Category: Animals

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Desert Dwellers Break Down The Daily Facts Of Life They Face

Some months ago I found myself in El Paso, Texas. It was a fun enough time.

But let me tell you something—as a child of the Northeast, I don’t think I would enjoy living in the desert.

Nothing about the desert seems fun to me.

The idea of having the sun beating down on me all the time? I’m good, thanks.

Oh, there were no natural windbreaks out there, so sand just got everywhere whenever the wind picked up. That wasn’t great.

I mustn’t forget to mention the random lizards and scorpions that I’d see on the side of the road.

Or the spiders. Dear God, the spiders.

I guess I’m just accustomed to not having to think about animals all up in my space living in a Northeastern city. And I think I like it that way.

But there are plenty of people out there who live in these environments and would think I’m crazy for feeling the way I do!

They told us all about what it’s like living out there after Redditor Casual_WWE_Reference asked the online community:

“People who live in desert towns or cities, what are some everyday ‘facts of life’ about living in the desert that people who live in other places wouldn’t know?”

“And they are really freaking annoying.”

“Tumbleweed is not just in the cartoons. And they are really freaking annoying. Roadrunners are also around and are pretty cute. Coyotes party and sing in groups at night, and sound creepy as hell.” ~ sonictower

“Every now and then…”

“Every now and then we get a big wind storm that piles up the tumbleweeds in people’s yards. Imagine coming home from work and having tumbleweeds piled up to your roofline.” ~ elWattully

“Always wear a wide-brimmed hat.”

“Always wear a wide-brimmed hat. Long-sleeve T-shirts are underrated. Sunscreen. Lots of sunscreen.”

“Always have water on hand. Watch for snakes. Learn about heat exhaustion, heat stroke, and their respective symptoms.” ~ ClickBang911

“In the summer…”

“It’s dangerous.”

“In the summer we are often unable to go outside because 110-120 degree temps with little vegetation to absorb it will lead to heatstroke, and quickly.”

“Animals do not seek out the midday heat, and humans who think we’re somehow exempt from that will get sick.” 

“Adobe walls keep the heat out well but are hard to put nails into. Use 3M strips? Well, they melt. In my office, I usually have to replace broken frames every time the A/C shuts off because everything falls off the wall.” ~ [deleted]

“After a few days…”

“A couple of years after college, my friends and I spent a week in Big Bend National Park. It’s a large park in southwest Texas on the Mexican border, mostly desert with mountains, and the Rio Grande.”

“To give you an idea of the size of the park, our campsite was 70 miles from the park entrance.”

“After a few days driving around out there, we noticed that people were on another wavelength from what we were used to in the city and suburbs.”

“Folks you met at a store would give you a five-minute conversation. People driving by would wave. We would wave back because you could go half an hour without seeing another soul. People are wired to be social, and being completely isolated changes how you see others.”

“The loneliest I have ever felt was in downtown Tokyo on the streets of Shibuya, surrounded by thousands. Alone in the desert, people start to see each other.” ~ Thompson_S_Sweetback

“The entire reason…”

“It gets cold at night. The entire reason the desert is tolerable once you can provide shelter and water is almost exclusively because no matter how hot it gets, it’s usually around 50, 60 at night. Sand, dust, and dirt get everywhere.” ~ BigGoose478

“Big scorpions…”

“Big scorpions are scary, little scorpions will put you in the hospital. Incidentally, Fallout: New Vegas lied to you – the bark scorpion is actually both the smallest common scorpion in Arizona, and it’s also the most dangerous.”

“Learn to identify your spiders; the most dangerous spiders are not particularly predatory and will leave you alone, but you need to be able to ID your southern black widow, your Arizona brown spiders, and brown recluse spiders.”

“A brown recluse spider can cause organ failure, but a hobo spider, which looks really similar is harmless to the point that scientists are now assuming incidents attributed to the hobo spider are actually just misidentified brown recluse spiders.”

“There’s no hard, fast rule with snakes. Rattlesnakes want you to eff off. They tend to avoid humans for obvious reasons but that doesn’t mean you can’t stumble across one taking a nap.”

“There’s no cardinal rule with the danger of snakes at large, but on the off chance, a snake with black, red and white striping decides to taste test you, go to a hospital pronto.”

“The Arizona coral snake isn’t actually that dangerous – relative to rattlesnakes – but it’s also the one that’s really easy to identify.”

“Despite the cutesy name, Gila Monsters are dangerous. They’re not terribly fast but they’re pretty chompy and it’s the one case where a native lizard in the United States is also venomous.”

Other bugs: Arizona gets killer bees, and a particularly large eight-inch centipede called the Desert Centipede can also give a painful bite.” ~ BigGoose478

“When you’re choosing…”

“When you’re choosing where to place your garden, remember that ‘plant in full sun’ means full sun in the Midwest. That’s really not the same in southern New Mexico, where opening the front door is like checking if the lasagna is ready.”

“I have shade cloth over everything in our vegetable garden.” ~ DanYHKim

“Logistically…”

“Logistically, unless you have cloth seats in your car or seat covers of some kind, you need a towel to sit on your car seats or you’ll burn your legs. Using oven mitts to drive is not needed now but was crucial where we were in Arizona in the 70s.”

“Wild burros would walk through your yard at night, and sometimes would let you hand feed them. Carrot tops were especially liked!” ~ ReadOnTheCrapper

“I grew up…”

“I grew up in the Pacific Northwest and now live between Death Valley and Las Vegas in a rural low-elevation area. I can’t really safely go outside for what feels like half of the year.

“The temperatures where I live are insane, and they’re getting worse every year. I lost count of how many days we had over 120°F this past summer.”

