Childless Couple Adopts Gorilla

Pierre and Elianne Thivillon don’t have any children. But they do have a 265-pound gorilla. The couple, both zookeepers, took in Digit 13 years ago, when her biological mother refused to breastfeed. They already had experience working with gorillas, but acknowledge that it’s not an easy job.

http://tinyurl.com/3f748o4

Fourth of July Pet Safety Tips

Though fireworks sales have been banned and Fourth of July celebrations in many communities cancelled, it’s still important to prepare your pet for the snap, sparkle and pop, just in case.

http://tinyurl.com/3bel259

Central Park Carriage Horses Get Much Needed Vacation

Everyone needs a vacation -- even a horse. Working equines kick off their horseshoes and frolic freely at the Central Park carriage-horse version of Cancun: a farm in upstate Monticello.

http://tinyurl.com/4y558bv

More than 1,000 Species Discovered in New Guinea

A new type of tree kangaroo, a 2.5-metre-long river shark, a frog with vampire-like fangs and a turquoise lizard are among hundreds of new creatures found and being documented in a report by conservationists working in the Pacific island of New Guinea.

http://tinyurl.com/6hshmzl

Watch Video of Shark Jumping Over Surfer

Sharks patrolling the waters off the Florida coast is not an uncommon sight but seeing a shark jump a surfer is a first for an Orlando photographer who was filming an action video of another surfer when he heard a voice exclaim "Dude, did you see that?"

http://tinyurl.com/5rutn3c

Yoda the Chihuahua Crowned the World's Ugliest Dog

They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder. And it definitely seems to be the case with this pooch who was kissed and cuddled by her owner as she bagged the title of the World's Ugliest Dog. In the dog-eat-dog world of contests Yoda managed to wow judges at a Northern Californian fair on Friday with her short tufts of hair, protruding tongue and long hairless legs.

http://tinyurl.com/67ltq53

Animal Care Service Careers Continue to Grow

Employment of animal care and service workers is expected to grow 21 percent during the decade from 2008 to 2018, which is much faster than the average for all occupations, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

http://tinyurl.com/5t8uaa5

Friday is Take Your Dog to Work Day

This week, offices and businesses from coast to coast are going to the dogs. On Friday, June 24, Pet Sitters International is celebrating Take Your Dog to Work Day.

http://tinyurl.com/5s4k4r9

Watch Zola the Breakdancing Gorilla

This breakdancing gorilla will put any human's moves to shame.According to the Calgary Zoo, Zola is a male gorilla that just can't contain himself when it comes to puddles of water. See for yourself as he tears it up on the makeshift dance floor in the video below.

http://tinyurl.com/3hzuur4

Penguin Takes Wrong Turn and Ends Up in New Zealand

A young Emperor penguin took a rare wrong turn from the Antarctic and ended up stranded on a New Zealand beach – the first time in 44 years the aquatic bird has been sighted in the wild in the South Pacific country.

http://tinyurl.com/3lz6mcf

Copper the Cat Survives 12 Story Fall in NYC

She's down to eight lives. An Upper West Side tabby proved that cats always land on their feet after she fell 12 stories from her owner's West End Avenue apartment and survived slamming into the roof of a neighboring parking garage.

http://tinyurl.com/5vpdpz9

900 Pets Still Homeless After Joplin Tornado

Hundreds of dogs and cats peer out from their cages at the Joplin Humane Society some with cuts, infections and broken bones from the deadly tornado that turned their lives, like those of their owners, upside down.

http://tinyurl.com/3tff63n

Family of Seven Cats Survive Deadly Tornado

A Massachusetts family whose home was destroyed by the tornadoes that struck the state on June 1 has found all seven of its cats alive. Michael Roescher says all seven of his family's cats were inside their rented home in Monson when it collapsed, but the last one was recovered from the rubble on Sunday.

http://tinyurl.com/4xhyscw

Ten Tips to Keep Your Pet Safe this Summer

As summer approaches, we again enjoy our outdoor community and plan driving and camping trips. For pet owners, these activities also mean extra special consideration for dogs, cats and other animals.

http://tinyurl.com/3upzj6p

Pets May Reduce Children's Allergy Risk

A study of almost 600 youngsters discovered that early exposure to cat and dogs prevented them becoming allergic later in life. The first year of a child’s life is the most important period in building up resistance, the results of the study in the journal Clinical & Experimental Allergy showed.

http://tinyurl.com/6cdsm85

Abandoned Yellow Baboon Adopts Orphaned Bush Baby

An abandoned bush baby and a yellow baboon have formed an unlikely companionship at an animal orphanage in Nairobi. The six-month-old female baboon, abandoned by its family in Maralal in Northern Kenya, is taking care of the three-month-old bush baby that was also abandoned by its family in central Kenya.

http://tinyurl.com/3k55r3v

How Dogs Think and Learn About Human Behavior

Dog owners often attest to their canine companion's seeming ability to read their minds. How do dogs they learn to beg for food or behave badly primarily when we're not looking?

http://t.co/Qzq6AKa

San Francisco Considering Ban on Cat Sales

San Francisco’s Commission of Animal Control & Welfare is once again scheduled to hear a proposal to ban the sale of cats and other pets at city pet stores after postponing a vote on the controversial issue for several months.

http://tinyurl.com/5rdee7e

Meet Mudslinger the Amazing Pig

Amazing video that shows just how intelligent pigs really are.

http://tinyurl.com/bpm5u5

Lucy the Lost Doggie Gets Lucky

Facebook has been blamed for many hours of procrastination and stalking, but what about finding a lost dog?

http://tinyurl.com/3hxxt4p

June is Adopt-A-Cat Month

Each spring during “kitten season,” thousands of newborn kittens join the millions of cats already in shelters across the country. That means your local shelter has tons of cute, cuddly newborns, in addition to all the mellow, older cats and everything in between. And the shelter staff are ready to help you adopt your very first cat — or to bring home a friend for another beloved cat!

http://tinyurl.com/3vdczxy

Did This Kitty Really Swim Across the Hudson River?

This is one mysterious -- and lucky -- kitty. The New York area media are buzzing this morning about this little calico cat that seems to have washed up on Governor's Island. Or, perhaps, swam there from New Jersey, crossing the Hudson to do it.

http://bsun.md/gj8bkl

Dog Who Wondered 1,200 miles is Reunited with Family

Lost but not forgotten, a Colorado dog spent six months on the run, eventually ending up at a shelter in Salinas, CA., 1200 miles from home.

http://bit.ly/ltufip

Social Networking Saving Lives of Homeless Animals

As the popularity of social networking continues to explode, more and more people are finding old friends, making new ones and finding love at sites such as Facebook.

http://bit.ly/l65NBi

Initial Deadline to Protect African Lions Missed

Yesterday marked the passing of the 90-day deadline for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to make its initial response to a petition seeking protection for African lions under the Endangered Species Act.

http://bit.ly/kZ8qMB

True Hero Dog

Amazing video that shows just how loyal dogs are.

http://tinyurl.com/5m8h3o