Poorly penguin back on happy feet

A penguin chick with a bad case of splayed legs is back on happy feet again…thanks to his own wardrobe of special designer trousers.

Animal care staff at Scarborough Sea Life Centre discovered the problem when the chick was just three weeks old.

The youngster has since been having regular fittings of specially tailored, tight fitting trousers made from an elasticated bandage-like material.

“We have also been sitting him in a shallow pot to help keep his legs in the right position and gradually correct his posture as he continued to grow.”

He has stayed with his parents throughout his unusual therapy and they have continued to feed him, unfazed by his extraordinary leg plumage!

Now nine weeks old and taking the occasional glimpse out of the the nest box entrance, Lyndsey and her colleagues are thrilled that he has a full-working and perfectly penguin-like waddle!

Though a ‘he’ for the time being, the chick’s gender will not be known for certain until a DNA test is carried out as part of his next full veterinary check.

The other residents of the Sea Life Centre’s Humboldt penguin colony have shown a keen interest in the new arrival each time he has popped his head out.