“I have to physically pick up my dog to take her to the potty area. Some very cheap shoes will melt on the pavement on particularly bad days, so you can only imagine what that must be like for dogs’ feet.”

“Ground temperature is always much higher, especially asphalt. My rule of thumb is to usually take my foot out of my shoe and test it if I’m not too sure, if I wouldn’t walk on it then I won’t make my dog walk on it.” ~ Almadenn

Okay, after reading these, it seems clear to me that we shouldn’t be living out in the desert.

Why?

Why are we doing this to ourselves?

Safe to say I can’t handle it.

I don’t think I’d want to worry about my shoes melting… the humidity in the Northeast is enough!

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People Share Their Best ‘How The Hell Do You Know That?’ Factoids

We all love a good fun fact.

They expand our mind just a tiny, gentle amount. Sometimes they bring a smirk to our face. And other times they’re reliable as hell during an awkward ice breaker.

So it’s not a bad idea to keep a few in your back pocket for when, say, you’ve just started a job or a first date is going horribly.

Thankfully, Redditor pygmypuffonacid was looking out for us when they asked:

“What are some ‘why the fu** do you know that information’ facts?”

Of course, you can’t go wrong with animal facts, like this one about squid. 

“Squid can literally give themselves brain damage by eating something too big. Their brain is a donut shape and the esophagus runs through it.” — orbitofnormal

Or this one, about a crustacean. 

“Crayfish (or lobster?) have a sort of open channel like an ear that helps them balance. A few grains of sand sit in it and because gravity is pulling the grains down they always know which way is up.”

“However if you put magnetic metal shavings into the holes and hold a large strong magnet above them they’ll start to swim upside down.” — XamiaArc

And do not forget about whales.

“only 10% of a whales sperm enters the mate, 90% goes into the ocean. meaning that drinking ocean water is drinking a percentage of whale cum” — SugonmaBalls

But of course, human bodies are just as bizarre. 

“Leave a human body soaking in a solution of lye and water for several months and it will dissolve into liquid and soft bone dust which can be washed down a drain, leaving no evidence behind.”

“If you need to speed the process up you can heat the water up to just short of boiling and dissolve the body in ~6 hours.” — hananobira

Same goes for human desires.

“Some foot fetishes occur because the part of the brain that controls feeling in the feet is positioned right next to the part that produces libido, and sometimes the wires within the brain become crossed.” — S_is_for_Smeagol

And how about a fact involving humans and animals both. 

“When someone dies in an area where insects can get to them, their face often decomposes first. There’s lots of nice holes on and next to the face that are great for egg-laying.”

“Then, the bugs eat your face and buzz off.” — tapiocatsar

History tidbits are always fascinating too.

Take this beer saga, for example.  

“That Rolling Rock beer almost went bankrupt in the 1990’s. As a last ditch effort they hired a new marketing exec to turn their fortunes around.”

“In their big meeting with all the board members waiting in anticipation for his big reveal he told them to just raise the price. They were ready to fire him on the spot, because they couldn’t sell any at the cheapo price.”

“Then he told them why – their price point was less than Budweiser at the time and that was the standard by which people judged the quality of a beer. He reasoned that if they increased the price to the next tier above Bud and did nothing else, people would believe it was a better beer, even though it was the same as it ever was.”

“It turned into their ad campaign and they thumbed their noses at all the yuppies who drank it by the case in college in the 70’s and 80’s who started buying it again because it was now a ‘better’ beer. It was wildly successful and saved the company.” — Finklemaier

Not all men from history are so admirable, though.

“Andrei Chikatilo, a serial killer from the USSR who was convicted of sexually assaulting and murdering at least 52 women and children, was arrested and questioned by police six years before his official apprehension date.”

“This was because police took a blood sample from him that was different than the blood group of the semen found at the scene of one of his crimes. However, obviously, Chikatilo was guilty.”

“He had a rare genetic condition in which the blood groups of his blood & saliva and his semen are different, which is how he was questioned and released.” — sylveonstarr

This guy was awful too. 

“John Kellogg (inventer of corn flakes) was a huge advocate for circumcision because he believed it would prevent us from masturbating.”

“Also he tried normalizing putting acid on the clitoris for the same reason” — TrystenConn

This guy, on the other hand, was just so unlucky. 

“Valery Khodemchuk was an engineer working the Night Shift at Chernobyl’s Reactor 4 the night it exploded.”

“He was the very first person killed in the accident, as he likely died instantly when his body was vaporized by the blast. His remains were never recovered, and the ruins now serve as his tomb.” — TheMadmanAndre

And this fella was off his rocker. 

“Opicinus de Canistris, an Italian priest who lived during the 13th and 14th centuries, believed that parts of his body metaphysically represented regions of the world, and that if he felt pain in one area, then it could mean that disaster was about to fall on that region.”

“He also drew a metaphysical “world map” that was basically pictures of random people and animals stuck together instead of an actual map of the world.”

“He actually managed to get the Pope at the time on his side. It speaks volumes about the state of science in the Middle Ages that this blatant psychotic could promote his beliefs under the guise of serving Christianity.” — ugagradlady

This fact concerned a fictional guy. 

“In Silence of the Lambs, when Hannibal Lector gives the infamous quote ‘I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti,’ it’s a reference that he’s off his meds.”

“Some antipsychotics have negative interactions with beans, red wine, and organ meats. It’s kind of an odd joke though, because Hannibal Lector is a diagnosed psychopath in the movie, and psychopathy isn’t treated with antipsychotics.” — [deleted]

Here’s hoping these facts aren’t too unnerving to dust off at a party or a team-builder.

