Dolphin Dream Come True

Ever wanted to ride a Dolphin or BE a Dolphin? I know I have, and some people are lucky enough to find out what it might feel like- click the last photo :)
The Seabreacher can glide on top or below water at high speed - and it has enough power to soar out of the water and fly through the air and perform stunts.

Shamu, Another Big Kitty at Prince Chunk's Shelter!

Another big kitty has been rescued and brought to the same shelter Prince Chunk stayed. I am glad someone found this big fella, the shelter will be contacting some of the 400 people who applied for Chunk!
A second fat cat has been dropped off at the same New Jersey animal shelter that introduced the world to a 44-pound tabby named Prince Chunk or Powder, reports the New York Daily News.

His name: Shamu. Weight: 35 pounds.

Shamu was found Aug. 26 roaming outside an abandoned home in Camden and delivered to the shelter. It seemed the cat had been living in the unoccupied home for a few weeks, though he clearly had no problem finding food, said Catherine Harr, board president of the Camden County Animal Shelter.

Read the whole article here

Kaya the Baby Rhino is a Small "Immense Joy"

Kaya's name means "immense joy" in the Pali dialect of Asia

Kaya is the newest Zoo Baby at the San Diego Zoo. She is also quite the precocious little lady:
The mother also showed Kaya into one of the water holes where the 300-pound calf had her first swimming experience.

"I haven’t seen a calf as young as Kaya get that deep into a watering hole," said Andy Blue, Animal Care Manager for the Wild Animal Park.
"She took right to it and swam around her mother and back to the shallow end where she could stand."

Click the photo to read all about Kaya!

Seriously Cute "The Renaissance of Cute"

Read this great interview about the rise of Cute in modern street art! Cuteness is everywhere! :)

“The Renaissance of Cute.” Thinking about this title, what was it, when did it die, when was it reborn, and what is it now?
Well there’s a bit of a con in that title that I hoped nobody would call me on. Renaissance, you’re quite right, implies the rebirth of something quite old. Cute as an aesthetic in Western art is actually not all that old. Let’s date it to—I’m not an art historian—but I’d say nineteenth century at the very latest. Certainly you can find images earlier that we’d recognize today as cute. But in terms of the exploitation of what we now think of as cute—let’s go with big eyes as its hallmark—that dates from the end part of the nineteenth century and takes off with Disney, in the first third of the twentieth century. My point is that cute got, almost from its birth, co-opted by the commercial world and therefore made impossible for serious art.

So it was dead to the art world?
It was dead to the art world, probably almost from its inception. The renaissance is the rebirth of it within what I take to be serious art, and by serious art I mean non-commercial.
Read the whole interview and see more links here

Coming to Life 77

More Coming To Life

Teddy Bear Phone Concept Is Too Cute for Words

Willcom recently presented its "Kuma Phone" (translates to "Bear Phone") concept at the 2008 Good Design Expo. The Kuma Phone is literally just that--a teddy bear that's also a mobile phone. The teddy bear can house your SIM card and can really be used to accept and make calls. Using it is actually as simple as placing the doll on your ears just like you would a conventional phone. In fact, you can even program up to four speed dial numbers on it--one for each paw. You just pinch a paw to activate internal sensors and call a number.
Read the whole story of this cutie-pie here

Brave Bella Kitty Survives 70-Mile Trip Under Truck

She stayed calm knowing soon she would get some help, she stayed put and now has a wild ride memory! Good Kitty! Glad you waiting and didn't jump because now you are safe!

Bella the cat went for a 70-mile ride, precariously perched on the spare tire under owner Gil Smith's truck. Smith drove for 2 1/2 hours before he stopped and heard her frantic meows. Bella was shaky and tired, but otherwise fine.
Near cat-astrophe costs Gilbert pet a few lives
GILBERT, Ariz. - A cat survived a 2 1/2-hour trip on a spare tire under her owner's truck. Gil Smith recently drove from his Gilbert home 70 miles away for a business meeting in Kearny. When he got out of the truck, he heard a cat in distress and realized it was his.
Smith said the cat, Bella, was hysterical, shaky and tired, but was smart enough to know not to jump off the tire as the truck was moving.

Bella the cat went for a 70-mile ride, precariously perched on the spare tire under owner Gil Smith's truck. Smith drove for 2 1/2 hours before he stopped and heard her frantic meows. Bella was shaky and tired, but otherwise fine.

