Fuelled by her favourite diet of grapes, Taronga Zoo's new binturong cub explored her enclosure today like a "wound-up toy". The jet-black cub, named Indah, was making her public debut just one month after becoming the Sydney zoo's first binturong born in captivity.
Link to Gizmodo. Thanks Donna
Irish eagle chick is first in century
Link to article
The Pink Dolphin lives in the Amazon Rainforest. It is usually found in the tributaries and main rivers of the Orinoco River systems in South America.
Link to article
Link to game
Link to Neatorama
A two-year-old girl from Hampshire has become the youngest ever female member of British Mensa.
Georgia Brown, from Aldershot, Hampshire, astounded experts by scoring 152 in an IQ test - putting her in the top 2% of the population for her age.
Psychologist Joan Freeman, who tested Georgia, said she thought the toddler could have scored even higher but needed a nap after 45 minutes of work.
Link to article
This Brazilian model "lost" her belly button as the Playboy magazine editors were retouching her body curves. The mistake went unnoticed, and the magazine sold 605,000 copies that month... lots of readers got pissed off when they realized they were wasting money on fake pictures.
Found at Bits and Pieces
This photograph, taken June 18 from a Japan Coast Guard aircraft off the northeastern coast of Hokkaido, shows a bird’s-eye view of cloud streets over the Sea of Okhotsk. According to the Sapporo Meteorological Observatory, these low-altitude stratocumulus clouds were rolled into long, distinctive ribbons after becoming trapped in air currents. While it is not uncommon for wind to form such patterns in stratocumulus clouds, photos that clearly show the clouds rolled into strips are rare, says the observatory.
Link to Mainichi via Pink Tentacle
From the 'Chronic' article:
Salvia divinorum is a bright, leafy green plant from Mexico that when chewed or smoked causes intense hallucinations comparable to LSD or "magic mushrooms."Link to article. Thanks to Brady for turning me on to this.And it's legal in California.
The drug is available all over the Bay Area, mostly in smoke shops and herbal stores. It's also sold over the Internet. For $15 to $50 a hit, users get a high that sends them into a dream-like state for anywhere from a few minutes to an hour or two.
Dad was a zebra stallion, mum was a horse . . . so their odd-looking offspring is known as a zorse.
Found at The Sun
A charter-boat captain from Lake Charles, La., photographed a rare pink dolphin a couple of weeks ago in Calcasieu Lake, an estuary just north of the Gulf of Mexico in southwestern Louisiana.
According to Calcasieu Charter Service's Web site, Capt. Erik Rue was on the lake June 24 with fishing customers when five dolphins came into view — four normal-looking gray ones, and a bright pink one that appeared to be an adolescent.
"It appears to be an uncanny freak of nature, an albino dolphin, with reddish eyes and glossy pink skin," the Web site reads. "It is small in comparison to the others it is traveling with and appears to be a youngster traveling with mama."
There is a species of pink dolphin that lives in the Amazon River in South America, but this one appears to be a more common bottlenose dolphin.
Link to FOXNews article
Previously on P&F Pink Dolphins
Breast enlargement is now the most common graduation gift for girls who pass their secondary school exams in Italy.
Boob jobs have knocked cars and summer holidays back into second and third places respectively.
Angelica Pesce, 18, from Rome, said she and many of her pals would be going under the knife in a few weeks having just finished school, iol.co.za reports.
She said: "It's a much more useful present than something like a car, which will break down after a few years, or a holiday, which is over within a week. My new breasts will last a lifetime."
Link to funreports
GUADALAJARA, Mexico — Five Bengal tigers, four of them white males, have debuted at a zoo in western Mexico.
The litter, which was born in April and went on display Wednesday, was the result of a natural breeding program, Guadalajara Zoo director Francisco Rodriguez said.
It was the sixth litter of white tigers born at the zoo, which is known for having produced the cat that attacked Las Vegas entertainer Roy Horn of the Siegfried and Roy act.
The tigers' father, Nino, has sired every litter born at the zoo.
This site has 100 excellent panoramic views in high resolution format (mostly California). Ever wondered what its like standing on Mt. Whitney?
Show me the scenery
A dog has been rescued after falling 50ft down a gorge at a Highland beauty spot called Dog Falls.
Kyle, a partially deaf and blind 14-year-old collie-Jack Russell cross, fell down the embankment on Sunday evening while out with his owner.
The dog spent three hours in the water at the popular walking spot in Glen Affric in the Highlands.
An inland rescue coastguard team and firefighters managed to rescue the animal shortly after 0100 BST.
Elaine Callander, 53, was walking her dog at about 2200 BST when it fell into the water.
