen walking, playing and splashing together on the 50-acre preserve.

Bubbles, a 32-year-old African elephant, came to the animal sanctuary in 1983 after ivory poachers left her orphaned.

In 2007, a contractor was hired to build a pool at the Myrtle Beach Safari, and when he abandoned his black Labrador at the preserve, Bubbles and the dog formed a bond.

Bella doesn’t seem to mind that her best friend is a movie star — the elephant has appeared in “Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls,” a Janet Jackson music video and several advertisements.

To Bella, Bubbles is simply her much-larger companion, whose 9,000-pound body often doubles as the dog’s diving board.

Watch Bella and Bubbles splash and play in the video below.