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People Break Down The Most Random Animal Facts They Know

Did you know that the blue-and-yellow macaw can live between 65 and 70 years? To put it simply: it will likely outlive a bunch of you (including me). It can also talk and bond very closely with humans.

It’s a pretty striking and fascinating animal. They’re also pretty readily available. I ran into a woman in the park the other day who had one perched on her shoulder!

But guess what? That’s just one of the multitudes of animals on this planet, and each one is cooler than the last.

That’s what we were so kindly reminded about after Redditor SerialNarcissist asked the online community:

“What random animal fact should everyone know?”

“If you’re camping…”

“If you’re camping and you hear an animal moving around, it’s probably a skunk or a beaver or a porcupine. Bears, moose, and other large animals are surprisingly sneaky.” ~ TypicalCricket

“The ones who don’t make it…”

“A Tasmanian Devil gives birth to dozens of babies, however, the mother only has four nipples. So it’s a race for those babies to reach one of them. The ones who don’t make it are then eaten by the mother.” ~ downvotecitybitch

“Dragonfly nymphs…”

“Dragonfly nymphs are aquatic and can launch their lower jaw like a grappling hook. They use this for hunting other pond-dwelling creatures before they leave the water. Probably the most badass thing in nature for a set of wings.

“That said they have a ridiculous hunt success rate, somewhere above 90%, so you best watch out if you’re a fly just enjoying your day.” ~ TheMadMellom

“You can tell which one…”

“Elephants can be left tusked or right tusked, similar to how humans are right or left-handed. You can tell which one an elephant is by the shorter tusk, if it’s a short right tusk then they’re right tusked and vice versa.” ~ CubsFan30

“A drone bee dies…”

“A drone bee dies immediately after mating with a queen due to powerful ejaculation, causing his penis to eject from his abdomen. He dies having the best orgasm of his life.” ~ insideoutcollar

“If a male clownfish loses his partner…”

“If a male clownfish loses his partner, he will develop female reproductive parts and mate with his male offspring.” ~ [deleted]

“An owl’s eyes…”

“An owl’s eyes are so large that they are immobile, they never develop any muscles for moving their eyes inside their sockets. Instead, they move their entire head.” ~ i-throw-socks-at-a-cat

“Penguins have a gland…”

“Penguins have a gland behind their eye that converts salt water into freshwater.” ~ Ozymandias200

“Leave them alone.”

“A moose will kill you. Like… Leave it alone.”

“It will gore you. It will kick you. It will headbutt you until you’re just a shredded corpse hanging from its antlers.”

“It will kill you in your car. It will kill you in a forest. It will kill you in a swamp.”

“You can’t just run one over with your car if it’s on the road. You can’t run away once it’s spotted you.”

“They are not nice, calm, or gentle creatures. They are massive, terrifying beasts. Leave them alone.” ~ [deleted]

“If you get bitten by a cat…”

“Cat bites are way more dangerous than most people think. A cat bite might not look like much from the outside, but their long, pointy teeth penetrate deep and are much more likely to cause an infection than a dog bite.”

“If you get bitten by a cat (like when trying to pet their tummy), always disinfect the wound, even if it doesn’t look bad.” ~ WarKiel

“They are part of a group of birds…”

“European magpies are the only non-mammal species able to recognize themselves in a mirror test.”

“They are part of a group of birds called Corvids which is basically the crow family, birds such as crows, ravens, rooks, magpies, jays, and jackdaws. Corvids are the most intelligent of all the birds and some of the most intelligent animals on earth.”

“Studies are revealing more and more about this amazing group of birds and their cognitive power easily rivals apes and monkeys –– if not surpasses them. Go check out some documentaries or read up on them… it’s fascinating!” ~ Spawkee

“Orcas hunt out of boredom…”

“Orcas hunt out of boredom and will often toss the dead body of a seal around as if it was just a ball.” ~ IDAbaffal

“Some species of shark…”

“Some species of shark, like the grey nurse shark, eat their siblings (or the egg cells that would have become their siblings) while still in the uterus, meaning they become cannibals before they’re even born.” ~ Poorly-Drawn-Beagle

“They don’t even have feet…”

“Maggots can climb walls. Those don’t even have feet but god damn they hustle around the room.” ~ iremovebrains

“Call ducks were bred…”

“Call ducks were bred to aid their owners in hunting. They make loud noises to lure predators.”

“They’re cheeky, scared cutie-pies. They waggle their tail when they’re happy. They have oil from their butt which they use to clean themselves and keep themselves dry.”

“In some areas, it is illegal to own only one call duck because they’re a very social bird. They’re the cutest pets with personalities of their own.” ~ cteduck

“They are fertile only…”

“Female pandas ovulate only once a year. They are fertile only two or three days of the year.” ~ awesomecutepandas

“Generally…”

“CATS DO NOT DRINK ENOUGH WATER!!! Generally, cats don’t drink enough water to keep themselves properly hydrated.”

“In addition to the fact that their tongues aren’t designed to scoop water like dog tongues, it’s also possible for them to feel too anxious to drink from their bowl.”

“Cats in the wild derive most of their water intake from the moisture in their food. If all you feed is kibble, your cat is in a perpetual state of dehydration, which can lead to an overwhelming amount of health issues for them.” ~ OhBee86

How many of these awesome animal facts did you know?

All of them?

None of them?

Few of them?

The world is a fascinating place, isn’t it? We truly take it for granted.

We should probably stop that, especially if we want others to enjoy the wonders of the animal kingdom for years to come.

