Paws for thought: The hilarious cats who think they're human

By Suzannah Hills


Cat nap: Not only does this moggy appear to be sitting like a human - he also appears to be yawning like one too


We are a nation of cat lovers who love nothing more than doting on our feline friends.

And it appears this is the same the world over as owners can't seem to resist posting pictures of their moggies having a mooch in an increasingly popular internet craze.

Several websites and blogs have been set up purely for the 'purr'poses of celebrating cats who like to sit back and relax in style - just like their human owners.


Sitting kitty: This cute cat seems perfectly comfortable where he is and has no intention of moving for anyone


Purrfect pose: This tabby looks very content having a snooze on the sofa


The lap of luxury: This cat seems perfectly happy resting back on its very own sun lounger


A-mew-sing: This cat sat on the mat(tress)

No elbows on the table! Some moggies are just im-puss-ible to discipline

A host of websites, Facebook pages, viral emails and blogs have been circulating pictures of ‘cats that sit like humans’ — and they’ve even been featured on TV.

And as these latest selection of kitty couch potatoes show, it is startling how their behaviour can seem very human.

One owner in Dubai posted a pic of their cat, two-year-old Tigy, relaxing on the sofa.

She wrote: 'Tigy in his favourite position. He's always just sitting back, relaxing on the bed. So adorable.'


I'm kitten all the attention: You can't help but love their adorable poses


I could do with a ginger beer: This cat's in his comfort zone


One cool cat: Everyone needs time to chill


Relaxing: Two-year-old Tigy sits back on his owner's bed in Dubai


Mirror image: A pair of cats cuddle up on the sofa to watch their favourite TV shows


Feline groovy: It's funny how humans sit just like us


Catatonic: Happy just to lay back and take it easy - this cat shows his owner how it's done



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Dazzling diversity of dogs: How humans breed their canine companions into amazing varieties

By Daily Mail Reporter


Diversity: This Afghan hound, Manny, provides one of the more spectacular examples of canine variation


Dogs come in all shapes and sizes, from towering alsatians to tiny chihuahuas, from shaggy St Bernards to hairless puppies.

But remarkably, every breed of dog is a member of exactly the same species - Canis lupus familiaris.

While some variation between breeds has occurred naturally, most of the very obvious differences are the direct result of human breeding.

Contrast: Oakley the pug and Little Dude, a St Bernard, are members of the same species despite appearances

A feature in the latest issue of National Geographic magazine illustrates the extraordinary diversity of caninekind - and explains how much of it is the result of human activity.

While many dogs nowadays are bred for their aesthetic qualities, in the past there were more practical motivations behind human intervention in the gene pool.

Many dogs were raised to be the best possible hunters - for example, as National Geographic notes, the dachshund was bred to get in to badgers' setts with their low, narrow entrances - hence its name, which means 'badger dog' in German.


Striking: The remarkable appearance of black-haired puli Charlotte is produced by variations in three genes


Distinctive: The Rhodesian ridgeback is famous for the shape of its spine, the result of just a single gene

Unusual: But the hairlessness of dogs like Sugar, a Chinese crested, is down to only one genetic variation

One possible reason dogs are so easily adaptible is because changing their genetic code is relatively simple compared to many other species.

In human genes, for example, nearly every characteristic is governed by a complex network of genes, which work in combination to display certain outcomes.

But with dogs, many quite drastic changes, such as fur type and ear shape, are controlled by a single genetic variation.


Beautiful: The papillon takes its name from the French for 'butterfly' because of the shape of its ears


Protective: The behaviour of Tibetan mastiffs like Midas remains a mystery to scientists

Dogs: The English setter is another breed created by no more than a few dozen evolutionary changes

In fact, a huge research project called CanMap determined that every single biological difference affecting dogs' appearance is controlled by one of around 50 gene variations.

This simplicity is partly a result of the human activity which has tinkered with canine biology for thousands of years, and has therefore picked out the characteristics most easily changed by simple genes.