Smith and his wife have adopted three indoor cats, three goats and three chickens. But Smith said Bella, an outdoor cat the couple adopted years ago, has a special place in his wife's heart.

Smith said he canceled his meeting with a state Department of Economic Security official who had driven 50 miles to get to Kearny so he could get Bella home.
It was either that, or, he jokes, get a divorce.

Read the whole story here

Itsy Bitsy Spider..

Okay wee spidey I know what you are thinking... but that gal below you is "wee" compared to the buildings she's on.. :)

Through a Window

These are from a beautiful photo set by the BBC called "Through a Window". View the whole gallery here. To participate in their next gallery send in photos you have taken of African Elders.

Hamster Troy's Guide to a Good Wee Wednesday

Happy Wee Wednesday, Hamster Style! :)

Start the day with a nice snooze

then snack

then play

snooze

snack...
repeat above in different combinations..

Then call it a day!

"Whew! I'm bushed!"

"Cat 2" Hero Rescues Kitten from Gustav

Kitten is rescued from hurricane Gustav
Hurricane Kitten
Report by Cary Chow, Photojournalist: Vania Kuy

BAYOU LA BATRE, Ala. - -- What began as an updated report on the scene at Bayou La Batre, quickly became a kitten rescue mission. But the rescue wasn't a success out-of-the-box!

Cary Chow's Experience:
FOX10 News photojournalist Vania Kuy and I were updating the flood scene at Shell Belt Road in Bayou La Batre on Monday morning. The road was closed just hours after an initial report from the area. During a report, a small kitten began to meow and whimper loudly in a field located off of the intersection of Shell Belt Road and Highway 188.

In the middle of the report, Vania and I tried to rescue the kitten from the strong rain and wind, but the kitten quickly ran away. Upon finishing the report, we went back to grab the kitten and bring it to safety. I used a towel and tried to wrap up the kitten, but it was so frightened it squirmed and fled.

During our second attempt, Vania tried to grab the kitten. Again, unsuccessfully. This time the small, seemingly malnourished kitten ran into a marshy area where it became lost in the tall grass. However, we continued to hear the kitten meow, and after searching through the marsh, we found the kitten again.
This time, I wrapped up the kitten in the towel and picked him up. And once in the comfortable warmth of a dry towel, the previously-startled kitten quickly changed demeanor, and enjoyed the make-shift blanket.

After we grabbed the kitten, Bayou La Batre councilman Henry Barnes drove by, and we wanted to interview him on the latest area information. Not knowing what to do with the kitten, I just held him in one arm, while I held the mic out and interviewed Barnes with the other.
Upon completing the interview, we drove to the Bayou La Batre Fire Department and gave them the kitten.

After reporting our little adventure on the news, our station was quickly greeted with phone calls and e-mails from several caring viewers - all voicing their concern for the kitten. Several of the e-mails even offered new names for the little stray - including "Cat 2", "Bayou Cary", and "Cat Chow."
The little kitten even caught the attention of national networks like CNN. But most importantly of all, the kitten is safe and will go to a happy home.

Read the whole report here
And see the great video here

The Pigasso Art World Era

Remember these two cuties? Click here to go to their story.
Now a new "Pigasso" is coming up in the barnyard Art World. He and his friends are creating masterpieces for a good cause!

Pig's paintings to go on display, By Cat George - Peninsula News Review
Boris the Boar is very interested in the subject of his latest masterwork, titled ‘Still Life in Slop.’ After all, it’s a representation of his favorite foodstuff, and to create the piece, he gets to dip his snout into his food and push it about.

The chickens are a bit more vain and have decided to create a self-portrait in mixed media, although — other than feathers — they aren’t yet revealing what the media will be. The wooly horse is even more mysterious; while it can be revealed that the work he will display at the Mary Winspear Centre on September 6 will be an installation, he’s remaining tight-lipped on the subject.

All three of the artists are new to the Peninsula art scene, but their owner, Anny Scoones , expects that their work will get a good reception at the Please Your Palette fundraiser night at the Mary Winspear. The event, in support of the Mary Winspear Centre and Blue Heron Park , includes an art show, talent show, and dinner; while pieces from Scoones’ personal collection, including the work of her parents, Bruno Bobak and Molly Lamb Bobak, both famous Canadian artists, will be on display, the art created by the animals she houses at Glamorgan Farm will be for sale in an auction.