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People Divulge The Most Disturbing Facts They Almost Regret Ever Learning

I’m a big fan of horror movies and quite a few of my favorite films happen to be depressing, hard-hitting dramas the average person might not choose to watch.

But truth, as they say, is stranger than fiction and real life can often be much more disturbing than anything we might see on our screens or read in books.

For instance, have you ever heard of the Kaimingjie germ weapon attack? During World War II, the Japanese bombed the Chinese with fleas infected with the bubonic plague.

The attack is just one of the many war crimes the Japanese committed against the Chinese, and that’s including the atrocities, among them human experimentation, committed at Unit 731.

If you have the stomach for it—and I have rarely been more serious in my life—the film Men Behind the Sun dramatizes many of these crimes.

It turns out there’s no shortage of disturbing facts out there.

Let’s face it, humans are messed up.

We heard quite a few of them after Redditor Ddeddffddvvf asked the online community:

“What was a fact you regret knowing?”

“From personal experience…”

“From personal experience… just how fast pigs… process… a corpse.”

“Had an old goat die in the barn and didn’t find her for a couple of hours. At the time we had two pigs that were a few months old. Didn’t realize just how much we had messed up by letting them be in with the goats that day.”

“Come evening, we go to close up and do the evening chores, and find half of a goat spilled all over the floor with our pigs rooting around the guts. And that’s the story of how fifteen-year-old me learned to respect pigs.” ~ CalamityJay

“More people jumped…”

“More people jumped from the burning World Trade Center on 9/11 than you think. Do yourself a favor and don’t Google it.” ~ GoreyFeldman

To which this person replied:

“Seriously. I was on a 9/11 kick recently, if you want to call it that, and I came across a documentary on YouTube of footage stitched together from the first plane hitting to the final building collapsing, lasting about 1 hour and 40 minutes.”

“No interviews, just cellphone footage, old home cameras, and some news footage sprinkled in. There’s a section in the documentary of people beginning to jump one after another. It continues on for the rest of the documentary and it’s very disheartening.” ~ TheChubbyBuns

“The Challenger space shuttle…”

“The Challenger space shuttle astronauts were most likely alive and awake on the way down.” ~ thezoidberg

“An octopus penis…”

“An octopus penis is actually one of their tentacles. So if you would go and pet an octopus at Sea World or some other place you could be groping their penis.” ~ TillyOTilly

“Every year thousands of children…”

“Every year thousands of children write to Santa Clause. One of the most requested things children ask for on their Christmas lists is a dad.” ~ jadedgenie

“There was an experiment…”

“There was an experiment once where, every hour, a rat had to choose between getting fed or having the pleasure nerve of its brain stimulated. And the rat being tested starved every time. It’s pretty interesting but also kind of sad.”

“Thanks, Freeman’s Mind.” ~ Superflamegameplays

To which this person replied:

“Yes, but for those experiments, they keep the rats isolated in cages with nothing else to do. So of course they choose that option all the time.” ~ hammermuffin

“Male ducks…”

“Male ducks gang-rape female ducks.” ~ PopcornVT

To which this person replied:

“Male and female ducks are also in an evolutionary arms race to develop more and more convoluted genitals to prevent/enable the rape. I am not kidding.”

“Female ducks develop more and more convoluted vagina shapes to make it more difficult, and males respond by developing ever longer explosive spiraling corkscrew dicks.

“The females that can control when they mate (only relaxing their vaginal shape when it’s consensual) are more successful and the males who are better at raping are more successful (in the sense of passing on their genes/having more living offspring), so they just keep evolving in that direction.” ~ holysh*treddit

“Your child is more likely…”

“Your child is more likely to be abused by someone you know than a stranger. You literally have to protect children more from their own family and friends than random criminals.” ~ CerseiLemon

“The fact that at literally any second…”

“The fact that at literally any second you could lose someone you love. Everyone “knows” this but once it’s happened a few times you’re acutely aware of it. A car wreck, a miscarriage, a heart attack, stroke.” ~ SaltyTapeworm

“This is dark, but…”

“This is dark, but in the U.S., police are not legally obligated to protect you.”

“There was a case where a police department refused to enforce a restraining order or act after a father kidnapped his three daughters because they assumed he would bring them back to his wife eventually.”

“He ended up killing them and driving their bodies to the police station, where he was then shot and killed. The police department was sued for not acting, but was found not guilty.” ~ ecoseeker

“That there are…”

“That there are anywhere between 25-50 active serial killers in the United States, according to the FBI.” ~ nmacro

“So when they land on your sandwich…”

“Flies don’t have teeth. So, when they land on your sandwich and want to eat some, they barf up the contents of their stomach (often containing another animal’s s***) so the digestive enzymes can get on the food and then they eat.” ~ Tmbgkc

We apologize in advance if any of these truly scared the hell out of you. It’s a big, beautiful world out there, but we’d be lying if we told you it’s not without its horrors.

While we’re at it, we’ll leave you with this—did you know that a brain aneurysm can happen at any time?

Aneurysms are unpredictable and may not show any symptoms until they rupture.

That’s a fact that has kept me up at night sometimes. And if you didn’t know about it, then you certainly know now.

Be afraid… be very afraid.

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People Describe The Most Wholesome Facts They Know

It’s always good to add some new wholesome knowledge to your life.

Here’s extra wholesome facts from the folks on the AskReddit subReddit to hopefully make your day a little better.

Redditor PM_YOUR_HAPPY asked:

“What is the most wholesome fact you know?”

Coral Is Awesome

“Someone, while handling coral, discovered that when shattered, coral will grow back and mature at unprecedented speeds.”