She said: "I was out walking with a friend and Kyle was trotting along behind us.
"One minute he was there and the next he was gone. We went looking for him and looked over the edge to see Kyle scrambling out of the fast moving water on to a rock."
She dialled 999 and triggered a rescue involving 30 people from the fire and rescue services, coastguards from Inverness, Fortrose and Cromarty, police and Kintail Mountain Rescue Team.
"I was really shocked and phoned the fire brigade immediately", Ms Callender added.
"It took me some convincing them that it was not a hoax - that my dog had fallen in Dog Falls.
"I couldn't believe the scale of the call-out when the services arrived."
"I can't thank everyone enough for their help."
Guide books say Dog Falls gets its name because the water course follows the shape of a dog's leg.
Three fire appliances attended the scene and provided various rescue equipment and lighting while the coastguard members tried to reach the animal.
The coastguard managed to access the water from a bridge and wade upstream to reach the animal.
A spokesman for the Highlands and Islands Fire and Rescue Service said: "The dog was returned to its owner with no harm done."
A spokesman for Aberdeen Coastguard added: "The name of the spot was quite appropriate on this occasion."
Link to BBC
(image: exeterCentral)
By all accounts, Tahoe is a typical kitten: cute, sleepy and hungry. But his eating habits are far from typical, as the stray's been nursing from a 3-year-old dog named Lillie. Ever since the kitten was found under the hood of Eunice Collins' running Chevrolet Tahoe a few weeks ago, he's been feeding from the unusually cooperative longhaired dachshund. Tahoe feeds in the morning, at night and after naps, purring and pawing at the dog's belly. "That's not going to happen very often," said veterinarian John Beck, who added that the "kitten got lucky, basically" that he found a dog with those maternal instincts. Collins said she was confused by the sound of a kitten meowing as she drove her Tahoe. "I thought I was going crazy," Collins said. "I came to a light and heard it again. So I pulled into a gas station." Collins took the kitten in and kept him in a bedroom. Four days later, she saw Lillie feeding him. "I couldn't believe it," she said. "She has just taken Tahoe on as her baby and has been nurturing and taking care of him. They're just very close." Beck said having Tahoe in the house "induced a false pregnancy, a nursing response." "It made the hormones needed to produce milk," Beck said. "Now, I'm sure the cat obviously had it in mind the dog was (his) mother." Link to SF Chronicle article
photo: Avi Abrams
Free iPhone for the winner — NOT
Sorry no prizes …but humor is its own reward eh?
'Go ahead punk', leave a comment…
Three babies could be three times the trouble - but Leipzig Zoo is looking forward to three times the attraction after presenting two-week-old tiger triplets to the public for the first time.
The triplets were born at the zoo in eastern Germany on June 30 and the there's no denying their power over the camera.
More pictures at Daily Mail
From article:
By all accounts, Tahoe is a typical kitten: cute, sleepy and hungry.
But his eating habits are far from typical, as the stray's been nursing from a 3-year-old dog named Lillie.
Ever since the kitten was found under the hood of Eunice Collins' running Chevrolet Tahoe a few weeks ago, he's been feeding from the unusually cooperative longhaired dachshund. Tahoe feeds in the morning, at night and after naps, pawing at the dog's belly.
"That's not going to happen very often," said veterinarian John Beck, who added that the "kitten got lucky, basically" that he found a dog with those maternal instincts.
Collins said she was confused by the sound of a kitten meowing as she drove her Tahoe.
"I thought I was going crazy," Collins said. "I came to a light and heard it again. So I pulled into a gas station."
Collins took the kitten in and kept him in a bedroom. Four days later, she saw Lillie feeding him.
"I couldn't believe it," she said. "She has just taken Tahoe on as her baby and has been nurturing and taking care of him. They're just very close."
Beck said having Tahoe in the house "induced a false pregnancy, a nursing response."
"It made the hormones needed to produce milk," Beck said. "Now, I'm sure the cat obviously had it in mind the dog was (his) mother."
Photo: AP Darko Vojinovic
BELGRADE, Yugoslavia:
Man's best friend helped save this tiny cat.
A 15-day-old female panther named Milica has been adopted by a Rhodesian Ridgeback after her mother refused to feed her and tried to kill her in the Belgrade zoo.
"The mother panther has killed all her cubs since 1999," zookeeper Dragan Jovanovic said.
"We believe she has been traumatized by the sound of NATO bombs" during airstrikes in the Serbian capital intended to stop former President Slobodan Milosevic's crackdown against ethnic Albanian separatists in 1999, he said.