When she originally offered to display some of her collection, Scoones said, she was asked by a number of people if that would include animal art. She decided to investigate if any of her critters had a talent for it. “Before I knew it, I had discovered genius in the barnyard,” she enthused. Boris the Boar, who weighs in at 900 pounds, was a particular talent. “We think [his work] will be the next million-dollar piece in the National Gallery,” she said. “Boris has an aesthetic understanding of perspective unlike any other pig I’ve ever seen.”
Unlike many famous animal artists, Boris has no need of a brush to create his work. “He uses his snout, to work in his masterpiece, ‘Still Life of Slop,’” Scoones said. With his talent now on display — and his habit of working while wearing a beret and a scarf, in the French style — Scoones says she has nicknamed him ‘Pigasso.’

Scoones’ heritage breed naked-neck chickens are “working on a group effort,” she said. “It’s a totally different technique than Boris, it’s ongoing. They’re slow; Boris is quite spontaneous.”

She would not say anymore about the Russian wooly horse’s installation, other than to note that a wheelbarrow was involved.

“These are all priceless works of art,” she said.

Entrance to SANCHA Hall (Mary Winspear Community Cultural Centre, Sidney BC, Canada)The animal art, along with other works of art, a five-act talent show, and a catered meal, are all part of the fundraising evening on September 6. The evening begins at 4:30 p.m. with wines and hors d’ouevres and ends at 9 p.m. with an art auction. Attendees at the function will also be asked to contribute to a “community art piece” which will be on display at the centre afterwards. Contact the Mary Winspear for tickets ($100) or more information at 250-656-0275.
Read the article about their upcoming show here

Have Your Cake and Eat it too, Little Houses, NYC

Do you dream of a cute cottage with gabled roof and a scenic view, in Manhattan?
Well your dream has come true.. now just to raise the rent $$.. :)

EIGHT stories above Broadway, on the southeast corner of 97th Street, construction is near completion on three little houses that sit atop a turn-of-the-century apartment building. Tan in color, they have jaunty oval windows and tiny gabled roofs. On a recent morning, workers in hard hats scurried about porches resembling those in a community of hillside tract houses.

“I’ve received calls from people asking about those units, especially since they started putting decks up there,” said Edward Balazs of A.A.G. Management, the building’s agent. “There are many different types of penthouses, but it’s rare that they have the gabled roofs.”

It is hard to keep such a secret. Those with the privileged vantage of elevation have been able to watch the little houses go up over the past year and a half, and have followed developments with curiosity, envy and contempt.
“I think they have adjustable central air,” he said of the houses. “And attics.”

“It’s the talk of the building,” said Melissa Gavilanes, “We just sit and stare,” she said. Ms. Gavilanes found the penthouses alluring. “I would get a car,” she said, “and put it out in the driveway. And then I’d add a white picket fence, and AstroTurf. Maybe have a golden retriever playing in the yard.” Read the entire article here
Thanks Rick!

Help the Dog Cancer Ride Across America!

Angie, one of the Dog Cancer Ride Team :)
Please help, it's just a wee buck and a stamp! :)
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va., Sept. 2, 2008 — “It’s estimated that 1 of every 4 dogs will get cancer - that’s almost 18 million dogs. And the worst thing is having to stand there and watch … knowing there are things you can do to help, but just not having the money to do anything,” says http://www.DogCancerRide.com founder, Ted Schneck.

Schneck knows how it feels to lose a pet to cancer. In 2006, his beloved pet Marty (the “Wonderdog”), was diagnosed with cancer. Though doctors predicted Marty would be gone within 3 months, Schneck, with the help of friends, applied a ground breaking holistic plan involving supplements, nutrition and natural remedies. Miraculously, Ted and Marty got to spend 18 more joy-filled months together.

“I started getting letters from clients, desperate to help their dogs. They wanted to do these treatments that were helping dogs live so much longer, but they just couldn’t afford it. One man wrote to beg me for help. He was manic-depressive, on social security, and his dog had been with him through homelessness, divorce, and the worst times of his life. When his dog was first diagnosed with cancer, he’d sold his only transportation, his truck, to get his dog the surgery she needed. But now the cancer was back and he had nothing left to sell. Nothing to do but lie, curled up each night, praying for a miracle and not knowing what he’d do once he lost his dog - the only thing he had left in life,” says Schneck. (Watch the wonderful video below. People can be so selfless and amazing.)