“This discovery has led to the very real hope that the Earth’s endangered coral beds can be repaired quickly and efficiently” – breedlesbean

“That’s great to hear! Can you give me your source?”

“I’d really like to read more about that.” –schuelli27

“Of course! Because there are actually quite a few sources, I had a bit of trouble narrowing it down to the best ones but here is a well written article and a PBS video on it!”

“Article“

“Video” –breedlesbeans

Relief Cattle

“In 2002, Kenyan Masai tribe people donated 14 cows to the U.S. to help with the aftermath of 9/11.” –MalonePostponed

“IIRC, the US ‘accepted’ the donation, but let the cows stay in Kenya as the shipping would have been enormous.” –Little-Jim

“To add to this, they started paying the village who offered the cows to look after them on America’s behalf.” –HoundOfNoHouse

Gorilla Song

“Gorillas make up cute food songs and sing louder for the food they prefer.” –halinw191


GIPHY

“Today I Learned (TIL) I’m a Gorilla” –silkblackrose

“This sounds like my children” –IMuleIt

“This is the link from a Reddit TIL a few days ago” –MuSE555

Slumble Bees

“Bees sometimes fall asleep on flowers.” –tealgirl94

“I saw one today with its big bumble bee bum sticking out of one today and thought it was dead. Around 40 minutes later it woke up and got back to bumble beeing.” –inselaffenaktion

“They are resting as they’re tired. They can die from dehydration!”

“It is often advised to leave a teaspoon of water and sugar out for bees to drink so they can quench their thirst. It is important that we do this.”

“Always remember to feed the little fellas who spend their entire lives feeding us.” –OmenedRaven

Mr. Rogers Is Always Wholesome

“Mr. Rogers mom, Nancy McFeely Rogers, knitted all the sweaters he wore on tv.” –Cheshire_Cat8888

“Mentioning Mr. Rogers in a thread about wholesomeness is cheating.”

“And since we’re cheating anyway, I’ll take the opportunity to share his quote:”


GIPHY

“‘When I was a boy and would see scary things in the news, my mother would always say to me “look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping”‘.” –pm_me_n00d

“There is an episode of Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood (current animated spinoff of Mr. Rogers) where dad tiger says this to his son, Daniel, and I tear up every time!” –mrsgarrett27

“To add to this wholesomeness: When he would feed his fish on the show he would announce that he was doing it because the mother of a young blind girl wrote him saying her daughter was worried that the fish were not getting feed, so, he started doing it to let her know the fish were ok.” –whiteknight804

Beavers Are Actually Adorably Wholesome

“Beavers ‘close the door’ of their lodges with sticks whenever they go out and i find it incredibly cute for some reason” –doradeexplora

“Baby Beavers look like teeny adult beavers when born. Before you go ‘well duuh’, think of all the other animals – birds, humans, dogs, cats – that look similar but not identical to their adult versions.”

“Also they have fwooopy tails.” –Redditor

“Also guinea pigs. Every time I see a newly hatched guinea pig my brain cannot compute that it is EXACTLY the same as an adult guinea pig only smol.” –FlippityFelts

Dogs Are, Of Course, Ridiculously Wholesome

“Dogs, when aggressively playing with them, will sneeze to let you know that they are just playing and don’t want to hurt you.” –Agent_301

“My dog sneezes whenever she’s excited. Or going out the door. Or going for a wee. Or a poo. Or anything, really.”

“Maybe everything is exciting?” –t-scotty

“My dog does this when she gets excited about meeting someone familiar, I always thought it was something uncontrollable TIL” –SvenskBlatte

“My trainer told me that some breeds do this as a way to “clear their head” when getting excited or flustered. A person might pause for a moment and shake their head but a dog sneezes to reset themselves.”

“I was told this is especially common in terriers and other smaller breeds” –My_Invalid_Username

Dolphins Are Great Too

“Dolphins will assign other dolphins a sound, kind like a name, and even if the dolphin doesn’t know who said it’s ‘name’ it will still respond.” –lobo_Cop

“It’s even cooler than that. The dolphin’s ‘name’ is called a signature whistle.”

“A dolphin’s signature whistle usually fully develops within the first year of life, and rarely changes throughout adulthood. A calf develops its own signature whistle based on the signature whistle of an adult in its pod.”

“The calf does not copy the whistle, instead it uses it as a model. Calves tend to model their signature whistles after those of adult dolphins who they do not spend much time with.”

“This leads to the signature whistles of individual dolphins in the same pod sharing certain characteristics, almost like a family name.”

“When two dolphin meet in the open ocean, they emit their signature whistles to each other. From this they decide whether they are friends of if they should fight or run.”

“So with this information, we know that dolphins can use vocalizations to reference others. And they have a sense of permanence and continuity of others.”

“The question is do dolphins use vocalizations to reference objects, and will they do so without being taught by a human. The really cool thing is that is the basis of language.” –tweakingforjesus

Seals Are Kings Of Wholesome

“When seals feel safe and content, they do this thing.” –subjection-s

Various seals in banana poses.

“they become banana” –Rantsandopinion

“They not only become banana, they become happy and calm bananana.” –Redditor

“I actually went home on Friday for the day and was on the train from Edinburgh when I saw some seals on a rocky shore doing this. I feel happier knowing this” –CaledonianWarrior

Keeping Others From Making The Same Mistake

“There was a guy who jumped from the Golden Gate Bridge when he was 19 and immediately realized he’d made a huge mistake. He miraculously survived the fall.”

“Thanks to help from a sea lion he was kept afloat and it swam around him until he could be rescued. He is now a mental health advocate and has gone on to save who knows how many people from making that same leap.” –morbidnerd

“Kevin Hines is the guy’s name. He was a guest speaker in a class I once took.”

