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A balmy evening in South-West London, and I’m trying to convince a handsome chap called Jake to cha-cha-cha. I’m hoping that as a couple we have the potential to dance in perfect harmony, and to encourage him I’ve brought along his favourite food (cocktail sausages) and put on his favourite CD (Strictly Dance Classics). But [...]

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Simon Cowell predicts Britain’s Got Talent winner Pudsey will become the most famous dog in the world. He’s probably right. I can just see Hunger Games star Jennifer Lawrence being cast as Ashleigh and Pudsey portraying himself – and maybe Colin Firth playing Simon since he’s putting up the money? There simply isn’t a Hollywood [...]

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Children have traditionally been the stars of family portraits – but these days they are increasingly likely to be upstaged by their pets. Photographers say that there has been a 20 per cent rise in demand in the past year for shots featuring not only dogs and cats, but also more unusual animals including horses, [...]

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For 63 years Rex Coxeter had cherished his beloved pet Timmy the tortoise – until thieves stole the endangered reptile from the family home. The grandfather-of-seven, 73 – who has had the Hermann’s tortoise since he was an 11-year-old boy – came home from a short break to discover the treasured creature had been snatched, [...]

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A hero dad has told how he ‘rugby tackled’ a vicious Japanese fighting dog to the ground – after the snarling beast tried to decapitate his daughter. Web designer Simon Hryhoruk, 35, watched in horror as his neighbour’s eight-stone Akita dog savaged his nine-year-old daughter Amy. The huge hound launched at Amy as she walked [...]

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A toddler has died after being mauled by her grandparents’ dog and her grandmother was shot when she tried to rescue her. The 16-month-old was savaged in the back yard at a house in La Cruces and a neighbour fired a shot to try and kill the Pit Bull but instead hit the grandmother in [...]

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When Dickens the Golden Retriever spotted a fawn in his backyard, he didn’t bother worrying that its protective mother might be lurking nearby. Instead, he saw the opportunity to play. This heartwarming video captures the moment Dickens spots the young deer near his home in Delhi Hills, Ohio and introduces himself. via Fawn’s best friend: [...]

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In 1965 The Beatles played Shea Stadium, Malcolm X was assassinated and Goldfinger had just hit screens across the country. It was also the year when 13-year-old Jeff Cokeley discovered an eastern box turtle in his backyard, carved his initials and the year onto its shell and then let the creature go. Flash forward 47 [...]

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Teresa Atkins first noticed something out-of-the-ordinary when she began taking her son to a “mums and tots” group near her home in Northamptonshire. While other children were happy to stay in the main hall and play as their parents chatted, Jacob preferred to escape the hubbub and sit in a quieter side room where the [...]

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Children as young as 11 months showed more interest in live animals than toys, even ones made to replicate real living creatures, it was found. Parents should consider having a pet in the home to help their child learn and develop, expert said.   In addition toddlers are not naturally afraid of spiders and snakes but [...]

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The government is announcing plans to tackle the growing number of dog attacks. The proposals will include fitting all puppies in England with microchips, containing details of the owner. The proposals are meant to make it easier to trace and prosecute owners of violent dogs. Angela McGlynn, the mother of a four-year-old who was killed [...]

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A boy impaled on a metal fence was saved after a real-life Lassie drew his owner’s attention to the child’s plight. Jack Humphrey, 11, became impaled on the 8ft fence by his wrist when he fell while climbing a nearby tree. In shock, he tried to jump down from the fence, tearing his arm to the bone [...]

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A Sri Lanka hen has given birth to a chick without an egg, in a new twist on the age-old question of whether the chicken or the egg came first. Instead of passing out of the hen’s body and being incubated outside, the egg was incubated in the hen for 21 days and then hatched [...]

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Police have been accused of heavy-handed tactics after they Tasered and shot a dog dead for biting two people. Schoolgirl Sydni Ryan, 12, suffered a graze on the shin as she guided a friend’s Staffordshire bull terrier collie cross back into her house. A neighbour advised her to inform the police about the bite as [...]

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Affectionately named Bronze, Silver and Gold in tribute to Britain’s Olympic hopes, these cuddly cubs are all set to be winners with the public. The adorable four-month-old lions are the star attraction for visitors to Knowsley Safari Park in St Helen’s, Merseyside, this Easter. The three young males spent the first few months of their [...]

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A three-year-old boy has been left terrified of animals after a pony he was feeding grabbed him by the chest and tossed him through the air. Little Steven Goldsmith suffered a nasty shock when the animal lunged at him, seized his T-shirt in its teeth and threw him more than 5ft. His frantic mother Sarah [...]

