Typically, when a dog meets another animal in the wild there is a tense standoff followed by a lot of barking. Sometimes though, a dog will strike up an unlikely friendship with another animal. It seems that a dog’s tendency to do this knows no bounds, with dogs developing friendships with primates, big cats, and even elephants.

An unlikely friendship between a dog and a bull elk

This seems to be the case with Trygge (pronounced Trig), a German shepherd, and a bull elk in Colorado. The pair were filmed playing together by an officer with Colorado Parks and Wildlife. The video has gone viral with over 2,000 views on the CPW SE Region Twitter account.

The incident in the video is not the first time that the two have been caught playing together. According to CPW officials, the dog and elk have been playing like this for years, chasing each other back and forth on the opposite side of a fence located in a park in Larimer County.

“They seem to know everyone needs to get out and enjoy the Colorado outdoors,” an official with CPW tweeted.

Other unlikely dog and animal friendships

But this is not the first time4 that a dog has made an unlikely friendship with another animal. Bonecrusher, a lion at an Oklahoma zoo, has become friends with a Dachshund named Milo. The two cuddle and play together, along with Milo’s family. And even though Bonecrusher is a large lion, Milo and the other dogs treat him just like another dog.

It seems primates are getting in on the act as well

Friendship also developed between a primate and dog at the Institute of Greatly Endangered and Rare Species in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The friendship started when Rosco, a blue-tick hound came to the animal preserve. Upon arriving, Suriya, an orangutan, immediately took a liking to the dog and the two have been friends ever since.

A friendship between a dog and a deer

In another case of friendship between two different species, a Great Dane named Kate adopted a baby deer named Pippin. She did this after the fawn’s mother abandoned her. The fawn was allowed to come and go as it pleased by Kate’s owner. Now, even as an adult, the two cuddle and play together.

Bella and Bubbles become fast friends

Bella and Bubbles are two more unlikely animal friends. The two live at Myrtle Beach Safari in South Carolina. Their friendship began after Bella, a Labrador retriever, was left behind by her owner, who had been working on Bubbles Pool. Bubbles, an African elephant, quickly took a liking to Bella and the two gave been inseparable ever since, playing and going for swims together.

As for Trygge, he belongs to a CPW officer. His name is Norwegian and means trustworthy, faithful, true, fair, loyal, and honest. Which seems to hold true with his friendship to the fortunate elk. Here is the video of the two friends at play.

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Source: CBS Denver