Dog Interrupts Soccer Match To Get Petted

An Argentina Primera Division match between Belgrano and Quilmes had to be halted late in the first half when a dog wandered onto the pitch.  "Humans — I command you to stop playing your silly games and shower me with affection," the dog said before finding a Quilmes player who could not resist its charms and began to pet it. Another Quilmes player, Jonathan Zacaria, then picked up the dog and carried it off the pitch.  The match was then able to resume and ended in a 1-1 draw. Clearly that dog was the day's only winner.

http://tinyurl.com/le9rkzd

Killer Whales Learn to Speak Dolphin

Are killer whales multilingual?  A new study from the Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute has found that captive orcas kept with bottlenose dolphins adopt the signature clicks and whistles of their tank mates. But some scientists question claims made in the paper that this knowledge can benefit endangered orca populations in the wild.

http://tinyurl.com/krf98du

Living With Neil the Lion in 1971

This is what happens when a lion becomes part of the household.  These pictures show Tippi Hedren — star of Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds — with her husband, Noel Marshall, and her daughter, actress Melanie Griffith, and their lion, Neil. Melanie is Tippi's daughter from her first marriage to Peter Griffith.  At the time these pictures were taken, Melanie was 19.

http://tinyurl.com/oqb9fcp

20 Adorable Animals That Dislike the Vet

An animal's equivalent to a dentist appointment is a trip to the vet.  They can put on their best puppy face and try as hard as they want — even hide in the sink at the doctor's office — but the visit is inevitable. Despite putting your beloved pet through so much anxiety, your little ball of fluff is just as cute when they're a ball of nerves.Sorry, cute animals, but there is just no escaping a trip to the evil vet — no matter how adorable you look.

http://tinyurl.com/ngtzbst

Dog Named 'Lazarus' Survives Euthanasia Attempt

Animal control officer Wanda Snell knows what she saw: A veterinarian inserted a needle into the black-and-brown mutt and injected a chemical meant to euthanize the dog no one had adopted. The animal moved a bit and was still and quiet by the time she left the shelter for home.  What Snell can't explain is how or why a mixed-breed dog that nobody wanted recovered overnight and has since bounced back fully from what should have been a lethal injection.

http://tinyurl.com/kypuugx

Thula The Cat Helps Girl With Autism

Iris Grace Halmshaw is a 4-year-old girl from the U.K.  In December 2011, Iris was diagnosed with autism. She struggled with communication, expressing affection, and social interaction.  After her diagnosis, Iris’ parents looked for activities through which she could effectively express herself.  They also introduced a new friend into Iris’ life. In February 2014, they brought Thula the Maine Coone home, and it was the “beginning of a beautiful new friendship.”  Thula is more than just a therapy cat, she’s Iris’ faithful best friend.

http://tinyurl.com/prm3chg

Farm Runoff Is Killing Hawaiian Sea Turtles

Hawaii’s golf courses and pineapple farms are causing tumors in imperiled green sea turtles, a study published Tuesday finds.  The link is an amino acid called arginine, which trickles down from the island’s nutrient-rich urban runoff into the turtle’s food source, riddling their bodies with white tumors.  “We’re drawing direct lines from human nutrient inputs to the reef ecosystem and how it affects wildlife,” said Kyle Van Houtan, lead researcher on the study, in a statement.

http://tinyurl.com/kmkgadl

Video: Meet Acer, the Precious Miniature Horse

Li'l Sebastian fans, meet his real life counterpart: Acer, the miniature horse.  At 22 inches tall, the 3-year-old Aquinas is one of the smallest horses in Britain. He lives on Wolfscastle Miniature Horse Farm, where he spends his time with other small steeds and relaxes in his stable, complete with a custom miniature door.  Acer even has a best friend on the farm: the owner's labrador named Demon. The two make an especially handsome pair.

http://tinyurl.com/lyuyn4a

Unexpected Animal Friends

A bear, a tiger and a lion. They’re dangerous predators, but they’re friends. The reason they do not attack each other or consider the other as rivals, is that they were brought up together.

http://tinyurl.com/ll9j4jt

We're The Reason World Has Lost Half of Its Wildlife

The world’s population of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish has plummeted 53 percent since 1970, according to a World Wildlife Fund report released on Tuesday.  “Population sizes of vertebrate species have halved over the last 40 years,” the report said. “The state of the world’s biodiversity appears worse than ever.” During the same time, the world's human population has doubled, it noted.  The study used a Living Planet Index to measure more than 10,000 populations of the world’s vertebrates.

http://tinyurl.com/klcf8ht