The Animal Blog

A few days ago, I posted about a Bolivian Squirrel Monkey that was stolen during a night time raid at the Chessington World of Adventures near London.

Not more than a few weeks later, another Bolivian Squirrel Monkey (this time from the London Zoo) went missing after escaping from her enclosure.

Not to worry though, the monkey returned voluntarily when it came time to eat the next day.

Apparently she just wanted to hang out somewhere else!

Click below for the full article from Life Style Extra:
Missing Bolivian Squirrel Monkey

What is a Pygmy Slow Loris you ask?

A Pygmy Slow Loris is a primate native to Asia. They are very small growing only to within 18-21 cm. They are also virtually tail-less.

You know you want to see one.

Click on the link below to see the picture of the newborn:
Baby Pygmy Slow Loris

The saying "counting sheep" before going to bed conjures up images of little cartoonish sheep jumping over a little brown picket fence one-by-one, right?

But have you ever seen an actual sheep jump.

I hadn't until I watched this video, and I soon realized what the dangers are of a jumping sheep:

When your side rejects you, go over to the enemy's side.

That's the case with this little pug, who's mother rejected him being the runt of the litter. Luckily, he was able to go next door and was warmly accepted by his cat counterparts. In fact, the mother cat splits time between her this pup and her own three kittens.

Could this be turning over a new leaf? The end of dog and cat conflict?

Nope. Probably not. It's a nice story though.

Click below for the story on MSNBC:
Rejected puppy welcomed into feline family

Ok, there are a couple things wrong with this video:

First, how does a kangaroo get access onto the race track? Tickets to these races are typically very expensive. Where did the kangaroo get all this money?

Second, what is the kangaroo doing on the race track? The best view is from up in the stands!

Either way, this kangaroo is very very lucky to be alive.

Wars is raging on in several parts of the world. But the Brazilian military is using their forces for good.

Every year, penguins in the the Antarctic get stranded on a portion of ice that breaks apart from the continent. And every year, some of those penguins end up on the coast of Brazil.

Where does the Brazilian military come into play? Their task is to return these penguins to the Antarctic every year. This is no small task either as it requires both air and naval forces.

So in the end the penguins get back home, but not before partying it up on the beaches of Brazil!

Click on the link below for the article from NCBuy:
Brazilian Military To Transport Stranded Penguins To Antarctica

Imagine you get up in the morning, go through your morning routine, and get ready for your day. You open your door to pick up the paper off of your welcome mat. Something's odd. You try to turn the page, but for some reason you can't.

But then it hits you...

You forgot to start the coffee pot!

...oh and there's an alligator on your porch.

A similar situation (not really) happened to a woman and her dog in Kentucky. According to the article on the Lexington-Herald Leader it is supposed that the alligator was smuggled into Lexington and left at this woman's apartment.

I offer two different theories:

1. The gator is a big fan of the Colonel, so it crawled up to meet him.
2. The gator got lost on his was to St. Loius to see the Cardinals play.

I can't really see any other situation being plausible.

Anyway, click below for the full article on Kentucky.com
Lexington woman, dog find baby gator hissing on front porch

Another alligator gone astray later today.

"'I thought it was a muskrat,' she said."

Umm... that's not a muskrat lady.

Montana. Also known as "the land with no alligators."

Well, not anymore. While fishing on a local pond, a mother and her two children were very suprised to find the newest resident of Kalispell, Montana. Once again authorities believe that this gator was once a pet, set loose by its owners after it grew too big.

And once again, I disagree and offer up my own hypotheses regarding the situation:

1. The gator had never seen a moose, but desperately wanted to
2. Um... or maybe a buffalo

Mystery solved.

Click on the link below from the Daily Inter Lake for the complete story:
The Gator Hole

Many recent news stories of late have brought to light that despite their innocent appearance, deer are actually quite dangerous.

When threatened deer have been known to attack, and in some instances kill humans.

My question is, if deer are supposed to be so tough, then why do they box like little girls?

Watch the video to see what I mean:

Hollywood has taught us how smart and talented monkeys can be. But one message that our favorite movies do not convey is how deadly monkeys can be!

Watch the video above for footage of this monkey performing:

• spinning kick
• roundhouse kick
• high kick
• escaping his attacker
• and breaking a board

Yikes!

Think back to 1989, when a young(er) Jim Belushi put police dogs on the map.

Things are much different now, and it's not just the big dogs that can help fight crime. There's a new member of the Geauga County, Ohio sherrif's department, and he just happens to be of the smallest breed there is.

Midge (short for Midget) is a 6-pound Chihuahua Mix and is part of a growing trend of small dogs used in law enforcement.

According to the article, it seems that Midge is also quite the hit among inmates. It seems strange that they wouldn't hold a grudge against the dog who helped put them away, but who could be mad at a little Chihuahua?

Click below for the entire article on MSNBC:
6-pound Chihuahua is tiny drug-finding dog

Click here for more dog news.

The summer is winding down in many parts of the country, and soon schools will be open and running full-swing.

Before your kids go back to the drudgery of the school year, why don't you take them on one more vacation? And while you're at it, bring Fido along too!