Now Milica fights with several newborn puppies over milk from her adopted mother. She also appears to enjoy every bit of attention she gets from her new family.
Link to article
Previously posted on P&F: Dachshund nurses rescued kitten
Link to slide show Via ia the Presurfer and Miss Cellania
Lots more images at Daily Mail
Link to article with more pictures
From article:
It looks like a scene from 101 Dalmations but without the spots.
Macey, the Great Dane, went through a gruelling 20 hour birth to produce the amazing litter of 15 puppies.
The two-year-old pedigree blue shocked her owners who had been told by vets to expect just four.
Xingu is said to be intelligent and fond of salty biscuits
From article:
Explorer Colonel John Blashford-Snell has had close encounters with vampire bats and angry bees, but his latest brush has been with a rather odd dog.
He spotted a rare breed of Double-Nosed Andean tiger hound, which has two noses, on a recent trip to Bolivia.
The chairman of the Scientific Exploration Society said the dog, named Xingu, was "not terribly handsome".
Bella is Xingu's mother and was spotted on an expedition in 2005
Just like any baby, Mary Two loves cuddles, her comfort blanket and her cuddly toys.
But her gummy gorilla grin hides a sad story as the tiny primate nearly died after being neglected by her mum.
Link to more pictures
At the Brevard Zoo, the 7-week-old baby jaguar has finally come out to play. This was the baby's second day playing outside with mama Masaya. Its sex is still unknown.
10 more pictures
"Four tiny orpahned hedgehogs are snuggling up to the bristles of a cleaning brush - because they think it's their mother.
The four inch long creatures are being hand-reared by staff at the New Forest Otter, Owl and Wildlife Park in Ashurst, Hants.
Workers say Mary, Mungo, Midge and Slappy get comfort from playing with the centre's cleaning brush and enjoy rubbing against it."
Clip:
Badly injured stray dog Benben is being put back on his feet by doctors at A-Beil Pet Clinic in Nanjing, China, who have built him an artificial leg.
Benben is now undergoing training sessions to get use to walking with his new limb.
Article with more pictures
Link to lots more photos
About:
yöghund has been developed in response to a growing demand by discerning animal lovers, for a healthy treat alternative for their pets. Over the course of twenty years in the pet care business, the folks at The Barking Dog, Ltd. have stayed keenly aware of the evolving place of pets in our lives. As beloved members of our families, our dogs trust and depend on us to make wise choices for their care and health.
Clip:
When Daisy the dachshund bounds along the shoreline, she often picks up a stick or a dead fish to gnaw on.
But going walkies the other day, she briefly found herself in doggie heaven ... when she was confronted by a bone as big as herself.
However, this was no meaty treat - just a prehistoric prize. For Daisy had discovered a fossilised mammoth bone up to two million years old.
Unable to dig it up, she waited for owner Dennis Smith to arrive - and he was stunned to see the 13in, 8lb thigh section sticking out of the sand.
Clip:
Introductions at Seville Square in downtown Pensacola on Saturday were based more on noses and smells than handshakes and hellos.
Hundreds of canines led their owners through a maze of leashes, vendors and other patrons during Barktoberfest, an annual event hosted by the Humane Society of Pensacola.
The event — one of the main fundraisers for the no-kill animal shelter at 5 North Q St. — featured costume and best-trick contests; local artists and painters; and activities for children and families. read more
Link to more photos
A Mother pig feeds her nine hungry offspring – in the middle of a country road.
She halted as the piglets began suckling in the New Forest, Hants. Bernie Bed-ford, 60, who took our pic, said: “She wouldn’t move.”
Prevent the cat from escaping by clicking on the lighter spots. Link
Shreve Stocktons' daily photographs of her Montana coyote, 'Charlie'.
She also has this interesting site, Vespa Vagabond, which documents her cross country Vespa trip from San Francisco to New York City.
These lame baby hedgehogs are casualties of the chaotic weather.
They should be asleep for the winter - but instead they are nursing their broken bones at Tiggywinkles Wildlife Hospital near Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire.
The RSPCA says its rescue centres are looking after hundreds of abandoned hedgehogs born during the exceptionally mild autumn and who are too small or weak to hibernate.
The sighting of a rare penguin has excited researchers newar Mawson Huts in Antarctica.
An adult, unpigmented Adelie penguin was photographed near Granholm Hut on Sunday.
Penguins lacking pigmentation are referred to as "leucistic" and don't usually survive until adulthood because they attract predators and don't breed.
Australian Antarctic Division biologist, Rhonda Pike, says only one penguin with the genetic defect has been detected over a number of breeding seasons in a population of 4,000 Adelies.
