Loca the Un-Run-Pug

Hey I know a lot of people around here like pugs, so I found this silly video of a pug "singing" a song from a while ago. This little pug has a lot of spirit and loves to run, or try to run at least. Loca has so much personality for a little pug, always bouncing around and full of energy.

Some pieces of animal media/music

Hey everyone, I thought I'd just share a video I found on Tumblr that I really liked. It's kind of tragic and heartbreaking at the same time. I'm not sure if it's because of the audio that was added or because bees are slowly disappearing, but it's a great video. Everyone should check it out!

http://fileformat.tumblr.com/post/117390495175

After that, I've been really obsessed with a musician called Aeon Fux. A lot of her music incorporates science or nature, especially reptiles or insects. She just released this song and I just felt like sharing the love.



Lyrics below:
I said I would wait for you
as long as you want me to
in the reptile room, where you first looked at me with that hunger in your eyes
this humidity feels so good to me asyou slide against my sensibilities

and if you come around
I’ll want you again
I’m a chameleon
I have to shed my skin
I want to turn the color of
the nights I’ve spent with you
and watch them fade into

you knew what you had with me
crocodilian chemistry
but how wild were we
that we clung to each other til we ripped ourselves apart

and if you come around I’ll haunt you again
I’m a reptilian, I want to pull you in,
I want to tear into the flesh
that set my soul alight
and feed til morning rise

Savage Beauty: Sea Fashion (waaay continued)

So I must've forgotten to post way back when, but here is my contribution to the savage beauty: sea fashion collection.

So what you see before you is a casual dress inspired by a clownfish like the ones you see animated in Finding Nemo. With the bright orange and black/white contrast, this dress will for sure make a statement as you strut down the street. As an added bonus, there are little attachable fin-inspired shoulder pads because there's no harm in a little accessorizing! 

Sad Animal Facts

I discovered these "sad animal facts" illustrations today and thought they were silly yet a bummer. I think animal illustrations are great!

Licenses Should Be Mandatory to Be a Pet Owner

The other day, my girlfriend and I saw a woman tugging really hard on her dog's choke-chain even though the dog wasn't really doing any thing wrong. My girlfriend then said, "People should have to get licenses to own a pet." I thought this was a really good idea, so I looked up if that has ever been considered by anyone else. I then found this article:

"License all pet owners" 

It discusses an assertion by UK's chief vet of the RSPCA in which he suggests all pet owners should have to obtain a license in order to combat animal abuse. The article explains how this claim received a lot of opposition from other groups, saying the idea would be too expensive, an insult to pet owners, and (most humorously of all) "more interested in animal rights than promoting welfare" (paragraph 6). I think this could be a helpful application, though there are many complications (people who already have pets without licenses, pets who would end up in shelters because there are less available owners, etc.). Though this is a highly complicated issue, I feel it is definitely one to consider.

Even though this is pretty funny, it always bums me out whenever people dress up their pets. I've never really seen a pet in a costume that looked like it was enjoying life. You can tell this costume is super uncomfortable on his/her ears. If pets wanted to wear clothing, they wouldn't look this sad while wearing it.

I was looking for an organization where I could possibly volunteer to help animals, and I came across this video. I instantly became teary eyed because it was so difficult to see how much these cats were suffering. This is such cruelty, animals have feelings and they do not deserve to live in such harsh conditions. Possum is an example of a loving cat that suffered but with the love of someone, his whole life changed. Animals need to be treated correctly and we have to try our best to make their lives better. 

This video is funny, and it makes you think whether animals really are better than humans at doing some things. I thought that it was really cute and I was also amazed to see what animals are capable of doing. They are so intelligent and they have the mentality to do anything they set their minds to. Do you think that an animal can be better than a human at playing a game or a sport? If yes, what kind of sports or games.

This video is an example of how much an animal can help the healing and well being of a person. The relationships that are made within humans and animals is heart warming. I teared up seeing this video, because it shows the happiness that an animal can bring to someone when they are at one of their lowest points in life. The connections that are made with animals are sincere and joyous. It is amazing to see how much affection and love and animal can bring to a person. They are such humble and caring pets.

Section B Group Blog

So, Abigail, Deseary and I decided to rewrite the 13th Amendment to abolish the slavery of animals... This is what we've come up with. We've also included some pictures of humans and also their "inner animal" or their transformation into animals.

