Are cats afraid of water?

Cat

Cats are not afraid of water.  They can even swim when they must.  But most cats do not like baths, or being chilled with water.

A cat spends much time grooming itself, using its rough tongue as a washcloth to “bathe” its body.

The tongue can reach almost everywhere except the head and neck.

The cat licks a paw and washes its face and head with a wet pay.  It is soiled with something that only a bath will clean off.

The cat’s all-purpose tongue also serves as a spoon when drinking milk.  It take four or five laps before swallowing.  Its rough surface helps file bits of meat from bones.  All cats are hunters.

Their sharp claws help them catch rats, mice, gophers and other animals.

A hunter that must get close enough to its prey to pounce on it must be spotlessly clean and have no odor to warm its victim.

Photo courtesy:  fatfreevegan

What are koala bears?

Koala

The koala bear is a small, wooly animal found only in Australia.

The koala looks for all the world like a cuddly, live teddy bear.  It is about two-feet long, with ears seeming as if they were stuck on, and with a patent-leather nose and shoe button eyes.  In fact, koalas are popularly known as Australian teddy bears.

They are not real bears, of course.  They are pouched animals.  Baby koalas are carried in a pouch when they are fist born.

A koala makes its home in a special king of tree—the eucalyptus or blue gum tree.  It holds onto the tree branches with its sharp claws and feeds on the oily leaves.  At one time you could see many koalas in zoos, but now there are only a few.

The koalas were hunted for their fur until they were in danger of disappearing from the world.

Today koalas are protected.  No one is allowed to take them out of Australia any more.

Visual courtesy:  stanford

What Is A Pangolin?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pangolin (pronounced pang GOH lin) is a strange animal inhabiting the warm parts of Asia and Africa.  Pangolin are perhaps better known as “scaly ant-eaters,” for they are just that.  The pangolin’s body is covered with sharp, horny scales that give the animal the appearance of a large pine cone.  The pangolin wanders about at night in search of anthills and termite nests, which it rips open with its strong, sharp claws.  Then it pushes out its sticky, wormlike tongue which may be a foot long.  It licks up the ants it uncovers and slurps the ants into its toothless mouth.  It may eat many thousands of ants at one meal.

 

When danger threatens the pangolin rolls itself up into a tight ball so heavily armored that few enemies can harm it.  When rolled up, the pangolin is almost impossible to straighten out.  Pangolins may grow to be from 3 to 5 feet long.

 

Reference:  Dick Rogers

Photo courtesy:  modernizedcaveman

What Is A Kinkajou?

 

 

 

 

 

Kinkajous are small, monkey like animals that love in the forests of Central and South America.

 

A Kinkajous (pronounced KINK  kuh joo) is a small animal that lives in the forests of Central and South American.

 

The kinkajou is about the size of a cat and somewhat resembles a monkey.  It has large eyes, soft, woolly, yellowish-brown fur, and a long grasping tail that can be used to hold on to limbs. 

 

The native regard the kinkajou as a kind of monkey, but the paws are paws, not hands, and they are armed with sharp claws, not nails.

 

Kinkajous spend most of their lives in trees.  They hide in tree during the day and feed at night on fruits, insects, and honey. 

 

When feeding, they call to each other in a shrill scream.  It is so loud that it can be heard nearly a mile away.

 

A kinkajou litter usually consists of one or two young.  By the time the cubs are seven weeks old they can hang by their tails.

 

Young kinkajous raised in captivity become very tame and are said to make delightful pets.

 

Reference:  Dick Rogers