"We have a population of tagged birds out there and we've never tagged any of the leucistic birds," said Ms Pike.
"So we don't know if it's the same one coming back year after year, but yeah, one out of 4,000."
Link to source
From The Sun:
T’S gnaw joke for Brandy the smallest dog in the world as she tries to tackle a meaty bone bigger than her SIX-INCH long body.
The Chihuahua — who is just a fraction taller than a cola can — was named the world’s smallest hound by the Guinness Book of Records and has finished growing.
Four-year-old Brandy weighs only 2lbs and cannot even BARK as her lungs are too small. Owner Paulette Keller, of Largo, Florida, said: “When I saw her I just fell in love with her.”
Paulette, 53, whose pint-sized pooch has become a hit on US TV, added: “With a dog like this you have to be careful. She can’t even jump on or off anything because her legs are so tiny.”
More pictures
Just in time for Valentine's Day… Link
Similar to the Chihuahua puppy born with love-heart pattern in fur
Found at growabrain
A California family says the unusual markings on one of their kittens, proves the kitty's love for its mother. Take a close look at the side of the cat -- on its fur you can see the message "I Love Dot." The family says the name of the kitten's mother is Dottie -- and the message of love is for her. The unique kitten was one of a litter of six.
Link to article and video
Previously on P&F:
From The Guardian:
An animal expert in Italy is claiming to have found proof of the existence of unicorns after he stumbled upon a young roe deer with a single horn growing from the centre of its forehead.
The 10-month old animal is part of a herd of deer that are otherwise equipped with two antlers at the Prato natural science centre in Tuscany.
''It's proof that the mythical unicorn celebrated in iconography and legends was probably not just a fantastic creature but a real animal: a deer or other species with an anomaly similar to that of our deer,'' said the centre's director Gilberto Tozzi.
Link Thanks Brady.
You may need to turn down the saccharine sound track that goes with this video.
Link to YouTube clip.
An eight-year-old dog has touched the hearts of Argentines by saving the life of an abandoned baby, placing him safely alongside her own new puppies.
The country's media are calling him "the miracle baby".
He was born prematurely to a 14-year-old girl in a shanty town outside the capital, Buenos Aires.
She is said to have panicked and abandoned the boy in a field, surrounded by wooden boxes and rubbish.
Then along came La China, the dog which somehow picked up the baby and carried him 50m to place him alongside her own puppies.
The dog's owner heard the child crying and found him covered with a rag.
The baby, weighing 4kg (8lb 13oz), had some slight injuries, but no bite marks. The owner called the police and the child is now being looked after by the authorities, while a decision is taken about his future.
The frightened mother appeared shortly after her baby was found.
The Argentine media has descended on the shanty town, talking of "the Argentine Romulus and Remus", the founders of Rome, abandoned as babies and rescued by a wolf, nearly 3,000 years ago.
La China, worried about her own puppies, is reported to be petrified by her new found fame, and her owner says he is worried that she is not eating.Link to BBC article
LONDON—A repentant robber in England sent his elderly victim a bouquet of flowers to apologize for frightening her, police said Friday. A 91-year-old woman received the flowers and a note after confronting a burglar in her home around 4 a.m. on Oct. 9, police said.
The card explained that the burglar thought the property in Halifax, about 200 miles north of London, was empty and apologized for breaking in.
Police said the woman was "very shaken" by the confrontation.
"Whoever did this has a conscience, and feels guilty for what he has done," West Yorkshire Police Det. Insp. Tony Nicholson said in a statement.
Police said the burglar fled the house empty-handed and appealed for him to come forward.
Link to SFGate's user photos of their pets.
Photo credit: themexican
Apparently, Photographer Sharon Montrose is smitten with dogs and photo booth strips.
Link to The Dog Photo Booth
"It was either me or the wife who was going to go in. And I would have been in trouble if the wife went in, so that was it."
As these pictures show, devoted Marc Greenhalgh risked life and limb saving his trapped pet from the middle of a freezing lake.
Mr Greenhalgh, 25, a bricklayer, said he was walking with his wife, Trisha, 24, when the dog ran onto the frozen water while chasing a duck.
But what the pet - named Jarvis - didn't realise, was that the middle of the lake wasn't frozen. And as he bounded across, he fell into the freezing water.
Mr Greenhalgh, who has only had the two-year-old rescued cocker spaniel for the past two months, said:"It certainly wasn't how I planned to start the New Year.
"Me and my wife were walking through the park and the dog was off the lead. He started to chase the ducks and ran straight into the middle of the pond - and into the water.
"To start with, we were shouting at him to come out. Then there was a crowd of about 10 or 15 people around all trying to get him out.