Since May 25th, he’s been riding his bicycle cross-country as the last best hope for dogs whose owners can’t afford to give them the care they need. Schneck has raised over $15,000 for dog cancer charities.

And as the ride nears its end, Schneck is working to get 10,000 dog lovers to take 30-seconds to send a small token of their support for him and the dogs - by mailing $1, a Single Dollar Bill, to the Dog Cancer Ride Across America’s parent charity, Giving Globally (an Oregon based 501(c)(3)). Read the whole release here

$1 Donations can be mailed to:
Giving Globally - Dog Cancer Ride
6443 SW Beaverton-Hillsdale Hwy., Suite 370
Portland, Oregon 97221
Or donated online through the website at http://www.DogCancerRide.com/Dollar
For more information, visit http://www.DogCancerRide.com and http://www.MapOfHeroes.com.

Meet the Ride for the Cure for Cancer for Dogs team here

A Rash of Roamin' Gnomes!

Remember reading about Murphy the Gnome who traveled to exotic places? Well looks like this Gnome got it into his head to take off too. He just had a fun night out but still.. watch your Gnomes people! If they get that wanderin' look in their ceramic eyes who knows where they'll end up :)

This gnome, who is normally content to rest in the garden of the Davis home on Vaughn Avenue, recently spent a night gallivanting around town. Michael Gorman photo

Area gnome tours town
By Michael Gorman, THE VANGUARD

A local gnome might be the first of his kind to take a tour of Yarmouth.
The lawn at Carol Davis's home on Vaughn Avenue is filled with garden gnomes and other small statues and figures. Recently, one went missing and was returned, all without Davis and her husband knowing.

"We were away camping," she said. "My daughter found (the gnome) on the front step."
The gnome, who usually enjoys a shaded piece of real estate along the side of the house under a fern and in the company of a troll, was sitting on top of a note when Davis's daughter discovered him.In the note was a series of pictures documenting the gnome's "get-away," as the author called it.

lake milo, next to our house
Originally uploaded by lee-ya.
The pictures show the gnome with no name driving a car and stopping to visit such well-known Yarmouth landmarks as town hall, the Milton horse, Lake Milo and the Trefry farm. Judging by the photographs, the gnome worked up quite an appetite during the trip. Photographic evidence shows he stopped at McDonald's, Subway, Tim Hortons, a grocery store and for a slice of pizza. It would also seem that he feels 49 cents for a pound of bananas is a good deal.

Davis said she and her husband, whom she credits as having the green thumb in the family, got a laugh from the photos and were pleased to see the gnome, which Davis made in a ceramics class 10 years ago, was unharmed.

"I thought it was kind of cute," she said. "It wasn't broken or anything. It was all in one piece and the note was neatly written and the pictures were neatly taken."
Davis and her husband have lived in their home for close to 20 years. In that time, she said, they've never had a problem with their lawn ornaments. She said neither she nor her husband takes the gnome or any of his lawn mates for drives.

"They usually stay in the garden."
Read the article here

The Odd Couple

The Odd Couple
Originally uploaded by storic12.
Aww well what are friends for? Support and comfort! :)

Hello there fine fellows

Originally uploaded by todddd.
Yes it can beTwo-fur and Two-feather Tuesday, all creatures welcome :)

Two-fur Tuesday, 1/2 the Fruit of Labor Day

1/2 the Fruit of Labor Day
Originally uploaded by Cygnus~X1.
Welcome to the big wide world little babies! :)
Hope you have a wonderful time.
Happy Two-fur Tuesday everybody :)

Goodnight :)

Sleeping Beauty
Originally uploaded by ianmichaelthomas.

Goodnight to all the families and
evacuated Gustav pets sleep safe and come home soon! :)

Coming to Life 76

More Coming To Life

Lupin "Mr. Tiggywinkle" Garden Working Hedgie!