Nonetheless, there is one aspect of variation among dogs which breeders do not yet know how to control - canine behaviour remains a closed book for researchers.


These amazing images are taken from the February 2012 issue of National Geographic magazine, on sale now



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Has the internet completely lost it? Attempt to make dressing up cats with BREAD next web trend

By Daily Mail Reporter


Breading: The new craze involves enthusiastic cat owners encasing their pet's head in a slice of bread

Are you over planking? Bored of owling? Tired of Tebowing?

A Facebook group dedicated to dressing cats in bread, and promoted by blogs across the internet, is attempting to create a new internet trend.

'Breading' could be taking off because it combines apparently random behaviour with the web's favourite animal.

Surreal: This kitty appears to have been breaded while it was trying to observe the aurora borealis

The Facebook page - entitled 'Putting bread on your cat, so that people think you have a walking sandwich' - has more than 10,000 fans.

It encourages its followers to post their own pictures of the wacky activity, and suggests that they might like to try using tiger bread to do it.

But while there is no doubting the authenticity of the photos uploaded by enthusiastic cat-owners, the breading craze may not be quite as much of a grassroots movement as it seems.


Serene: This laid-back cat appears to accept its owner's whim without getting agitated


Surprise: The pussy clearly didn't anticipate being ambushed with a wholegrain loaf

Crowned: Unusually, this cat has chosen to wear its yeasty headgear as a hat

The craze got a big boost from blog site Gawker, which claimed yesterday morning that 'all the cool kids' had started breading - and just an hour later boasted: 'Now people can't stop talking about breading!'

By the evening, another post appeared which claimed that breading had already 'jumped the shark' and lost its cool exclusivity.

The whole thing seemed like an elaborate inside joke, spoofing the nature of short-lived crazes which are more likely to be talked about than actually participated in.


Craze: But breading may have been promoted as an ironic commentary on internet memes in general


Popular: Whatever its origins, breading has quickly taken off among a certain sector of pet owners

Healthy: A cat encased in health-friendly seeded and wholegrain bread

Nonetheless, plenty of internet users seem happy to use their cats as tools for their own amusement, and perhaps breading really will catch on in the long term.

If you want to do it yourself, you need only two ingredients: bread and cat. Soft bread is recommended, both for your own convenience and for the cat's comfort.

Punch out a head-shaped hole in the middle of the bread, and insert your cat's head therein.

And be sure to take a picture, to capture that special moment for posterity.


Yawn: The victim of breading looks like it would prefer a return to less cat-intensive practices like planking


On the up: But it remains to be seen how long breading will remain popular with notoriously fickle netizens



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How could you turn down these pups? Magnificent seven searching for new homes after being abandoned

By LIZ HULL and KATIE SILVER


Puppy dog eyes: These seven Staffordshire Bull Terriers are among a growing number of animals needing new homes as owners struggle to afford the cost during tough economic times


Hard as it may be to believe, these adorable pups have been abandoned and are on the lookout for new owners.

The eight-week old Jack Russell crosses, with their sad puppy dog eyes, are among a record 16 puppies in only five days taken into one Welsh rescue centre.

‘They are really cheeky, playful little things, so I’m hopeful we should be able to find good homes for them,’ said Nicky Owen from North Clwyd Animal Rescue.

Dumped on roadsides or abandoned in cardboard boxes, these puppies are often the result of Christmas presents that have lost their novelty or breeders who are unable to sell their litters.

It’s really sad, but the puppies are adorable,' Ms Owen said.

Along with the magnificent seven, the arrivals include Sam, a 12-week-old springer spaniel and Sky, a ten-week-old Staffordshire bull terrier.

Nicky Owen from North Clwyd Animal Rescue, near Holywell, north Wales, said many of the pets had been bred for sale over Christmas but were abandoned after nobody bought them.

She added: ‘Getting 16 puppies in five days is a record for our centre after Christmas. People have been breeding pups and just not being able to sell them.

