Reindeer and Caribou are the same species of animal. Reindeer are just the domesticated variety, while the ‘bou are the wild variety. Sometimes reindeer get confused, escape from their pens, and join the caribou in wandering around. (I think the technical term is migrating.)

Source: Life After People

Ms Davies said the unexpected birth may have saved the babies’ lives.

Staff did not know the mother was pregnant and, had she given birth at night as sharks do normally, the pups would have been devoured by adult sharks and stingrays before they could be rescued.

Old news, but I just found out… Moose, the Jack Russell terrier, best known for playing Eddie on Frasier, died back in 2006. He received the most fan mail of anyone on Frasier. Take that, Hyde-Pierce! He was the youngest of 4 in his litter, but he was the biggest, hence the name. When he died, he was 15 and a half, which made him 78 in dog years.

Source: imdb

Nothing smells better then scorched dog.

And the answer; “the Peccary.”

The peccary, also called javelinas, are swine found in Central and Southwest America. They are 3-4′ long and weigh 40-80 lbs. Although they are native to the Americas, they are often confused with razorback hogs… but they are different because #1) Razorbacks were imported by Chris Columbus and his friends so there would be wild hog around to hunt and #2) peccaries have short straight tusks instead of razorbacks’ long and curved tusks.

Then tend to eat roots, but sometimes kill small animals to eat. They hunt in packs and are aggressive… they’ve been known to kill humans.

Oh, and did I mention the “stink gland?” They rub up on other member of their heard so they can recognise them, even with their bad vision, but the stink is… stinky an can be picked up by humans.

But I don’t think it’s a good thing.

They are calling it Gollum.

I just involuntarily shuddered after looking at its picture.

Like many kids who grew up in the 80’s, I never could understand what was going on on the Heathcliff cartoon. I mean, who were those cats who were in the junk yard? Was Heathcliff one of them? Today, the answer!

The Heathcliff cartoon had 2 segments. The first was Heathcliff. The second was called “The Catillac Cats.” Best I can tell from the wikis, they actually created 3 cats, Hector, Wordsworth, and Mungo, to be in both segments (which lead me to much confusion).

So the Heathcliff segment had Heathcliff “playing pranks on everyone” and the second segment had Riff-raff, the shorter cat who wore the hat and scarf, being in a gang in a junk yard.

Also notable is that Heathcliff was the last original character voiced by Mel Blanc.

Lastly, bad news…

In May 2009, it was revealed that Heathcliff will be adapted for a motion
picture. Magic Lantern Entertainment and rights holder FitzRoy Media will work
together with a planned release in 2011.

Some trivia about big cats that I picked up last night:

• These cats are considered “hyper-carnivores” because they eat only meat. No wimpy vegetables for these guys.
• Cats have very small brains. Most of their skull is constructed to make room for their powerful jaw muscles. So the term “kitty smart” is more accurate than originally thought.
• Cats cannot move their jaws sideways. Only up and down. So that is why you sometimes see cats eating with their heads tilted sideways.

And now, a chart to help you identify the various types of big cats:

Lion King of the jungle. Generally Worry-Free, though sometimes the stress of leading can cause dramatic effects. Hakuna Matata.

Tiger The favorite cat of Siskel & Ebert Erbert & Gerbert Shirley & Laverne Siegfried & Roy. Loves Frosted Flakes (of corn).

Leopard These cats tend to think they are superior to other cats because they cost more. The cats are favored mostly by artists and other elitists.

Cheetah With a fondness for snacking, these cats eat constantly. They are also fast. Very fast. They make a pretty decent pizza, but their logo skills need some work.

Panther The panther is the most radical and paranoid of the big cats, always thinking the other cats (specifically white tigers and snow leopards) are trying to bring them down. They have also been known to engage in voter intimidation.

Bobcat These cats are good diggers. They also occasionally light fires despite lack of opposable thumbs.

Jaguar The most overrated of the big cats. Jaguars are found mostly in the Americas. But really, who would want to import a really expensive Ford Taurus?

Puma a.k.a. cougars and mountain lions, Pumas peaked in popularity in the 1980’s.

Cougar a.k.a. pumas and mountain lions, Cougars are mostly found in Hollywood. Though there are enclaves in Montana, and of course, small towns.

The Ritten Although not technically a big cat, she deserves an honorable mention.

There is a billboard near my house offering pest control for moles, gophers, and voles. But what the heck is a vole? Turns out Little Bunny Foo Foo knows all about them. That’s because voles are often referred to as “field mice.”

They are a small rodent, resembling a mouse (not so much a rat deer), but with a stouter body, a shorter hairy tail, a slightly rounder head, and smaller ears and eyes. They are cousins to lemmings and muskrats.

They are usually 3-7 inches long; females are usually bigger. They eat mostly seeds and such, but some species will die if they don’t eat Douglas Fir needles for too long. Many species are monogamous. They are also short lived. Average life span is 3-6 months with the record being only 18 months. Due to this short lifespan, and their complex DNA structure, they appear to be evolving more rapidly then other species. For this reason, archaeologist can use a “vole clock,” a detailed record of the evolution of the vole, to determine age of archaeological sites.

So, Little Bunny Foo Foo. Don’t bop them on the head. We need them for science!

Source: above-mentioned billboard and wiki.

Even though my “source” article has a similar title to my post – I SWEAR mine is original!

I didn’t know if I should be blaging about the passing of our beloved “Yo Quiero Taco Bell” dog, or the fact that said dog was actually a dog-ette, but in either case, the Harbinger of Death knocked yesterday.

Gidget, the 15 year old (in people years) chihuahua, who was the face of Taco Bells “Yo Quiero Taco Bell” campaign from 1997 to 2000, passed away yesterday of a stroke. Gidget, and the Taco Bell campaign, are credited as being largely responsible for the recent upsurge in chihuahua (read: rat deer) popularity.

There was actually a Taco Bell dog before Gidget named Dinky, but Dinky didn’t make the grade, and Gidget got the job. Dinky, and another dog named Taco, were still stand-ins for Gidget, though.

Taco Bell Dog also had 2 other catch-phrases over the years; “Drop the chalupa!” (which was often quoted on SportsCenter) and “Vivi [the inferior] gordita.”

After Taco Bell, Gidget did a Geiko commercial, and then was Bruiser’s mom in Legally Blond 2.

Finally, Gidget was featured in an episode of The Tonight Show where she was offered her choice of Taco Bell or KFC; she chose the latter.

Yo Quiero a new catch-phrase.

Source: Moon and Staci, Jeff, and then Ed – plus this article, and this wiki.