"After about five minutes I realised he wasn't coming. We tried a branch but he was too far out.
"So it was either me or the wife who was going to go in. And I would have been in trouble if the wife went in, so that was it."
Mr Greenhalgh said the ice on the Alkrington Woods' lake, in Middleton, Greater Manchester, was thicker than he thought - and the water deeper.
Wading to safety after the rescue
He said: "It was extremely cold. Someone had said I would be able to wade in and get Jarvis as it wasn't that deep.
"At one stage, though, it was up to my neck. I was so cold."
And when Mr Greenhalgh, who lives in Greater Manchester, finally got back to dry land, he said there was more sympathy for the spaniel than for him.
He said: "When we both got out I was so cold. The crowd that was gathered started petting Jarvis and they were definitely more concerned about him than me!
"I had to jog back to the car and get the heat on straight away."
Jarvis, though, does not seem to have learned his lesson.
Mr Greenhalgh said:"This happened on New Year's Day and we've been walking in the woods since then.
"But I keep him firmly on the lead now. He wants to be off chasing the ducks but, even if he hasn't learned his lesson, I've learned mine."
Excellent collection of 'funny' aniimal shots via The Presurfer
A PUPPY has been born in Japan with a large, clear, love-heart-shaped pattern in his coat.
The chihuahua was born in May as one of a litter to a breeder.
In pictures: Heart-kun, the love-heart puppy
Shop owner Emiko Sakurada said it was the first time a puppy with the marks had been born out of a thousand she had bred.
She had no plans to sell the puppy, which has been named "Heart-kun".
Link to article
Link to video (sorry the link is no longer good)
Beverley Burkitt, 45, who has dwarfism, became lost in dense forest while walking with her tiny dog Pebbles on Sunday.
The alarm was raised but she had not been found when night fell, so she lay on the floor and cuddled the dog to keep herself warm.
A search party found her the next morning and rescuers said the dog had saved her from getting hypothermia.
Mum-of-one Beverley said: "Pebbles lay across my legs overnight and kept me warm.
"I wasn't too worried because I knew I would be found sooner or later.
"I'm very thankful to everyone who came out to look for me."
Beverley and her daughter, 15, were staying at a pony trekking centre at Dolwyddelan, North Wales, when she went missing.
She told rescuers that she strayed into woodland and then dropped her mobile phone.
A helicopter with heat-seeking cameras was launched and search parties on the ground scoured the area.
But it was not until the next day that she was found after her mobile phone was discovered on a path.
Asthma sufferer Beverley, of Colwyn Bay, North Wales, was found still snuggling up to the long-haired black and white chihuahua.
She was unharmed and allowed home.
Chris Lloyd, of the Ogwen Valley Mountain Rescue, said: "She went for a walk at 10am with her little dog and walked into the forest where she dropped her mobile phone.
"She realised she was lost and just waited.
"Luckily it was quite a mild night and she had her dog to keep her warm."
More:
Puppies and Flowers : Chihuahua puppy born with love-heart pattern in fur
Puppies and Flowers : Kitten with heart in fur
Puppies and Flowers : Pig born with love-heart pattern in fur
A rare ginger monkey born at an Australian zoo has made its public debut - after being rejected by its mother.Elka, a Francois Langur monkey, is being hand-raised by staff at Taronga Zoo in Sydney.
More pictures after the jump.
You know the saying "you can't polish a turd"? Well you can sprinkle glitter on it.
That's what the folks over Sprinkle Brigade do. More about their story on their blog.
He is a third of the size of an average guinea pig, and weighs in at just a few ounces - but this tiny puppy could be a big deal when it comes to world records.
The miniscule chihuahua-Jack Russell cross - appropriately named Tom Thumb by its owners - is a serious contender for the title of being the smallest dog on the planet.
Little Tom was born just three weeks ago as part of a surprise litter to mum Spice, a chihuahua. Little Tom
This seems like a feature Google should have had all along. When browsing images you get the option to select similar images based on results.
I still prefer Flickr, here are some Flickr and non-FlickrTools.
Select up to 10 colors and get image results that use that palette. Pretty cool.
We extracted the colours from 3 million “interesting” Flickr images. Using our visual similarity technology you can navigate the collection by colour.
2. CompFight
Unsure how this site does it, but it generates search results twice as fast a search on Flickr itself, even displays the pixel dimensions of the largest version of the image available. I use this site ALL the time.
This page contains an archive of all entries posted to Puppies and Flowers in the *Puppies & Flowers category. They are listed from oldest to newest.
Actual News Headline is the next category.
Many more can be found on the main index page or by looking through the archives.