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Fooling around like little rascals these orphaned orangutans are having a great time. From high-jinx in a wheel barrow to slumbering in a hammock, staff at the Borneo animal sanctuary where they live do their best to keep them entertained. British National Geographic photographer Charlie Hamilton James, 38, captured these incredible pictures of these primates [...]

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The female Dachshund mix dog weighed just one ounce when she was born. Animal rescuers in California say that a fortnight on she still remains so small that can easily fit an iPhone while she is the same size as a business card or credit card. Experts say she is now likely to set a [...]

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A bride-to-be has postponed her wedding so that she can afford to pay for the treatment of her sick pet lizard. Teacher Lizzie Griffiths, 25, is so smitten with her adopted bearded dragon George that she has spent her complete £3,000 wedding fund on pioneering cancer treatment for him, without which he would have had [...]

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Whale-watchers in Mexico were treated to an extraordinary close encounter with the mammals, as a 50-foot mother lifted up her baby calf to look at them in their boat. As the majestic creature crested the wave in Laguna San Ignacio, a conservation area filled with the mammals, she gave her calf a boost so it [...]

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They’re young, they’re keen, and they’re raring to go. Meet the pint-sized new additions at one safari park hoping to win over thousands of visitors with their playful antics. A mild winter has led to a baby boom at the Blair Drummond Safari Park near Stirling, Scotland, and Angus the rhino, Marvin the meerkat, Dylan [...]

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As a blue-blooded royal pup, his behaviour must be nothing less than exemplary. So the Duchess of Cambridge is taking no chances with her beloved five-month-old cocker spaniel, Lupo, and has started intensive ‘whistle training’. Royal sources say she has been seen in the gardens of Kensington Palace, where she and Prince William have their [...]

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A three-year-old girl had her ponytail ripped off her head as she was mauled by a dangerous dog while walking in a park with her family. Phoebe McInally was left with a large bald patch and serious bite marks across her back after being attacked by the savage animal. The girl’s mother Lucy, 32, could [...]

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Meet the newborn twin lemurs giving their mum a huge Mother’s Day hug just in time for Sunday. Weeks ahead of schedule this ring-tailed Lemur, aptly named Mummy, has had Milly and Billy at Exmoor Zoo in Devon, and it is clear they have already formed a strong bond. Mummy was meant to give birth [...]

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A sick little girl is being kept alive thanks to her best friend – a dog who carries her oxygen tank on her back. Alida Knobloch’s faithful canine companion Mr Gibbs has been specially trained to shepherd the three-year-old, who breathes though a tube most of the time. He follows her closely as she plays [...]

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I miss my ducks. Whenever I have time to hanker after my past life in Suffolk, my garden and all its incumbents, it’s the motley crew of crossbreed ducks that immediately swim to mind. But this multicoloured flock of comedians, sometimes up to 80 strong, was often the scourge of my gardening life. Ducks need [...]

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Under the watchful eye of their mother, two adorable cubs have found a bear necessity for life. The adorable siblings were caught amusing themselves, first through peekaboo, before playing a full-on game of hide and seek. British biologist Brett Lewis travelled to Finland to take these heart-warming but informative shots in Taiga Forest, Finland. Standing [...]

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A sheep that starred in a Cambridgeshire community farm’s webcam project is to give birth on camera. In October, the National Trust’s MyFarm initiative, based at Wimpole Hall, fitted a “ram-cam” to a ram in order to show the mating habits of sheep. Now, Ewe 3462, who was mated with the ram, is due to [...]

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The timing of the birth is sometime during early winter, between December and January. The snow den, the mother’s body heat and her milk, which is high in fat content, enable the cubs to keep warm and grow rapidly before leaving the den in March or April. Short trips are made to and from the [...]

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Fed-up sports clubs say dog mess problems are so bad in a Gwynedd town that rugby, football and cricket matches are being stopped. A Dolgellau rugby club spokesman said it was frustrating that officials had to inspect the Marian playing ground before games. He said as well as being unpleasant it was a potential health [...]

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Dogs are commonly known as man’s best friend, but it turns out they may also be a child’s, particularly if those children are one of the 45,000 deaf children in the UK. Hearing dogs, as they are known, could transform many young lives by offering companionship, confidence and independence. Not only that, but these specially [...]

