Bonnie and Clyde are inseparable canine companions.
As reported in the Daily Mail, Clyde is blind, and Bonnie leads him “to food or water, and lets him rest his head on her haunches when he feels a bit lost. They are inseparable, and if Bonnie isn’t nearby Clyde refuses to move a paw.”
Bonnie and Clyde were rescued as strays recently and now they happily have a new home. The BBC’s One Show has a special page and film about these two great friends.
Bonnie and Clyde are inseparable border collies. Dogs are social animals so company is very important for them. But this is a bond with a difference: Bonnie is Clyde’s guide dog.
The Daily Mail reports that Bonnie leads Clyde “to food or water, and lets him rest his head on her haunches when he feels a bit lost. They are inseparable, and if Bonnie isn’t nearby Clyde refuses to move a paw.”
Bonnie and Clyde were rescued as strays recently. It appears they were lost in a storm and no-one has come forward for them. Obviously these two have a vital bond and they must be rehomed together.
Snowball, a cockatoo who lives at a bird rescue centre, seems to love to dance. This clip shows us that Snowball can keep time as well as many humans!
Scientists looked at YouTube videos to see which animals could do this. Alex the African Grey parrot was famous for his abilities to count and to distinguish between colours and shapes – and he could also keep the beat. In fact, the video search found that 14 different species of parrot who kept time to music.
The scientists said: “Our analyses showed that these birds’ movements were more lined up with the musical beat than we’d expect by chance. … We found strong evidence that they were synchronizing with the beat, something that has not been seen before in other species.”
They suggest that the parts of the brain used for copying sounds are also involved in this ability to keep in time with the beat.
Sue, an amazing six month old (male) pig, is charming the world’s media with his intelligence and abilities. He noticed that the family dogs received treats while they were being trained on a dog agility course and he started to copy them!
Sue lives at a UK animal centre, where the owner is quoted as saying:
“He certainly does a dog agility course without any trouble. He twists and turns in both directions, he gives his trotter and he does cones, the tunnel and ramps. Everybody is always amazed, but personally I’m not because I have kept pigs for years and I know they really want to learn.”
A pig needs to rest too! Image: Istockphoto.com
Another quick-thinking pig is LuLu, who brought life-saving help for her human companion.
‘Celebrity pigs’ like Sue and Lulu show us that they and fellow pigs are intelligent and interested in their world. It underlines the fact that how we treat pigs is of vital importance to them. Yet pigs are one of the most intensively farmed animals in the world. Millions of pigs reared for meat each year have a short and sometimes painful life in a barren concrete pen. The young pigs can never experience fresh air or daylight. They are unable to behave naturally and are likely to be bored and frustrated. But higher welfare free-range or organic farming systems give the animals a chance of a better quality of life.
High welfare free range or organic farms can give the animals a better quality of life
LuLu the Vietnamese pot-bellied pig is a star pig. When her human companion suffered a heart attack in their isolated holiday home, thirteen-month old LuLu charged to the rescue.
She squeezed through the ‘dog door’, scraping herself in the process, and headed for the road. This meant her leaving the fenced yard, which she never usually did on her own.
Then she laid in the road waiting for a car to stop. According to witnesses, it took 45 minutes before a kind driver did get out to see what was up. LuLu led him to the house and Jo Ann’s life was saved.
A follow-up article reported that the world was fascinated by LuLu’s courage and clever action. LuLu has had worldwide media coverage and TV appearances and she has been given a gold medal from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.