‘We’ve had all sorts of weird crosses brought in, probably due to the success of dogs like the labradoodle, but they simply haven’t been attractive to buyers.

Two adult shih tzu crossbreeds and their three scruffy puppies melted the hearts of staff at the centre after they were found dumped in a cardboard box close to a main road two weeks ago.

The parents have been named Jane and Jim, and their four-week-old puppies have been called Jade, Jess and Jack.

The centre has also taken a litter of eight-week-old Jack Russell crosses and a Staffordshire bull terrier crossbreed called Ashley.


Adorable: Staffordshire bull terrier crossbreed Ashley is looking for a home




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The owl and the (peckish) pussycat: Children scream in horror as lion eats blundering bird

By Andrew Levy


Ash, the barn owl from Colchester zoo who was eaten by a lion during a display

IT is a scene played out in thousands of gardens every day...albeit on a rather smaller scale.

But when a cat caught and devoured a bird at a zoo, it caused pandemonium among visitors.

In this case it was a lion that ate a barn owl which had become ‘spooked’ during a falconry display and flown out of the arena.

One of the lions at the zoo that is believed to have pounced on the owl after it was knocked out of the air by a lioness

The unfortunate bird, a female called Ash, had been left dazed and disoriented after clattering into a window.

She landed unsteadily in a couple of other spots before swooping down to a ledge in the lion enclosure.

The bird then appears to have lost her footing and was clubbed out of the air by a lioness before a male pounced and made short work of her as screaming zoo visitors looked on.

Staff at Colchester Zoo in Essex quickly moved in but were unable to prevent Ash’s untimely death.

Gavin Duthie, who witnessed the gruesome scene with his two-year-old son Daniel, said: ‘He was in tears, along with most of the people who were there. Women and children were screaming but it was all over in seconds.


Colchester Zoo where an owl was killed in front of children during a demonstration

‘It’s in the lion’s nature. I have taught Daniel that lions are not fluffy animals.
He was very upset but we will be back in the zoo again.’

The drama took place on Saturday afternoon as dozens of visitors gathered around the falconry arena.

The owl, who was nine and might have lived for up to 20 years in captivity, is believed to have been frightened by a noise or a camera flash and veered into a nearby window.

She then flew on to the roof of a meerkat enclosure before entering the lion’s habitat, where she lost her footing and was swiped by a waiting paw.

Moments later she was swallowed up by another of the big cats, five-year-old Bailey, whose diet were he on the African plains would be more likely to include wildebeest, zebras or buffalo.

It was no contest between the 8ft, 550lb king of the jungle and the 19oz barn owl – also known in folklore as the Death Owl.

The crowd was moved on and the area closed off as zoo keepers tried to restore order. Ash was one of a handful of barn owls that had been bred in captivity at Colchester.

Describing the bird’s final moments, the zoo’s marketing director Alex Downing said yesterday: ‘Although she landed on the side of the enclosure, she very sadly lost her footing and fell in, whereupon she was killed by one of the lions.’

She added: ‘Everyone is obviously extremely upset about such a combination of events.
‘But there is nothing that anyone could have done at the time to avoid such an awful outcome.

‘In 25 years of falconry displays a fatality has never occurred as the birds do normally instinctively know that this isn’t a safe place to go.

Unfortunately, we can only assume that it was because she was dazed that she flew across the enclosure.’



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How much fun can you have with a hard hat? Just ask the lonely polar bear

By Suzannah Hills


Taking the plunge: Walker dives in after his favourite toy - a hard hat


You'd be amazed how much entertainment a polar bear can get out of a simple hard hat.

And Walker the polar bear proved there was no end to the games he could play with a workman's safety helmet when he managed to get his paws on one for an hour after his weigh in today at the Highland Wildlife Park.

His keepers spotted three-year-old Walker throwing the hat into the water before diving in to retrieve it and then practised balancing it on his paw and his nose.


Nearly got it: Walker sets his sights on grabbing the workman's safety hat

Missed it: Walker plunges into the pond, narrowly missing his beloved hat, which drifts off along the water at the Highland Wildlife Park

Walker's playtime was well-deserved after his weigh-in today - which showed he has grown considerably since first arriving at the park.