Here is a short list of some of the websites regarding pet-friendly hotels:

• http://hotels.about.com/od/petfriendlyhotels/
• http://www.petswelcome.com/
• http://www.pets-allowed-hotels.com/
• http://www.travelpets.com/
• http://www.petfriendlytravel.com/
• http://petfriendly.com/travel/
• http://www.pettravel.com/

If if you are indeed taking a vacation, how about taking me?

Baby let me be,
your lovin' Teddy Bear
Put a chain around my neck,
and lead me anywhere
Oh let me be
Your teddy bear.

...but keep that Doberman away from me.

In London a few days ago, a Doberman pinscher named Barney decided to have himself a little fun. Unfortunately, fun meant destroying a $900,000 collection of teddy bears, including one owned by Elvis Presley.

To the guy who hired a guard dog to look after the bears, DOGS TEAR APART STUFFED ANIMALS!!! Well, I'm sure he knows that now.

From the article:
"I've spoken to the bear's owner and he is not very pleased at all," Medley said. Noo... you're kidding!

Click below for the entire article on ABC News:
Dog Destroys Elvis' Teddy Bear at Museum

Click here for more dog news.

I'm a guy who loves a good bed.

Right now, memory foam is all the rage in the world of high-end mattresses. But what's the latest trend in dog beds?

Roses:

For a mere $1,700, your pup can sleep on a gigantic rose bed! It goes well next to anything in the house too!

While I know my dog would love a giant $1700 rose bed, I know he'd be just as happy with 1,700 squeaky toys to tear apart from the dollar store.

Things are heating up between the talking cats and the talking dogs. Click on the link below to see what I'm talking about:

Talking Animal Videos

Today's installment features a potpourri of "I love you dogs"

If you don't remember who Bob Ross, he's the famous television painter. Well known for his soothing voice, puffy white clouds, and equally puffy hair.

What's he doing with a baby squirrel... Who knows?

But this video will melt your heart.

Digyourowngrave.com has posted an article about animals living together:
Crazy Interspecies Animal Friends!

They've got a good list going there including:

• dogs and squirrel
• hippo and turtle
• kitty and rooster
• dog and ducklings
• tiger and piglets
• cat and crow
• and, dog and fish

I'll contribute this to the mix, here's a picture of Missy's dog Skippy with a frog:

Don't worry, Skippy doesn't lick the frog. They just like to hang out.

2006.08.06: Animal cohabitation at its best
2006.08.06: Bob ross feeds a squirrel
2006.08.05: Talking Dogs - The Competition Ripens
2006.08.05: Pamper your dog with this ridiculously expensive bed
2006.08.05: Not everyone is an Elvis fan
2006.08.04: Pet Friendly Hotels
2006.08.04: Move over german shepards!
2006.08.04: Martial Arts Monkey
2006.08.03: Deer Boxing
2006.08.03: Alligator out of place part 2
2006.08.03: Alligator out of place part 1
2006.08.02: Stranded Penguins Returned Home
2006.08.02: What is this Kangaroo Thinking?
2006.08.02: Pug Accepted into Cat Family
2006.08.01: Poor, Poor Sheep
2006.08.01: A Baby Pygmy Slow Loris Is Born
2006.08.01: One Monkey Leaves, Another Monkey Returns
2006.07.31: A Case for Animal Shelter Redesign
2006.07.31: Cute Kitten Falling Asleep

Some of the best crazy dogs clips out there, all rolled into one video.

Click here for more dog videos.

New York City is well known as one of the most diverse cities in the world. Of course, with a population of around 8 million people you would expect as such.

Over the past week, NYC residents have been spotting their newest neighbor: a manatee. Last week I showed you a couple of stories concerning out of place gators (1, 2) and not but one week later another native Floridian is spotted in a foreign land. What's the reason for this mass animal exodus from Florida? We shall see.

But the real question is not why did this manatee migrate from Florida, but is this newest NYC resident a Yankee fan or a Mets fan. How about we take a poll?

Yankee fan: He's a (explitive deleted) Yankee fan! Oh and A-rod (explitive deleted) sucks!
Mets fan: Go to (explitive deleted) you (explitive deleted) Yankee Fan! He's a (explitive deleted) Mets fan! Oh and A-rod (explitive deleted) sucks!

Hmm... Inconclusive. Perhaps I should have taken a more scientific approach to this polling.

Click below for the entire article on WNBC.com:
Manatee Spotted In NYC, Far From Home

"What's the stupidest thing you've ever done in your life?... a couple of fat, bald, hairy Slavic dudes, and the headliner, Ginger the Wrestling Bear... George Plimpton... Even my mild-mannered and very proper grandfather was standing along the boards of the arena pounding the glass... The trainer had been smashing watermelons... Ouch."

Yes, there's no need for my stupid commentary on this article.

Click below for the entire article on SLAM! Sports:
Bearing it all for Ginger - the stupidest thing I've ever done

Everybody dance!

Come on! Get up and rock to this video! You know you want to!

Did you do it?? Do it!!!

Yes! Don't you feel much better now?

Last week, I shared with you this video of a kitten trying to fall asleep:
Cute kitten falling asleep

Once again, I am appalled by the shallow disregard for the rest of another cute kitten. It would be much easier to get some sleep if there wasn't so much laughing going on! Very dissapointing.

And this one is even fuzzier than the last!

Click here for more cat videos.