“Fascinating to listen to what was going through his head as he fell. Instant regret, reaching out for the rail as he fell back away from it.” –DangerBrewin

“I am not a religious person, but this really sounds like a divine intervention.” –Turhaturpa

“Well, female sea lions can act a bit interesting around divers. One kept trying to feed a National Geographic diver penguins.”

“It made numerous attempts including stuffing one into his face, and got anxious that he wasn’t taking it. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was maternal behaviour, but quite wholesome that they do it to another species.” –inselaffektion

“I like to think that in its own way, that sea lion has also helped save all those lives along with the kid who survived the lowest point in his life.” –morbidnerd

Hopefully these wholesome facts helped improve your day, even if just a little.

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Enjoy These Pics of Wonderfully Unusual Cute Pets

Genetics are pretty incredible.

Even within just one type of animal, the variation can be vast. And what’s more, there’s no limit to it. That’s how evolution works, after all.

Whether through natural selection or purposeful breeding, we’re getting new kinds of lovable doggos and kittens and other cuddly creatures all the time. And each is unique.

Let’s celebrate some notable critters here, via the good folks on Reddit.

10. Just browsing

He looks like he’s got a secret to tell me, and I can’t wait to hear it.

This dog I met with a single eyebrow from rarepuppers

9. The eyes have it

You got some kind of wisdom up in the noggin, kitty?

My boy’s right eye darken each day while left eye looses its pigment from cats

8. Good gurrrlll

She looks like she got into a bag of flour or something.

Good gurrrlll is now cookies and cream. 1.5 year difference from rarepuppers

7. Old and grey

But only in that one little spot.

This old cat only has grey ears from mildlyinteresting

6. Never forget

The sad thing is that he’ll never know.

My dog’s marking resembles an elephant from mildlyinteresting

5. Bean counters

We’re gonna be here a while.

Eggleston has some extra toes. from aww

4. Blue/green

Ironically two colors that dogs have some trouble differentiating.

My dog Basil has one perfect blue/green split eye from rarepuppers

3. Can you see the pattern?

When you finally stop being lazy and refill the printer ink.

Her pattern finally came through! from cats

2. Sanoi

Have you heard the good news? She has.

This my new pupper Sanoi! She’s about 14 weeks old and can’t figure out what to do with her ears from rarepuppers

1. The bright spot

Dang, pup, eat something why don’tcha.

My dogs Achilles are translucent in the sun. from mildlyinteresting

There’s really nothing better than the love of a good pet. And whether or not they have any distinguishing physical marks that others would notice, they’re always unique and perfect in our hearts. And that’s really what counts.

What is your pet like? Do they have any special features?

Tell us all about them in the comments, please. Spare no detail.

The post Enjoy These Pics of Wonderfully Unusual Cute Pets appeared first on UberFacts.

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These Pets Are Rocking Their Own Unique Looks

Have you ever read Charles Darwin’s groundbreaking work The Origin of Species?

I have. Well, some of it anyway. Honestly, it’s very dense and not really written for lay people like me, so what I get out of it is that birds need better beaks sometimes and they can get them because evolution does a bunch of mix ups with the bodies and whatnot and some of the new things stay and other ones go.

But if you don’t feel up to delving into a giant scientific tome like that, maybe you’d just prefer to see some adorable instances of genetic variation via these wonderful pets found on Reddit.

I think even Darwin himself would approve of that kind of education.

10. Meet Frankie

He looks like he’s trying to pick up some transmissions from space and I’m here for it.

Frankie was born with four ears and an eye deformity but he’s still purrfect from aww

9. A perfect circle

I think his first album was better.

My dog has a spot that is a near perfect circle. from mildlyinteresting

8. Hi there, Milo

Never mistrust him, he definitely nose what’s up.

This is milo, he has two noses from rarepuppers

7. Heart on my sleeve

She’s absolutely perfect.

My cat has a heart paw. from mildlyinteresting

6. Boots with the fur

(With the fuuuur)

My apple bottomed girl from aww

5. A mighty roar

I’d say his bark is worse than his bite, but he no bark.

Having a cat with no teeth makes for the funniest play biting! from cats

4. Running circles

I feel adorably intimidated right now.

My sister’s puppy has a unique fur pattern that makes it look like she has glasses from aww

3. Dirt

A fitting name for what looks to be a very good boi.

This is Dirt, his coloration makes him look like a dirty boy. But we still love him from cats

2. The brows

When you got it, flaunt it.

Very rare eyebrow pup she knows she’s on fleek from rarepuppers

1. What a mix!

The possibilities are endless.

german shepherd, timberwolf, and catahoula! cutiepie Ares says hello! from rarepuppers

So many different kinds of puppies and kitties to love, so little time to do it.

What’s your pet like? Do they have any unique features?

Tell us all about them in the comments.

The post These Pets Are Rocking Their Own Unique Looks appeared first on UberFacts.

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People Talk About What’s Much More Dangerous Than Most Folks Realize

There’s danger lurking around every corner every time you step outside your house.

Speeding cars, wild animals, sketchy people, etc.

And there are also a lot of dangerous things out there that you don’t even realize…

People on AskReddit spoke up about what is much more dangerous than most folks realize. Let’s see what they had to say.

1. Risky.

“Tylenol.

It’s actually a lot easier to overdose on than most people realize, and it slowly destroys your liver over a period of days.

Not a fun way to d** to put it lightly.”

2. Can be dangerous.

“Exploring abandoned places.