Deseary

Abolition of Animal Slavery:

Zoos and circus' should be prohibited from keeping animals locked up in cages and behind bars. All types of mistreatment to animal should be abolished and removed from all animal parks. They are only meant for the entertainment of humans while animals become depressed from being harassed. Eliminate all forms of animal slavery in these locations.

Maya

Court case:

“The guilty is hereby being charged with consistently enslaving these animals and even some humans who he referred to as "freaks for show" for the past six months in secret. The living circumstances of the animals and humans was less than poor with dirty cages, little to no food and water and nothing for warmth for the freezing nights. The defendant failed to release his animals after the passing of the 13th amendment. He is now facing fines and possible prison time.”

Abigail

Recent incidents have sparked a change in people, especially in women. There is a direct correlation between women acting wild, and both Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Since the finding were released, we see more and more people mimicking fellow Dr. Jekyll’s wilder side. Those affected by this Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde syndrome seem to posses the same animalistic traits. But after reviewing  these recent incidents, people need to accept that we are also animals, and tapping into our wild side is only part of who we are. We should not lock up animals, let alone humans for tapping into their wild side. After all, we are animals. Let us act as it was intended to be.

Finding Dory...What happened?

So I'm very upset at the fact that Finding Dory is still not out when I remember Ellen saying it would be released in 2015. Did the producers forget or something? This is a mini rant because I loved Finding Nemo, I'm sure some can relate, and I frickin love Ellen and I just want all the things I love together in one movie. I want to know what happens to Dory, why do they have to find her. I heard rumors that it's actually going to be about her finding her family, but I wouldn't know cos pixar and Disney haven't released it yet.

This video is adorable and I think it speaks to gender roles and stereotypes of "masculinity" and "femininity" and how those roles intersect with our relationships to animals.

Exotic Pets?

This article is a little long so I'll summarize the general ideas.

Author Lauren Slater questions the ethics and morals involved with keeping exotic animals as pets. She states in the beginning that this debate is not a black or white issue, but something broad that may have different answers to different circumstances. She also examines the definition of 'exotic' and 'dangerous' animals.

Slater looks at this from many perspectives to gain a wide understanding of the matter. Some exotic pet owners state that the animals simply understand them better than humans do, other keep them as a collection or as a symbol of power/status, and there are even those who keep those animals out of kindness and determination to help endangered species. Slater also looks into the darker side of exotic pets, highlighting an incident that occurred in Ohio in which a man let out more than 50 exotic animals before killing himself. The Ohio police was forced to kill all the escaped animals because they were left running around in public and jumping over cars.

By looking at the issue of exotic animal ownership from many different perspectives, Slater concludes that whether or not owning exotic animals is ethical/moral is not the issue we should be looking into. Instead, we should be more aware of our own actions and responsibilities when it comes to our interactions with the animal kingdom.

The perilous attraction of owning exotic pets

America's Funniest Animal Videos

I choose this video because animals are very very entertaining to humans. I really get a lot of entertainment from my own pets and I relate to these videos so so much!

Week 7 Blog Post: "Maybe You Should Get A Dog"

Here is a video I found on youtube for a pedigree commercial. I thought it would be interesting to share because the video shows people with exotic animals as pets as opposed to your common household dog. The video ends with the statement "maybe you should get a dog" to encourage and promote the pedigree adoption drive, which I thought was a very clever and entertaining way to go about advertising for pet adoption.

Animals Getting Their First Taste of Freedom

Animals getting their first taste of freedom, from our friends at The Dodo.You will tear up.
Posted by The Huffington Post on Thursday, March 12, 2015

 I saw this video today on my Facebook newsfeed, I thought it was rather affective in stirring up emotions towards these animals that were all once caged, and some were a part of research or had been rehabilitated to good health.  

Farm Sanctuary Happiest Video Ever

In a world where so many animals live short, violent, fearful lives it's inspiring to see Farm Sanctuaries giving farmed animals another chance at a safe life. I can't wait to intern at Animal Place this summer. This is one of my favorite videos ever.

Week 7 Blog post by Marshall Danese

This video depicts a cockatoo dancing along to a popular Queen song. I think humans really enjoy seeing nonhumans act in ways that reflect our own tendencies, and seeing this dorky bird dance along to queen definitely made me laugh.

Animal Memes

I find this hilarious. How did he even get himself stuck in there?

This pokes fun at the fact that cats are more independent and less affectionate than dogs. I love how they chose a picture of a cat lounging the way it is.

Pugs are my favorite dogs. They seriously look like loaves of bread or potatoes!