Raccoons generally prefer to remain unseen when they're stealing food from unsuspecting humans, since many humans will kill a raccoon caught with their paws in the cookie jar.

But this stealthy style of thievery seems to be used only by city raccoons, because coastal 'coons don't give a crap about stealth or sublety.

Case in point- this video posted by Janna Breslin which shows her struggle with a brazen coastal 'coon from Weeki Wachee Springs in Florida as the critter tries to snatch her bag.

(YouTube Link)

-Via Boing Boing

Cat owners know that their pets can be finicky eaters, and we even make jokes about cats rejecting expensive gushy noms out of a desire to exasperate us. It might not be the food at all that's causing the problem. It might be the bowl they eat from. If a cat's whiskers are not compatible with the dish, it might suffer from sensory overload that makes eating unpleasant, and possibly not worth the effort. This is called whisker fatigue.

Whisker fatigue is a fairly new diagnosis, one that many (but not all) veterinarians take seriously. When cats have to stick their faces into deep bowls and their whiskers rub up against the sides, the experience can be stressful, prompting them to paw the food onto the floor, fight with other cats or grow apprehensive at mealtimes.

“I think it’s just one of those things where people say, ‘Oh, cats are just finicky eaters,’ and everyone thinks it’s a joke,” said Ms. Gardner, a 51-year-old fiction writer and blogger in Langhorne, Pa. “After reading some articles about this, I was like, maybe this isn’t a joke after all.”

The solution to whisker fatigue is a wider, flatter food dish. Pet companies sell "whisker friendly" dishes just for that purpose, but usually a regular plate works just as well. Read more about whisker Fatigue at the New York Times. -via Nag on the Lake

(Image credit: Carsondelake)

Of course cats are into physics experiments. In 1975, Jack Hetherington wrote a physics paper called Two-, Three-, and Four-Atom Exchange Effects in bcc 3He. His co-author has since become famous in science circles, because he was a cat. And that came about because giving him credit was easier than re-typing.  

Before sending it to the Physical Review Letters, Hetherington noticed he’d been using the pronouns “we” and “us” throughout the paper, even though he was the sole author. Instead of editing the piece—which was written on a typewriter—Hetherington cleverly added his cat as co-author.

At least FDC Willard wrote papers, not just pee'd on them! http://t.co/Uhh3QOmArJ #AcademicCats pic.twitter.com/JAL6AQvFkQ

— Academia Obscura (@AcademiaObscura) August 6, 2014

Even more interesting is how the cat got the pen name F.D.C. Willard, which is told at Gizmodo.

You always hear stories about cat people and dog people, so why don't we hear a peep about bird people? We probably don't hear about them because they're stuck at home taking care of their clingy little feathered dinosaur and cleaning its poop out of their hair.

I kid, I kid, but anybody who has owned a parrot, macaw, etc knows how attached those birds can become to their owners, and they know that a smart bird is a bratty bird. So imagine how much trouble a magpie would cause if humans were foolish kind enough to let one of the world's smartest birds move in with them.

Wait, don't bother imagining the magpie madness, watch this episode of BBC's My Unusual Life about The Man Who Lives With A Magpie and you'll see what it's like. Basically it's for the birds! *grin* (NSFW language)

(YouTube Link)

Wildman and Brave Wilderness host Coyote Peterson isn't afraid to go to extremes to track down and handle whichever insect he's currently obsessed with, but sometimes his bug obsession makes him act without thinking first.

Like the time he shaved his beard off just so he could replace it with a squirming mass of European honey bees- Coyote didn't look right without his signature scruff, and he looked even less right after the bees stung the hell out of his face.

Apparently getting stung by a bunch of bees hurts worse than the sting of a bullet ant- who knew?!

(YouTube Link)

-Via Laughing Squid

We previously talked about how New York created a law requiring all dogs on the subway to be in a carrier -and how clever residents just started carrying extra large bags to get around the law.

Over on PetsLady, you can see some truly delightful images of ways people have skirted the law including this pooch in an Ikea bag because I guess the law didn't specify that the dog's legs have to be inside the carrier with it.

Even when the carriers holding the pooches aren't preposterous, the results can be pretty precious. You never know where you might spot a cute little face looking back at you.

So check out the full gallery of hilarious "pet carrier" photos from the New York subway

There aren't many cat species who swim by their own choice. Tigers are one of them. Sydney's Australia Zoo has a pair of tiger cubs named Spot and Stripe. In this video, tiger expert Giles Clark introduces them to the tiger pool for their first swim. They aren't all that sure about the new concept, but once they are in the water, they are quite at home.

