Yeti, Odlin, Sampson and Apolo are the world’s first white liger cubs, born to a white lion and a tiger in 2013. These liger cubs enjoy the distinction of being the rarest big cats in the world and could grow to be the biggest, as well. Currently, there are only 300 white lions and 1,200 white tigers left in the world. Further, there are about 1,000 ligers, most in captivity, but none of them are completely white.(source)
Soon these liger cubs will grow to be fierce predators, but till that day comes it’s completely understandable if you want to marvel at their cuteness!
4 Silkie chickens are the pets you didn’t know you needed. In addition to being ridiculously cute, they are well known for their calm and friendly temperament.
Silkie chickens were named after their fluffy plumage, which is said to feel like silk. They have rather striking features, including black skin and bones, blue earlobes and five toes on each foot. These birds are so good-looking that they are often exhibited in poultry shows. Also, these birds are distinguished by an extremely friendly temperament. In fact, they are considered to be the ideal pet.(source)
Seemingly rather fond of PDA, prairie dogs press their tongues together in a ‘greeting kiss’ to say hello. Further, it was noted that prairie dogs became more affectionate when a large number of people were watching. Researchers, after observing the behaviour of 25 black-tailed adult prairie dogs, concluded that these animals are enriched by human attention and automatically become more loving when they have an audience.(source)
2 The strange desire to squeeze or cuddle something cute actually has a name. It’s called ‘cute aggression’.
Research conducted at Yale University shows that seeing something cute or cuddly brings out our aggressive side. ‘Cute aggression’ was investigated by showing study participants pictures of cute, funny or normal pictures of animals. As they watched, they were given bubble wrap to hold onto. Researchers asked participants to pop as many or as few bubbles as they liked. The study revealed that people watching ‘cute’ images popped more bubbles than those watching normal or funny pictures.
The aggression, however, is not to be confused with the desire to harm cuddly beings. Instead, researchers believe that it could stem from our need to protect them, or be our body’s way of venting strong feelings of happiness or giddiness.(source)
1 Attention, cat lovers! Did you know that there is a breed of cats called ‘Munchkins’ that have tiny legs and look like this…
A relatively new breed of cat, the munchkins are characterised by incredibly short legs. The short legs of this breed of cat are caused by a naturally occurring genetic mutation. While there have been concerns over potential health and mobility issues, the shortness of the legs does not seem to affect the running and leaping abilities of munchkin cats. Sweet-natured, playful and absolutely adorable, the Munchkin is what cute kitten dreams are made of.(source)
You know you already feel better about the world. Things are looking up!