But Walker, the only polar bear on public display in the UK, had to first be lured on to the scales with his favourite fishy treats to allow keepers to weigh him.

Walker was given a trail of sardines to follow to tempt him on to a large wooden platform attached to a set of scales which revealed he has gained around 330lb in just over a year.

The three-year-old bear weighed in at 63 stone - when he arrived at the Highland Wildlife Park in Kingussie, Inverness-shire in December 2010 he was around 39 stone.


Making a splash: Walker throws the hat up into the air before chasing after it again


Got it: Walker finally catches the pesky hat that kept giving him the slip

On the nose: Walker prepares to practice balancing his hard hat with varying degrees of success

It will be another two or three years before he is fully grown and by the age of six he will weigh an estimated 80-110 stone.

Una Richardson, the centre's head keeper, said: 'The weigh-in this morning with Walker went extremely well. We managed to tempt him on to the scales with a few of his favourites - sardines.

'We are really pleased with Walker’s weight. He’s a big boy at 403kg, which is around 63 stone. It’s slightly higher than what we had expected. We guessed he could be around 62 stone, which is around 395kg.

'It’s a good, healthy weight for a polar bear of his age and size and is close to the weight we had expected.


Dinner time: Keepers had to use sardines to lure Walker on to the scales to get weighed


Walker is weighed by Senior Keeper David Barclay at the Highland Wildlife Park at Kincraig, Inverness-shire

Tongue rub: Walker gets a tongue rub after being weighed by Head Keeper Una Richardson

'After we took his weight reading he was off to play with his favourite toy - a hard hat - and enjoy the rest of his morning.

'Knowing precisely what he weighs gives us a very good indication of how well he is doing and, should we need to anaesthetise him for any reason or give him any medication, knowing what he weighs allows us to give him a more accurate and therefore a more effective dose.

'Weighing Walker is a two-person job. One of us has to be ready to take the weight reading and the other has to get Walker on to the scales.'

Una said Walker has become a favourite with visitors at the park, which is owned by the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, because of his playful antics.

And she added that the UK could have a second polar bear on display by the end of this year.

Una continued: 'We have hopes of getting Walker a mate sometime this year but at the moment he is enjoying his bachelor lifestyle.'



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Come on then if you think you're hard enough: Adorable desert squirrels at play on their first outing from mother's burrow

By Rebecca Seales



Hard nut: This baby ground squirrel wasn't afraid to pose for the cameras on its first trip out of the burrow

These cute baby round-tailed ground squirrels couldn't contain their excitement after being let out of the safety of their burrow for the first time.

The tiny siblings didn't waste any time exploring the big wide world around them.

And it wasn't long before they were up to mischief, as they began playfighting as soon as their mother was out of sight.

Playfighting: This pair of babies started a scuffle as soon as their mother's back was turned - though they almost appear to be kissing

Photographer Eirini Pajak took these adorable shots close to his home in Florence, Arizona.

The 35-year-old said: 'The youngsters spend most of the day nibbling little bits of grass, but they also would pick on each other and play-fight.

'They were not exactly graceful as they were just learning to stand so they would often fall over in clumsiness.


Daylight! The babies emerge from the gloom of their burrow for a first look at the world - as one uses its sibling's tail as a sun-shield

Sticking together: Sunlight must have come as a shock to the critters, which live underground between late August and January or February

'I had been watching this particular hole on a regular basis so I know that when I found these guys it was their first time above ground.

He added: 'I shot everything from my car. I spent a lot of time parked near their hole so that they would get used to me.

'I picked them because they were near a little dirt road, so the mother was somewhat used to occasional cars.'


Maternal guidance: The mother squirrel steps in to reassure her four youngsters as they familiarise themselves with their new surroundings


Holding on tight: Despite their mischief the babies still stick close to their mother - who keeps a watchful eye on their safety



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