When I was a kid I would do it all the time and take photos without any form of facial protection. Fast forward years later and I learn about how toxic certain molds can be, how many older buildings used materials like asbestos which can be in the air when places are left to rot, etc. At this point I just thank God I never had to deal with the aftermath of any of that!

Also to anyone who enjoys doing this, I get it. I just want to bring awareness to the fact that if you participate a respirator and goggles should be a must!

Also as a side note, be wary of scrappers and individuals looking for a place to do drugs had a run in like that during one of the last excursions I made and it’s not fun.”

3. Gotta be careful.

“Touch screen consoles in cars. Mazda now disables touch functionality in their vehicles because they found that when drivers interact with the touch screen they drift the vehicle to the right.

Taking your eyes off the road to press 3 buttons in three different positions on the touch screen, with a latency each time you press a button, because your seat heaters are literally burning your a**, while trying to maintain control of the vehicle during freeway traffic is God d**ned dangerous.”

4. Eyes on the road.

“Deer.

Over 120 people a year d** from deer directly, and another 175 to 200 from car accidents caused by deer (with some 10,000 injuries), and more d**ths and injuries related to deer hunting. By the way, deer are pretty mean and terrible parents.

I have seen a deer push her fawn ahead of her near the food, to see if there is a predator, then, if the fawn is ok, go out and hit the fawn to get at the food herself.”

5. Heavy machinery.

“Adam Savage has a good explanation about respecting workshop equipment. Last year, he had an accident with his lathe where it almost destroyed his hand.

Seeing him get emotional about not only the accident but also that he allowed it happen was quite sobering. I think he claimed that the brief lapse of judgement was almost akin to him putting too much trust into it and he felt like he didn’t respect it at that moment.”

6. Gotta know what you’re doing.

“Horses. They weigh 1200 pounds, they’re extremely jittery, and they can crush you or kick you to d**th on accident.

And that’s just horses in general. Stallions will try to hurt you just to assert dominance. And these are animals that have been known to bite each other’s throats out when they fight.

Don’t mess with horses unless you know what you’re doing. Always be careful, even if you do.”

7. Keep an eye on that thyroid.

“Anything to do with the thyroid.

It’s a bit more well known nowadays, but when I first was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis (they told me it was Hypothyroidism at first), I didn’t even know what the thyroid was.

For people who might not know, the thyroid is a butterfly shaped gland in your throat. Without getting into it too much, it releases hormones that regulate many things. You wouldn’t expect this tiny little organ to be so important, but holy c**p it is.

I found out I had thyroid issues when I was 15 after I was constantly tired, had irregular periods (I’ve gone two months without a period before), my weight was out of wack, my mental health was constantly declining, and I had issues with breathing among other symptoms.

Apparently if I hadn’t started taking thyroid medication when I did, I would’ve gone into a coma within 2 weeks.

It didn’t help that I had a dad who constantly made fun of my weight and appearance even after finding out I had thyroid issues and learning how hard it was for me to loose weight. Turns out, his two sisters had Hypothyroidism and his brother had Hyperthyroidism.

It took quite a few years to finally find hormonal balance and I’m 20 now, but I’m doing a lot better than I was before, physically and mentally.”

8. Get moving!

“Lack of exercise.

People think if they’re sedentary but just eat so little that they don’t get overweight, then they’re just as healthy.

Sadly, no. Simply being thin does not equate to being healthy.

100 calorie snacks are not saving your life, they’re nothing but another sales tactic. A way to sell you less for more.”

9. Get out while you can.

“Toxic relationships.

Far too many s**cides happen because of bad relationships and no other way out.”

10. Swept out to sea.

“I live on the north coast of California.

People do not take seriously the signs that are posted on the beach regarding sneaker waves. If you are standing along the shoreline and not paying attention water can rush past on overtake you.

So when walking on the beach keep your head on a swivel and be mindful of the water.”

11. Don’t do it!

“I’ve heard enough horror stories from my parents who are both nurses to last me a lifetime.

Legs on the dash of a car are not allowed while I’m driving for this reason alone”

12. Put down the work once in a while.

“Working to d**m much.

I know, it’s expected, you’re a lazy f**k if you don’t. It leads to not getting rest so your body can heal, a really f**ked social life (i.e. none), and just general stress, which suppresses your immune system, appetite, and even your heart.

Also, people that nag about you not working enough. Huge health risk, both to themselves and others. We aren’t ever gonna make them happy no matter what, so f**k em, let them freak out and have a heart attack.”

13. Not worth it.

“Fights.

People are way too eager to prove who’s the bigger bada**. Hit someone the wrong way or start something with the wrong person and someone’s not going home. Then if the police show up, someone’s getting charged.

Depending on the severity of the other parties injuries and the word of witnesses, you could be going away for a very long time. Not to mention the civil suites that may bury you in debt.”

Now we want to hear from you.

In the comments, tell us what you think is much more dangerous than people realize.

Please and thank you!

The post People Talk About What’s Much More Dangerous Than Most Folks Realize appeared first on UberFacts.

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People Share Their Lovely Older Pets with the World

One of the best things any human can experience in this life is the bond we form with our pets.

And one of the most heartbreaking realities is how short their lives tend to be compared to ours.

It feels like some cruel irony – an absolutely perfect and unconditionally loving companion who only gets to stick around for about about a fifth as long as do. But that short span also makes the time we do have with them all the more precious, and to be enjoyed.

Which is exactly what these older pet owners are doing. Let’s meet some cuties. (Names invented by yours truly where not provided. I just go with the vibe.)

11. Luis – Nine Years Old

We goin for a ride today?!

