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The Happy-Potamus!

“When Jay Parker told his wife Lauren to say cheese, it seems someone else was listening, too. Otis the hippo pressed his face against the glass of his tank and produced what appears to be a beaming smile. And when the couple exchanged positions, the three-ton beast duly obliged with another grin. The Parkers, from Little Rock, Arkansas, took their extraordinary photographs during a holiday visit to San Diego Zoo in California. After posting them on the internet, they soon found them popping up on blogs and chatrooms from Chattanooga to China.” w/ photos

Hermit Crab Finds New Home

10/26/10 -- Odd Articles

“With a sturdy metal roof and glass walls to make the most of the coastal views, this discarded bottle neck is the perfect home for a hermit crab. This ingenious little fellow has taken advantage of our propensity to litter – and added his own modern twist to Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution. But really, it’s a message in a bottle to anyone too lazy to put rubbish in a bin. Hermit crabs normally fight one another to make homes in shells discarded by other crustaceans, but on a beach in Thailand, 11-year-old Alex Marttunens snapped this picture with his parents’ camera. The Finnish boy’s photograph, titled Home Sweet Home, got him to the finals in the under 16 section of the prestigious Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management’s environmental photography competition. Judges said it was a stark reminder of man’s often damaging impact on the environment.” w/ photo

The Chimp Suffering From Alopecia

10/22/10 -- Odd Articles

“Other males may worry that losing their hair will make them less appealing. But for Guru the chimpanzee, his baldness has turned him into a star attraction. The 20-year-old, who is suffering from alopecia, has lost the hair from all over his body. But the mischievous chimp still brings hundreds of visitors flocking to Mysore Zoo in southern India – despite greeting them by throwing stones. Dr Suresh Kumar, a zoo vet, said: ‘Everybody wants to see his biceps and triceps. ‘He beats his chest, and claps a lot when children come near his enclosure.’ Guru had lost his hair before being rescued from a circus and moved to Vandalur Zoo in Chennai. He lived there for almost a decade, but was transferred to Mysore Zoo seven years ago so that specialist vets could monitor his condition.” w/ photos

Other males may worry that losing their hair will make them less appealing.

But for Guru the chimpanzee, his baldness has turned him into a star attraction.

The 20-year-old, who is suffering from alopecia, has lost the hair from all over his body.

Missing link: The chimp's muscle definition can be seen, making Guru look almost human

Missing link: The chimp’s muscle definition can be seen, making Guru look almost human

Popular: Guru is very popular with the visitors to Mysore Zoo in southern India - though he does cause mischief from time to time, making noise and throwing stones and faeces at them

Popular: Guru is very popular with the visitors to Mysore Zoo in southern India – though he does cause mischief from time to time, making noise and throwing stones and faeces at them

But the mischievous chimp still brings hundreds of visitors flocking to Mysore Zoo in southern India – despite greeting them by throwing stones.

Dr Suresh Kumar, a zoo vet, said: ‘Everybody wants to see his biceps and triceps.

‘He beats his chest, and claps a lot when children come near his enclosure.’

Guru had lost his hair before being rescued from a circus and moved to Vandalur Zoo in Chennai.

He lived there for almost a decade, but was transferred to Mysore Zoo seven years ago so that specialist vets could monitor his condition.

Dr Kumar said: ‘He came to us with alopecia, so we don’t know how he got it originally.

Hairless: Guru, the 20-year-old male chimp suffering with alopecia, is a star attraction at an Indian zoo, as he looks like a human

Treated: Guru is taking medication for the alopecia, but Dr Suresh Kumar, a zoo vet said: 'There have been no positive results and as a last resort we are planning to consult a human skin doctor.'

Treated: Guru is taking medication for the alopecia, but Dr Suresh Kumar, a zoo vet said: ‘There have been no positive results and as a last resort we are planning to consult a human skin doctor.’

‘However, with chimpanzees being so much like humans, we think it could have been caused by factors in Guru’s life such a stress or trauma, which can induce alopecia in humans. We have tried a number of medicines on him, but to date there have been no positive results, and as a last resort we are planning to consult a human skin doctor.’

Fortunately, Guru’s baldness doesn’t seem to have affected his popularity among his own species. To stop him getting lonely, zoo officials have allowed a female chimpanzee, Manila, to move into his enclosure.

But although Guru plays cheerfully with her, he hasn’t taken things any further – to the surprise of his handlers.

Dr Kumar said: ‘He got separated from his parents at a tender age and most probably this could be a reason that he hasn’t learned to mate.’

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Looking at these pictures of this hairless ape, outlines much more clearly the structure of its body and we can see just how closely we are related to these animals.

Just look at those arms, almost identical to any muscular man.

- Amoke, London, 22/10/2010 12:12

Click to rate Rating 22

Serves to remind me that zoo’s are inherently cruel for the animals trapped forever in them. God gave them the freedom of the earth, man imprisons them for his own amusement……

- Ptolemy Dwyer, Lancs, 22/10/2010 11:50

Click to rate Rating 10

Poor poor boy… Clearly lost his hair due to stress of being in a circus all his life!

Truly amazing how human like this animal is! The fore arms and biceps are identical to that of a mans!

i really hate to see any wild animal living in captivity, just for the entertainment of humans! I know zoo’s do a lot of good but i just find it very upsetting! It must drive those poor animals crazy!

- Me, Here and there, 22/10/2010 11:25

Click to rate Rating 18

Poor poor boy… Clearly lost his hair due to stress of being in a circus all his life!

Truly amazing how human like this animal is! The fore arms and biceps are identical to that of a mans!