(YouTube link)

This is a clip from the BBC series Tigers About The House, which follows Clark's effort at hand-raising the rare Sumatran tiger clubs. He has to watch Spot and Stripe constantly, lest they stalk the family dog or get into other tiger business. (via Tastefully Offensive)

Cats are weird. Some cats are weird often enough that you get a good picture, or maybe several, of them doing their weird thing. Shown above, redditor fastandfurry shared a picture of a friend's cat just chilling out in the bathroom. Below, Jimbokoln has a cat who likes to admire himself in the mirror -or maybe he's just practicing his villain face.

Bored Panda has 475 submitted pictures of cats acting odd, enough to keep you busy through half the weekend. -via Metafilter

Divers learn to steer clear of sharks and other predators who see them as a snack, and they tend to keep dolphins and other inquisitive mammals at bay for safety's sake, but their relationship with seals remains uncertain.

That's because seals have been known to attack humans in the water for no apparent reason, and their playful and curious nature can result in injuries for humans they decide to use as a plaything.

But when diver Gary Grayson was approached by a curious seal while diving in the Scilly Isles he wasn't afraid or worried about being attacked- because he was just as curious about the little critter as the critter was about him.

Next thing you know the seal did something totally unexpected- he flipped over and asked Gary to rub his belly!

(YouTube Link)

-Via Bored Panda

Some animals make hostile facial expressions that look like they're smiling, and this misinterpretation of their angry or aggressive "smile" can spell trouble for humans who don't know better.

But there's no mistaking the smile on Kohaku the Gecko's sweet little face- because it's the face of pure joy brought about by his little lizard toy.

Kohaku's human Taylor Nicole Dean gave him the little plastic lizard just to see what he would do, and Kohaku was so delighted with his new buddy Taylor let him keep the toy and started snapping pics of the adorable pair.

Now Kohaku has a friend for life who won't steal his food and doesn't make a squeak- unless Kohaku squeezes him too tight!

-Via Top 13

Rhinos are born to be badasses, but before they can take down a Jeep with their charge they have to start small- by charging at little plastic barrels.

The eager little black rhino in this video is Moyo, and he was born just a few weeks ago at the Saint Louis Zoo. Moyo's part of the zoo's Species Survival Plan for critically endangered species, and since there are only about 5000 black rhinos left in the wild his birth is important to species conservation.

Plus he has already starred in his own viral video!:

Our “tough guy” Moyo doesn’t have his horns yet, but that doesn’t stop him practicing his charge! The 2-week-old black rhinoceros calf is very active and zookeepers provide him with a variety of toys and enrichment throughout the day. Play is important for baby animals – it’s how they learn the skills they will need as adults.

(YouTube Link)

-Via Laughing Squid

Mohan is one of the red panda triplets at Symbio Wildlife Park in New South Wales, Australia. The others are Raja and Phingu. In this video, Mohan busy being cute for zoo visitors, and enjoys getting his belly rubbed.

(YouTube link)

There, that should make your whole work day go better. -via Tastefully Offensive

As the kids at Sunflower Farm Creamery (previously at Neatorama) are weaned, they are separated from their mothers for longer periods of time so they will learn to eat grain and hay and to drink water. But in the morning they are off to visit their mamas for some breakfast! Then it's playtime.

(YouTube link)

When they are ready, they'll be taken to new homes, except for Mildred, who will be staying permanently. You can see Mildred and read her story here. -via Tastefully Offensive

The police department represents safety, security and defense to many people, and therefore police stations are seen as extremely safe spaces because there are so many cops coming and going from the station all day every day.

But sometimes things go all Assault On Precinct 13 because bad guys like to target cops when they have nothing left to lose, and apparently so do rogue rodents.

(YouTube Link)

This horrifying security camera footage was shot inside the Saint Petersburg police station in Florida, but the same kind of savage animal attack can happen at a station near you.

-Via Boing Boing

We say some really strange stuff to our pets and act like it's NBD even though we feel weird saying those same strange things to our pets when people are around, so how NBD can it really be?

We want to believe our pets really like it when we call them "pretty boy" or "sweet girl" or "the handsomest boy in the whole wide world", and maybe they do. Who am I to pretend like I know?

I don't speak dog or cat or goat or goldfish so I don't know what they have to say, but according to this SketchShark comic telling your dog he's "a handsome boy" may give him a big head.