Oh sounds terrible eating treats, wandering gardens.. tough job :)
Battling with slugs and snails? It's a job for Mr. Tiggywinkle
As a last resort in her losing battle with slugs and snails, Constance Craig Smith had to call in a rather prickly expert - her own hedgehog

Lupin the hedgehog arrived in our garden after I decided to give up on slug pellets, even the supposedly eco-friendly ones. Hedgehogs are said to have a prodigious appetite for slugs and snails

Having read Beatrix Potter's The Tale Of Mrs Tiggywinkle a few thousand times as a child, I was already a fully paid-up member of the hedgehog fan club, but like most urbanites I hadn't actually seen many of them.

Luckily, there are a number of charities rescuing distressed hedgehogs, and after a bit of internet trawling I came across Wildlife Aid in Surrey, a charity that rehomes injured hedgehogs.In preparation, I bought a fox-proof hedgehog house on eBay for £40 (sites such as sttiggywinkles.org.uk have guides to building your own) and waited for my hedgehog to arrive. Finally, at the end of March, a male hedgehog was handed over to us.

That evening, I went out and checked the box; the food had gone, and so had Lupin. I had a look for him but couldn't see him, then just as I was about to go indoors I spotted one of my cats, Marvey, crouched in a flowerbed, fur bristling, her eyes wide with outrage. When I shone the torch in her direction I saw that Lupin was a few feet away, curled into a tight ball. As I watched, she tiptoed up to him, reached out with her paw, and then leapt backwards. After a few more minutes of hard staring, Marvey got bored with Lupin's lack of response and wandered off. Word must have got around, because Lupin and the cats have co-existed peacefully ever since.

He has quite a fan club locally, and for weeks after he arrived we had small children ringing the doorbell and demanding to see the hedgehog. He may not be cuddly, but he is undeniably cute. 'I think he's lonely,' my young neighbour Joe said the other day. 'You should get another hedgehog.' He's right, of course. Lupin will hibernate in a couple of months, and when he wakes up next spring we will get him a girlfriend. There's certainly room for two in that deluxe hutch. Read the entire article here

egel
Originally uploaded by eldeebee

A Little Hedgie back to "work" :)
MAKE YOUR GARDEN HEDGEHOG-FRIENDLY

Grow plenty of evergreen shrubs; hedgehogs need foliage cover.

Have a woodpile, so they can build a nest under it, and a compost heap to make a place for them to hibernate.

Use flowering hedges instead of fences and walls, to allow hedgehogs to travel from one garden to the next.

Have a source of water, like a pond or bog garden. The sides of the pond should slope so that hedgehogs and other small creatures can get out.

Cover your drains if there's no drain cover - hedgehogs can get trapped in them.

Store netting of all kinds, including football nets, out of harm's way as hedgehogs can get trapped in them.

If you are trimming or cutting long grass, make sure there are no hedgehogs lurking there. Be careful when turning over a compost heap, too.

In the UK: Wildlife Aid in Leatherhead, Surrey, sometimes has hedgehogs available for rehoming. Visit wildlifeaid.org.uk.
Tiggywinkles Wildlife Hospital, tel: 01844 292292 or visit sttiggywinkles.org.uk.
CRASH Hedgehog Hospital, tel: 01202 699358 or hedgehogs.org.uk.
British Hedgehog Preservation Society, tel: 01584 890801 or britishhedgehogs.org.uk.

In the USA: The International Hedgehog Club http://hedgehogclub.com/

It's Second Nature

Aww hope everybody is having or will soon have a nice day like this.
Click the picture for Second Nature the beautiful photo blog this comes from...

"Go see the blog!"
"Hey I'm goin I'm goin!"

Thanks Maj! :)

Fruit Sweet Loris and Friends

"I am a Loris :)"

"I like fruit. Do you like fruit?"

"I know I do!"

"OOooo Can I have some of that fruit?"

"Thank you!!"

Would you like to know something cool about fruit?

"I would!"

Read here for a gorgeous slideshow on fruit and how ingenious they prepare their seeds to make more delicious fruit to eat. Some seeds have wings for the wind to carry them and spikes to hitch a ride on animal's fur to travel far and wide- and it's just pretty to look at.

"Like me?"
Awww yes like you :)

Monkey Monday, Friends Forever

Friends Forever
Originally uploaded by per_andersen.
To all my friends out there in the storm and away from home evacuated, know that I and many other people are thinking of you- stay safe and come back soon!
*hug*