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They are usually lauded as man’s best friend – but now researchers have discovered dogs make perfect companions for deaf children, too. With the right training, dogs can act as the ‘ears’ of such youngsters, alerting them to everything from doorbells to smoke alarms – or even their parents’ voices calling them. The animals make [...]

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Quite what the little chap had done to incur his mother’s wrath remains a mystery. But the chances are that he won’t do it again. This astonishing series of pictures illustrates how, in the world of the brown bear, there are no agonised disputes over corporal punishment of children. Perhaps THIS will teach you a [...]

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Twin polar bears took their first steps outdoors much to the delight of photographers who captured the cute moment. The endangered animals never strayed far from their mother Huggies, who featured in David Attenborough’s BBC show Frozen Planet, and got her name from the nappy company who sponsor her. Thirsty work: Polar bear Huggies licks [...]

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When it comes to bodyguards, you really couldn’t do much better than these guys. In a heartwarming display, a mighty herd of elephants huddles around a female to protect her from prowling lions and hyenas as she gives birth. The amazing pictures were taken in the early hours at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya [...]

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Polar bears are one of Earth’s most dangerous animals – but most agree that they’re incredibly cute when they’re cubs. Now you can watch one grow up at his home in Denmark’s Scandinavian Wildlife Park via a webcam, which went live to mark International Polar Bear Day. It’s not just any polar bear cub, though. [...]

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A man from north London who succeeded in his mission to catch a killer crocodile pledged today to help the inhabitants of an African country live safely alongside the reptiles. Wildlife expert Peter Prodromou from Highbury flew to Uganda to lead a team of government officials in their efforts to catch the 15ft creature, which [...]

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Snuggled next to each other on a bale of hay, these are the adorable one-in-a-million five black lambs that have been born just in time for Spring. The identical rare breed sheep are only a few hours old but are already playing blissfully with each other, unaware of the fuss surrounding their arrival. The lambs [...]

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This was the terrifying moment a brave young mother battled to keep her beloved horse calm as sea water closed in on the animal after he became trapped in mud ‘like quicksand’. Exhausted and mud-splattered, Nicole Graham clung to her trapped horse Astro for three hours keeping his head high in a race against the [...]

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A former banker is spending £10,000 of his own cash to stamp out dog fouling in his home town. Gary Downie has vowed to clean up the streets after he faced the ‘grim reality’ of pushing his seven-week old baby’s pram through streets covered in canine faeces. He’s bankrolled the launch of StreetKleen, a charity [...]

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Species: Porphyrio porphyrio melanotus Habitat: living in ménages a cinq in Australasia and New Zealand, with other subspecies on mainland Asia, Africa and southern Europe Some people are very forbearing. Take Georgiana Cavendish, duchess of Devonshire (1757-1806). Her best friend, Elizabeth Foster, had a long-standing affair with Georgiana’s husband. Yet for many years Georgiana shared [...]

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This is Clementine, the tiniest calf in Britain, who is so small she sleeps in a dog basket and is fed every three hours with special milk. The adorable three-week-old calf was born prematurely in Torrington, Devon, weighing in at a minuscule – for a calf – 33lbs. She is smaller even than the farm [...]

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A pig breeder spoke today of her sadness after a litter of her prized micro-piglets were stolen in a midnight raid. Mother-of-three Amanda Osborne-Taylor told how she has been put off breeding the pint-sized animals when nine six-week-olds, worth around £700 each, were taken after she had advertised them for sale. The 39-year-old cabin crew [...]

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Mothers who spend time with pets during their pregnancy are less likely to have children with allergies and asthma, a study has revealed. But the race of the child – and how they were delivered – also plays a part. Researchers at the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit found that babies who have indoor prenatal [...]

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The bulldog, called Baby, adopted the small wild boars and now cares for them like their mother. The abandoned animals were found by walkers in woodland a week ago. They brought them to a nearby animal sanctuary in Lehnitz, where Baby the bulldog lives. Baby has “motherly instincts” for many animals, Norbert Damm, a carer [...]

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A hamster found abandoned in freezing weather behind bins in a wealthy London square has been adopted by a 10-year-old girl who lives around the corner. A commuter discovered Snowball shivering in her cage in St George’s Square last week with a note saying: “Please take care of my friendly hamster. I cannot afford to [...]

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You certainly wouldn’t want to be around when this infant starts teething. A female nurse shark delighted staff at Yantai Haichang Whale and Shark Aquarium in eastern China’s Shandong Province after successfully giving birth to a healthy male pup. Nurse sharks are ovoviviparous, which means their eggs develop and hatch within the body until live [...]

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