This guys been with me through elementary, middle and now high school, and today he just turned 9 years old from aww

10. Lexi – Ten Years Old

Wherever you go, I’ll be right there with you.

My dog Lexi is turning 10 soon. Through college, 3 cities, 2 apartments, and our first real house – anywhere we go, we go together. from aww

9. Derpinger – Eleven Years Old

Hows come they look so very skeptical?

11 years ago today, this derpy angel fell from heaven and into my arms. from aww

8. Ramble – Fourteen Years Old

He’s a ramblin’ man, and he’s still ready for some adventure.

Meet Ramble. He’s been my best friend for 14 years and is, of course, the goodest boy. from aww

7. Lucy – Fifteen Years Old

Your time is our time, and it is valued.

My old girl is still up and running at 15 years old – I give her the biggest hugs and tell her she’s loved every single day because I will never know when she decides it’s time ? from aww

6. Kendor – Sixteen Years Old

You lay right there until he decides he’s done.

My old friend is approaching 16 years, yet he is still as fresh as he ever. Today he wanted to cuddle, so I guess my chores have to wait from aww

5. Ms. Kitty – Seventeen Years Old

She looks as vivacious as ever!

17 years later she is still my baby from aww

4. Gregory – Eighteen Years Old

In need of boops, please.

My Buddy is 18 years old today! from aww

3. Fritz – Nineteen Years Old

Practically a kitten, still.

My 19-year-old Fritz content in his favorite spot under the table from aww

2. Snag – Twenty One Years Old

There’s wisdom in those eyes.

Just turned 21 years. He has accompanied me through teenage years, college, marriage, and was still able to meet my 4 month old baby. Thank you for a lifetime of companionship…I love you with all my ?. from aww

1. My Boy – Twenty Five Years Old

He is absolutely a cutie, what are you talking about?!

He may not be a cutie but my boy turned 25(human years) today and I wanted to share his beauty with all of you from aww

Much love to them all. Go hug your pets.

Who’s your favorite pet you’ve ever had?

Tell us about them in the comments. Several-way ties allowed.

The post People Share Their Lovely Older Pets with the World appeared first on UberFacts.

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What Is the Saddest Fact You Know?

Our world is filled with sadness.

It’s a fact of life and yes, it is a huge bummer.

So I hope you’re ready to get a little depressed today…

What’s the saddest fact you know?

Folks on AskReddit spoke up.

1. Bad luck.

“A guy in my area had just retired on a Friday. The following Wednesday he was out fishing and a thunderstorm came up.

He pulled his boat out of the lake and while standing next to his car on the boat ramp lightning took him out.

5 blessed days of retirement.”

2. Goodbye.

“Read about a dolphin who had learned some basic communication and was in some sort of pen.

Dolphins can s**cide by going under water and refusing to go back up for air. This dolphin was miserable and told it’s handler goodbye before going under and ki**ing itself.

The fact the dolphin was sentient enough to choose s**cide breaks my heart.”

3. Emotional animals.

“Elephants will mourn other elephants in their group dying and will hold funerals for them and will even recognize the bones of said elephant and cry out in sadness.”

4. Wild kingdom.

“Penguins sometimes get r**ed by sea lions.

These young seals are those who can’t mate with a female because a larger sea lion controls a massive harem.

After getting r**ed, the penguins’ head are munched off most of the time.”

5. No more energy.

“All whales eventually lose the energy to surface for oxygen, so they essentially begin to sink and drown.”

6. Awful.

“For me it’s the d**th of the 13-year-old Colombian girl Omayra Sanchez in 1985.

She was trapped in water after a volcanic eruption, kneeling with her legs trapped under debris, and there was no way to extricate her without triggering a rise in the water level, which would have dr**ned her. Responders considered amputating her legs but decided that she probably wouldn’t survive, and that the most humane thing to do was to let her d**.

The would-be rescuers and some journalists stayed with her for three days while she joked and prayed and sang and left messages for her mother before d**ng of either gangrene or hypothermia.”

7. A national tragedy.

“Some astronauts in the Challenger disaster survived the initial explosion and only d**d once the orbiter hit the water

Can’t imagine how the few felt when their shuttle exploded, some of their colleagues d**d and they are plummeting rapidly to their d**ths.”

8. Sad.

“A majority of people, when asked, would rather d** at home than at the hospital.

A majority of people, when recorded, d** at the hospital rather than at home.”

9. Disgusting.

“That s** trafficking children is real, actively ongoing, and adults will be professionally doing it all across the world any any given point.”

10. Poor dogs.

“For animal testing involving dogs, most laboratories use Beagles because they are the most forgiving of the people inflicting pain on them.”

11. All alone.

“I learned today that if a grizzly bear has a single cub it will abandon it.

The hypothesis is that a single cub will need three years of care, while if she abandons a single cub now, next year or the year after that she is more likely to have twins or even triplets.”

12. Terribly sad.

“785 million people do not have access to safe water.

Access includes having having water within a 30 minute round trip for collecting it and carrying it home.”

13. Not fair.

“Bill Finger, the man who created a vast majority of if not everything that makes Batman a success today, not only never got credit in his lifetime, but was also called a liar by Bob Kane.

Kane who came up with an idea of a bat themed vigilante called The Bat-Man, later used his fathers law firm to make up a contract in which he not only got sole credit but also any major proceeds stemming from the success of Batman.

Bill d**d penniless and on his couch in a s**tty apartment in 1974 while Kane was running around telling everyone he created Batman and such.”

Do you know any sad facts?

If so, share them with us in the comments.

Thanks a lot!

The post What Is the Saddest Fact You Know? appeared first on UberFacts.