Tierisch Menschlich

I’m dedicating this post to my childhood friend, and sidekick in all the best adventures: Toska. He passed away last night. It’s the bitter-sweet truth of what we, as animal lovers, evidently have to face. We all deal with it differently, and have our own stories and experiences. But in the end, it’s quite an emotional shock. For me, it’s …

We have all experienced the death of a loved one – that is not the question. The question is; do I mourn the way you do? Vice Versa? One step further… will chimps mourn as we do over the death of a family member or friend? See for yourself! Every being on this planet feels something – there’s no reason …

Here’s a side of brown bear’s we don’t see often. Most of us that is… The snoozing, shmoozing, socializing side! Through the “eyes” of this female brown bear or, rather, the lens of the attached camera, we get the chance to see what it’s like to be a bear in the world of bears. Brilliant! We always get the tough, …

For the most part it’s the furry, cute mammals that get all the attention. Puppies, kittens, ponies – almost anyone will stop to give them a cuddle and some baby-talk. Insects, on the other hand, easily go about their day unnoticed. Perhaps a beautiful monarch, like the one above, will get a remark like, “Oh look! A butterfly!” But will …

(Koko holding her kitten, All Ball, whom she named for her “round”, small shape.) Koko: kitten-cuddler, movie-watcher, musician, student of sign language… Gorilla! I am not sure whether Koko was born in captivity, but she was definitely raised amongst people from a young age. How she began the amazing process of learning sign language is explained in the video below! …

It’s not enough, apparently, that technology permeates all aspects of our daily lives. Now apes, ape-arently, are next! Apes using iPad apps? “It’s not a gimmick,” Orangutan Outreach founder, Richard Zimmerman, told Yahoo News.  “If they don’t want to do it, they won’t. There are actual measurable benefits.” It’s true that apes in our modern-day zoos are well-fed, socialized and cared …

Everyone has their own view how dog owners and society should go about preventing dog attacks. In Berlin, Germany, people are passionately discussing if citizens should be required to get a “dog license,” certifying that their dog is safe, well socialized, and under control at all times. The idea is that in large metropolitan cities, dogs would be required to …

Over the weekend, I rediscovered the wonderful book The Little Prince. I had forgotten how much of it was relevant to this blog and its message! So here’s a little excerpt from the book – The part where the little prince meets the fox. The fox tells him that you must be responsible for what you tame. Reading this may …

Vulnerability. Shame. Feeling that you’re not enough. These are emotions that we have to face when we are around animals. We open up to them and find ourselves facing these feelings that we might have at one point or another buried deep inside our mind somewhere. I strongly believe that this is why humans make such miraculous changes, sometimes immediately, …

I have found Marc Bekoff to be a wonderful animal activist and behaviourist – he has such a clear, common-sense way of presenting ideas and concepts! The topic of animals, their emotions, and how they are, or rather how they should be, treated in today’s world is a topic I often have trouble explaining: finding the “right” words can prove …