- Me, Here and there, 22/10/2010 11:24

Click to rate Rating 8

Bring the poor thing to this country to Monkeyworld where he can behave like a natural animal and live with others. He will surely have hair growing in no time……he looks SO unhappy and lonely :(

- Jackie, England, 21/10/2010 15:47

you are joking?????? how can any animal locked in a cage behave naturally?

- bob, wirral, 22/10/2010 11:18

Click to rate Rating 9

Poor thing – this captivity of an intelligent being is so cruel.

- RB, Aberdeen, 22/10/2010 10:21

Click to rate Rating 65

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The Diva Dog

10/22/10 -- Odd Articles

“Meet Lu Lu, the ultimate in diva dogs. While most pampered pooches are happy to being carried around in a hand bag Hollywood-style, Lu Lu prefers to carry her own. Forget the catwalk – it is all about the dog-walk. Lu Lu walks around on her hind legs, just like a human. The one-year-old pup has taken to using just her two legs to walk, leaving her other two free to carry a handbag. The miniature pinscher has won the hearts of locals in Zhumadian, in the Henan Province where she can often be seen walking upright.” w/ photos

Pedigree Dog Gets Facelift

10/16/10 -- Odd Articles

“Barely able to see through squinted eyes that would turn Clint Eastwood green with envy, this dog’s chiselled expression hides a serious condition. Over-breeding has left Molly the pedigree Shar Pei with a painful disease which left her unable to see and, if left untreated, could have caused permanent blindness. That was, until she underwent an ‘extreme’ facelift. Molly, 12 months, was unable to see since birth because she suffered from a entropion, a congenital disease which causes folds of skin to rub against the eye. Her owner Louise Walsh, from Romford in Essex, said: ‘When I first got her all she did was sleep because she was in so much pain. ‘Now she is so happy all the time – playing, exploring and she loves chasing crows.” w/ photos

World’s Fastest Mobility Scooter

10/15/10 -- Odd Articles

“For anyone who’s had to leap out of the way of a passing mobility scooter, it’s the stuff of nightmares. Colin Furze has adapted a conventional electric model into a petrol-engined speedster which has reached an astonishing 69mph. ‘You hear people complaining about scooters going slowly around supermarkets and blocking aisles so I thought it would be a laugh to make a really fast one,’ said Mr Furze, 31, a plumber from Stamford, Lincolnshire. Guinness World Records said he would be considered for the first mobility scooter speed record if he could hit 100kph – 61.4mph. He is now planning a time trial at the Santa Pod Raceway in Northamptonshire to claim his place in the record books, and says: ‘My aim is to hit 70mph.” w/ photos

Meet The Rock N’ Roll Gorillas

10/14/10 -- Odd Articles

“He’s got the attitude, the charisma and the bequiffed look of a rock’n'roll star. The world’s last remaining mountain gorillas are known to share 97 per cent of DNA with humans. And as this cheeky youngster romped in Rwanda with his devoted mother, he gave further proof of the striking similarities between the two species. Whether he spent hours backcombing his hair that morning and screaming out ‘Brown Sugar’ is anybody’s guess. But this baby gorilla could be the Elvis, the Gary Glitter or the Amy Winehouse of the Virunga mountains, a chain of extinct volcanoes that stretch through Uganda, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.” w/ photos

Supersize Toddler

10/13/10 -- Odd Articles

“This Chinese boy tips the scales at a massive 114lbs – five times the average weight of the three-year-olds in his class. Such is the concern over his size that Xiao Hao was banned from several pre-schools because staff believed his size posed a risk to classmates. He has now found a nursery in Guangzhou, southern China, which is happy to accommodate him but his mother Xiao Lin has asked doctors to help him lose weight. ‘He means no harm he is just big and likes to play. I take him swimming for exercise but it is hard finding trunks to fit him and even the rubber rings are too small,’ she said. Medical staff believe he may have ballooned to the weight of a small adult as the result of a growth hormone disorder. Others say he is a victim of China’s ‘Little Emperor’ syndrome where the families are allowed only one child – who is then spoiled rotten by doting relatives.” w/ photos

Perfectly Round Egg

10/13/10 -- Odd Articles

“A hotel chef preparing breakfast was left shell-shocked today after discovering this perfectly round egg. James Church was working the early shift in Newquay, Cornwall, when he made the billion-to-one discovery. James, 27, was about to crack the freaky egg to make a fry-up for guests at The Hotel Bristol when when he noticed it wasn’t oval as he would have expected. ‘I’ve probably cracked at least 100,000 eggs in my time as a chef but I’ve never seen one like this,’ he said. ‘I managed to save it from the frying pan and I’m definitely going to keep it.’ The two-and-a-half inch oddity is now in a special plastic case for its own protection.” w/ photos

Rare Pink Hippo

10/09/10 -- Odd Articles

“Wading through the muddy waters this rare pink-o-pottamus stands out from the crowd. British brothers and wildlife photographers Will and Matt Burrard-Lucas captured these images of the brightly coloured hippo in the Masai Mara, Kenya, last week. Visiting the African country on the hunt to photograph the legendary wildebeest migration the Londoners were in for a treat when rumours of a pink hippo surfaced. ‘Our guide had mentioned that he had heard rumours of this rare hippo from a fellow guide, however, he was not told where it lived and he had never come across it before,’ explains 26-year-old Will. ‘After a rather uneventful morning, we stopped on the banks of the Mara River for a picnic breakfast. ‘After a while, to our great surprise, we spotted the pink hippo emerge on to the far bank of the river. ‘We dropped everything and reached for our cameras!’ Racing up to a bank on the river, the brothers positioned themselves a few hundred yards from the young hippo, so not to disturb it. ‘It was a young one as it is much smaller than the other hippos and always stayed close to its mother,’ said Will. ‘It was nice to see the other hippos treated it no differently to any other.” w/ photos

The Happy-Potamus!

Hermit Crab Finds New Home